THUNDERBIRD Resorts Inc., which made its name first in the gaming industry, is betting that the winning formula it has developed can also pay off in the hospitality business.

“What’s interesting about Thunderbird is that it came out of our gaming and entertainment background,” said Jack Mitchell, chief executive officer of Thunderbird Resorts. “We started the business in California, USA, where we were much known in doing consulting and management agreements to start the largest casinos there—some of which are now billion-dollar [earners]—owned by the Native Americans. And that’s where we built the company from—we went to Central and Latin America, as well as in Europe, and worked with Asians when we came to the Philippines five years ago.”

Mitchell is one of the founders of Thunderbird Resorts. At the latter part of his 16-year legal career organizing casinos in California, he got exposed to the hospitality business and began his foray with his partners during a challenging year when the financial crisis that crippled the Asian economies in 1997 brought forth a more cautious investing attitude worldwide.

“Actually, it’s [hospitality business] one of the most dynamic businesses I’ve ever been exposed to and even resilient during tough times back then and now that we’re facing again another round of economic shock,” he stressed. “Otherwise, I won’t still be working in it for a little over 10 years now.”

World-class brand

MULTINATIONAL property developer Thunderbird Resorts Inc. started building dynamic, themed and integrated facilities in 1997. All its properties are anchored by casinos so as to differentiate itself from the competition.

“We have the gaming component in many of our properties because we want to focus on creating a lot of venues for entertainment so the guests can enjoy exceptional experiences they cannot find somewhere else,” Mitchell noted. “Also, we create places that have a lot of different things that are fun to do.”  

While in the past Thunderbird Resorts has successfully developed several leisure and entertainment facilities in other countries, including Panama, Peru, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Costa Rica and Poland, this never stopped the resort firm to further expand its brand globally, especially in areas with high growth potential like the Philippines.

“Our overall strategy is to be in the developing parts of the world that have the most future,” Mitchell said. “We believe—stronger than ever—that the time we came here, the Philippines is one of the most promising economies around the world with great human resource and entertainment opportunities. That’s primarily what convinced us to bring our brand from Latin America and Europe to Asia through the Philippines.”

Serving as its platform for growth in the Asian market, Thunderbird’s first hotel and gaming facility in Binangonan, Rizal, opened in April 2005. Its second casino and hotel and golf course in Poro Point, La Union, opened in April 2006 and May 2008, respectively. These properties boast of their world-class entertainment and leisure facilities to the delight and surprise of the customers.

Located 210 feet above sea level in an upland valley of the Sierra Madre mountain range, Thunderbird Resorts Rizal is directly adjacent to an 18-hole championship golf course, the Eastridge Golf Club. This resort currently has 41 rooms, expandable to 200 rooms over time. Guests can sample great food and amusement here as it is a home to themed restaurants and entertainment bars such as Koi Restaurant, The Pool Bar and Cabana Bar; not to mention the Fiesta Casino, which offers top-of-the-line gaming facilities. Other amenities include an infinity pool and outdoor Jacuzzi overlooking the nearby golf course; volleyball, basketball and billiards areas; complimentary WiFi and Internet hook-up; and in-house massage service.

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Thunderbird Poro Point, La Union

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As a global brand, Thunderbird is very strict about maintaining high standards in all of its properties to ensure consistency of the brand.     

“It’s really a challenge not only for us, but all the hospitality companies, to make sure that we have very rigorous standards. Obviously, here in the Philippines and in our properties abroad we have a lot of systems built in to monitor the performance of each of our facilities while faithfully adhering to our standards,” the executive said. “We work every single day to make our standards more defined and adaptable to the local culture. And I’m proud to say that the whole organization, including the top management and all of our staff, are in unison creating and maintaining high-brand standards of our own.”

To date, Thunderbird Resorts has already generated over 1,000 jobs and invested more than $50 million to both its local properties. In the next 10 years, it has committed additional funding of up to $150 million.

For the development of the resort’s first phase in Rizal, the company has already poured $22 million in investment, thus helping boost the municipality of Binangonan as an “alternative destination that provides high-end venue for business clients’ corporate affairs, conventions and conferences, while also being a first-class travel and leisure getaway fitted for family vacations, weddings and sports events.”

Meanwhile, a total of $28 million has been infused in the construction of the entertainment resort in Poro Point in its first three years of operation. An additional investment of $42 million is being allocated to implement the second phase of its development, including an additional nine-hole golf course, and cottages and villas. Once completed, these could further draw more tourists to visit the province of La Union, and eventually help in the national government’s thrust to promote the Philippines as a destination of choice for both retirement and medical tourism.  

“And that’s what we do,” said Mitchell. “We create a place that the government can now market to both local and international tourists for them to come and enjoy that unique Filipino hospitality complemented by the amenities and services offered by our company.”

Good business prospects

GOOD businesses take time to build. This holds true for Thunderbird Resorts, which in its five years of operations in the Philippines has already carved its own niche in the market and gained ground as fast as it could.

“Since 2005, we’ve seen a lot of growth in our business. We’re in excess of 70-percent growth in revenue in both properties. So it’s a pretty encouraging scenario that we’re working here,” Mitchell stressed, citing the improving economy of the Philippines amid global recession that helped improve their business.  

Looking forward, Mitchell said he remains bullish on its business prospects by end of the year and beyond.

“I think we’ll have a lot of growth in the Philippines. Of all the countries we are in the world, it’s going to be our highest growth market. So we plan on making significant additional investments here. It’s going to be one of the countries that we shall focus on more as our hub for further expansion in Asia,” he said.