Increased footfall boosts Holland Casino H1 revenue
Dutch gambling monopoly Holland Casino has reported a 12% year-on-year rise in revenue for the opening six months of 2019, aided by increased visitor numbers and customer expenditure.
Revenue for the period ended 30 June 2019 amounted to €354m (£321.7m/$392.2m), up by €38m on the corresponding period last year.
Visitor numbers were up 9% year-on-year across the Netherlands during the period, partly due to the reopening of facilities in Groningen and Amsterdam West-Sloterdijk.
The first half represents the first six-month period since the second half of 2017 that Holland Casino had all 14 of its casino facilities in the Netherlands open.
The monopoly also noted a 3% increase in the average spend per customer per visit to over the period.
While Holland Casino did not provide a full breakdown of its first half performance, it said net profit after corporation tax was up 13% to €32.5m.
The operator's chief executive Erwin van Lambaart praised Holland Casino's performance, saying the upturn in financial results showed the ongoing positive impact of the operator’s HC2020 initiative to revamp its estate.
“The upward trend is also the result of the strategic choices we have made in our long-term strategy HC2020,” he said. “Through this we are future-proofing our company, and ensuring we are prepared for the challenging competitive conditions that we have faced and will face [in future].”
“By investing heavily in high-quality hospitality and guest experience, food and beverage and innovative gaming concepts, we remain in control of our own future,” he added. “Naturally, our Gambling Prevention Policy [responsible gaming policy] remains the foundation of our company.”
Looking to the future, van Lambaart said the operator would look to “set the standard” for safe and responsible gambling when the Dutch igaming market opens. The operator has an agreement in place with Playtech to power its igaming offering.
The Netherlands is set to open its regulated market on January 1, 2021 after the Dutch Senate in February passed the Netherlands’ Remote Gambling Act.
Subject to approval from the Ministry of Justice and Security, laws will come into force from July 1, 2020, after which national regulator Kansspelautoriteit will draw up licence conditions and process applications ahead of the proposed launch date six months later.
van Lambaart also committed to new product innovations at Holland Casino’s existing land-based locations and facilities across the country.
“A good example of this is the Experience Zone for new players, which has been successfully developed in-house,” he said. “We have already achieved good results with this in Utrecht.
“We will introduce this concept at the end of this year in a second casino, and in the first quarter of next year in a third location.”
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