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Mona Shield Payne / Special to the Sun
The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas debuts its signature marquee featuring full-bleed videos on Aug. 3, 2010.
Published Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2010 | 11:01 a.m.
Updated Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2010 | 3:34 p.m.
Map of Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas
Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas
3708 S. Las Vegas Blvd. , Las Vegas
The under-construction Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas resort has entered into an agreement with hotel giant Marriott International to help funnel Marriott customers to the $3.9 billion property.
The 2,995-room Cosmopolitan, which opens Dec. 15, will become the largest property in Marriott's "Autograph Collection" - a new brand that includes independently owned and operated hotels seeking to tap Marriott's database of 32 million customers.
As part of an agreement finalized Tuesday, the Cosmopolitan will participate in the Marriott Rewards guest loyalty program and be listed on Marriott's Ritz-Carlton website as a partner hotel.
The agreement also gives the Cosmopolitan access to a Marriott network of about 130 salespeople who will sell blocks of rooms for conventions and other groups staying at the Cosmopolitan.
Marriott launched the Autograph Collection last year to give members of its loyalty program access to boutique properties with distinct identities beyond the usual chain hotel. The Cosmopolitan is the first Las Vegas property and the only casino resort to join the group.
"Marriott has been looking for some time for an iconic property in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip and The Cosmopolitan exceeds our expectations for inspiring design, luxurious rooms and meeting space that will draw the world's top customers year-round," Marriott International Chairman and CEO J.W. Marriott Jr. said in a statement.
The marketing arrangement is one way in which hotels are seeking new customers in a sour economy that has slashed travel spending. The Cosmopolitan, planned before the recession, will be opening at a difficult time for the Strip and casino industry, which has seen its share of bankruptcies in recent months.
The deal with Marriott will help establish the Cosmopolitan as an upscale brand competing alongside the Strip's most luxurious properties, resort CEO John Unwin said today.
Marriott won't manage the property yet requires that Autograph Collection hotels be operated to four- and five-star standards of cleanliness and service, he said.
"This platform enables us to build an iconic luxury brand at the heart of the Las Vegas Strip while simultaneously leveraging the 7th largest retail website in the world," he said.
The Cosmopolitan had previously discussed management deals with hotel giants including Hyatt and Hilton. After acquiring the Cosmopolitan out of foreclosure in 2008, owner Deutsche Bank decided against outsourcing management to a third party, instead hiring its own talent to run the resort.
Nongaming hotel companies don't necessarily have experience operating megaresorts in Las Vegas, said Unwin, who ran Caesars Palace before joining the Cosmopolitan last year.
"There's a lot of talent here on the team, from Las Vegas and outside Las Vegas, that we've put together" in recent months, he said.
The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas dares to be different. From the hotel’s red reservations desks to fine art found throughout the resort, The Cosmopolitan’s signature style is helping to pave its own path on the Las Vegas Strip.
Upon entering the resort, you’re greeted by pillars of video boards playing video art by Digital Kitchen and David Rockwell Studio exclusively produced for The Cosmopolitan. Just beyond that, you’ll find all your favorite casino games on the resort’s 100,000-square-foot casino floor.
The Cosmopolitan’s rooms standout as the resort’s most unique feature. About 2,220 of The Cosmopolitan’s 2,995 rooms have 6-foot deep terraces that span the length of the room, a first at a modern Strip hotel. Other in-room amenities include soaking tubs, kitchenettes and quirky accessories like artsy coffee table books.
The dining experience at The Cosmopolitan isn’t something you’ll find at other Strip resorts, either. All of The Cosmopolitan’s 13 restaurateurs are new to the Las Vegas market. You’ll find American steakhouse fare in a modern setting at STK, top-notch sushi at Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill and the freshest fish flown in from the Mediterranean daily at Estiatorio Milos.
Whether the sun is up or down, Marquee Nightclub & Dayclub is the place to find the party at The Cosmopolitan. The venue is a dayclub/nightclub, complete with a pool and cabanas outside and three different rooms with three different vibes inside.
If nightclubs aren’t your thing, you can grab a drink at one of The Cosmopolitan’s five other bars, like The Chandelier, which is encased in 2 million dripping crystals.
This looks like a great partnership and a solid win for all involved.
It's perhaps a good bar against the recession, and a leg up for this resort.
Congratulations Mr. Unwin and to the Cosmopolitan!
Super smart move. With Harrahs getting leads from Hilton National Sales, the rumor was that this hotel was going to be with Hilton. Being that they are the only Strip hotel associated with Marriott really allows them to cover themselves when they open the hotel.
Smart move after so many poor ones for this hotel.
Cosmopolitan is definitely the most anticipated opening in Las Vegas in years for me! I'll be there partying it up.
They really needed to have some sort of established customer database to help fill rooms. Merely stealing from other operators was not going to be enough.
Marriott = database... it's brand loyalty.
Does anyone know what Marriott's treatment of there employees has been like lately? are they following Harrah's lead?
A good marketing move for the new hotel. Now as it fills which properties become more vacant? The Cosmopolitan has already admitted they expect to take from other hotels. As these hotels lose occupancy they will discount to try and survive. The result is cheaper rooms and lower tax revenue for the city and the state.
The spiral continues as American's are too broke to come play with 'excess' dollars. How did the stimulus not save us? How did all the spending not help the economy recover? How could all of the promises and theories have been wrong? Did we have the wrong ideas on how to bring the economy back and really just made it worse?
Great move for the Cosmo!
Another Hotel that will be popular for 6 months and then will be crying that they are losing money...
sounds like a lot of future employees posting positive things all of sudden about this property---which is a slow moving train wreck. The room rates they are trying to get is the $200-300 range which is what all the other new properties tried to do--NEWSFLASH--Didn't work at those properties either! $99 is all these places should be getting during the week and this place is no different. Over under is 24 months for the second bankruptcy.
Let's not kid ourselves. Either the Cosmo will be a failure and will be snatched up by Harrah's or MGM for pennies on the dollar, OR it will be such a success that Harrah's or MGM will make it an offer that it too attractive to refuse. The point is the Strip is controlled by two companies now and there's no room for a newcomer to enter the market and expect to be successful without a huge database of gamblers.
roquerunner - where are you today. You had strong comments about my post yesterday - does any of this change your mind?
Since Marriott's, all brands of them, are smoke free I wonder if the casino floor will be also?
There, see, he has a database after all! :banana:
Did we have the wrong ideas on how to bring the economy back and really just made it worse?
We made the wrong move by sending billions to those crooks up on Wall Street , instead of sending it to those who needed it most. What is the logic in giving millions more to someone who already has everything, as opposed to giving it to someone who needs help to keep a roof over their head and food on the table?
Excellent business decision. Good luck, Cosmopolitan.
Ah, the game is afoot.
New blood to an area in need of it. It will be interesting to see how they do.
As long as Harrah's and MGM are not involved we can just hope that this outfit will breath some new life into the Strip.
Of course if Harrah's and MGM decide to take on Cosmo with markedly lower room rates, Cosmo could be in big trouble. I don't think they could handle a price war with those two big dogs -- Especially if MGM decides to cut rates at Aria.
Check out by LV blog:
http://jimmyhoofa-lv.blogspot.com/
leonard;I'm right here back at ya.Funny I didn't hear any comeback from u about about what I wrote,what the heck do you think now after what I wrote?Didn't figure out I was trying to save your ass from making a big mistake?No,It dosen't change my mind about the econimics of this boondogle.
It's going to be even more expensive to run this place.Do u think Marriot's is doing this for them for free?Their going to demand their cut out of the action.Every time u bring in some sort a middle man they must be paid.Isn't it a Universal truth if u want something done right,or done cheaper u will do it yourself.If this axiom is no longer valid for most, it still is for me.I wish u luck on your 6 month escapade,don't say I didn't warn u.
The thing none of you realize about the Cosmopolitan is that it is OWNED by Duetsch Bank. Being that they are a bank, they can hold onto it for a while if they want, or they can open it, show it's profitable, and sell it. Duetsch Bank is a powerhouse much larger than either MGM or Harrah's. Maybe they aren't locally, but internationally they are. This property seems like it has the recipe for success.
Some powerhouse Duetch bank is. They were underhandidly slipped billions of the taxpayers dollars when the Fed bailed out A.I.G. because of their idiotic derivitives trades.Then the Germans had to bail them out in the same mode and scale as Citibank.I don't really care who they are,nobody holds on to a losing asset for long once it becomes apparent they are digging a hole.You wan't out of a hole the first thing u do is stop digging.Use a little 4th grade math and u will discover the hole is already too deep before they even get started.They are going to HAVE to gouge the customer to all hell just to stay alive to pay back that3.9 billion.You didn't think that just because they are a bank they don't have to pay it back did u?Well if that's the case we really didn't have to worry about Washington Mutual did we?Sorry,Duestch Bank was already too deep into this thing,It would have been a sure loss for them if they had just gave up on it.But throwing good money after bad could be alot worse for them.They will in my estimation never be profitable.A recipe for success dosen't start out with being up to your eyeballs in leveraged debt.At some point in the near future,they will default on these loans and some entity will pick it up for a song.Then they will make money because they didn't have to gouge the customer because their debt was so much smaller.I don't care if people don't want to hear that this is a simple math equation or not.I'm not investing in this place,and my 10 year old told me she's not either.I'm sure the Cosmo accountants all have their fingers in their ears going la la la la...,Don't blame them,they have to be yes men to keep their jobs don't they?
Yes, we need another hotel/casino about as much as we need obama for a second term.
If Dirty Harry would back the e-verify system for present and future employees that already work in these places, there would be plenty of jobs for American citizens!
But Dirty Harry is willing to sell us out to get the illegal mexican votes. Or should I say the "displaced workers vote"...
Obama and Reid want to reward these illegals that break the law in exchange for their vote!
Just because you have the ability to build and open a new hotel/casino in Las Vegas doesn't mean it'll fly! Remember "Main Street Station"....
It takes a certain kind of maverick to run these places. But trying to make money on the food, drinks, entertainment and rooms is a no no!
Just get 'em in the door, then nicely steal their money.
They're all a house of cards waiting to fall down!
Our town has plenty of hotel rooms. We just need some competion amongst the quality ones. Now we have a contender! Keep mgm away from it, they will ruin it and run like the other properties they take over. They do not know the hotel business. The employees make it happen and the top execs sit around the dinner table and talk about the money. That is all they know. "let them build another, we'll just buy it later". They really cant have normal conversations or
lives. Overpaid corporate divas. Let the employees run the ship and this town will come back!
Fantastic news. Glad to see Marriott and The Cosmopolitan working together. Can't wait for it to open.
Hopefully this upscale brand will have the ability to offer a $50 room without jeopardizing their Marriott brand. Big egos are at play here and big egos usually dont get along in the long run.
How long will it take you people to figure out - America is running on empty.
Looks like I figured it out. It was Jackson Browne that was "Running On Empty"
z_white_knight, what is there about Main Street Station as you mentioned?
It looks to be up and running.
I don't know their financials, but they are surely open for business under Boyd.
Denro, when Main Street Station originally opened in the early 90s, it was owned by an Australian businessman, not Boyd. He thought he could bring a new type of casino to Vegas, and it failed miserably. There was no buffet, which may seem like no big deal. However, I had a friend working there as a coffee shop hostess, and she said people left in droves when they found out. Also, if I remember correctly, there were no "meal deals" at the restaurants, back in a time where the cheap meal still ruled Vegas. He went bankrupt. When Boyd bought the property, they used the hotel only for quite some time but kept the casino part shuttered.
BTW, haters, if I got any of this wrong, please just correct me in your post without skewering me and telling me I'm a moron. Thanks, its been a long week.
I welcome it and I will check it out. It's refreshing to have a non-mgm/harrahs property out there. If they skip the resort fees and don't have 6:5 blackjack or three green numbers on a roulette wheel I give them a chance. I only spend my money at the non-mgm/harrahs properties and I will give these guys a fair chance. Marriott is a good company. This is only a tie-in with Marriott but should be a win-win for both of them. As for Deutchbank, they've done some things wrong but try not to be too hard on them. At least they've invested in Las Vegas.
Light foot;That sounds pretty resonable.Who of us is given much of a fair chance anymore?Let it slide on Deutch,not much of a difference between emm anymore.
yah;These monstrous hotels were built for a bygone era.An era built on massive credit expansion.Built for an economy of extended luxury,then it exploded in their faces when the credit and housing bubble burst.Overbuilt and over luxurified for the new reality of joe 6 pack wanting a deal as their main customer,they are overburdened with too huge imbedded costs to be able to provide u with that level of service,for long,before they call the show off!