Harrods still looking for Las Vegas casino partner

Wednesday, June 26, 2002 | 11:08 a.m.

The London department store Harrods -- one of the world's most-recognized brands -- also is the company behind a popular Internet website that gathers 150,000 visitors per month, serves gamblers who spend more at its online casino than competitors' sites and obtains those customers at lower cost.

That's according to the company's online casino chief, who spoke to a conference of Internet gambling operators and marketers in Las Vegas Tuesday.

Despite its presence in the gambling industry, a Harrods shopping and gambling emporium in Las Vegas isn't on the immediate horizon, mainly because Harrods hasn't yet found the right business partner, Andrew Tottenham, director of Harrods Leisure Ltd., said in an interview following his presentation.

Harrods is still interested in launching a Strip resort, he said. The company has held informal discussions over the past several years with local operators about the prospect.

Harrods, an upscale shopping destination, isn't interested in managing a casino floor, he said.

That means it must seek a partner, preferrably an experienced Strip operator, willing to suppress its image to operate and promote a Harrods-themed resort, he added.

Finding an available and appropriate site for such a resort also is a challenge, he noted.

Harrods' online wagering site, Harrods Casino Online, is run by a subsidiary of a separate company, Gaming Insight PLC. Harrods receives a percentage of the site's gross gaming revenues as well as a piece of revenues after expenses.

The company also is interested in launching Internet gambling operations in the United States and is following regulatory developments here closely, Tottenham said. While many visiting Harrods' website are American, the online casino doesn't accept bets from the United States, he said.