In The Ropes, Eater Vegas talks to the nightlife heavyweights. These are the guys and gals who help run the show and orchestrate dreams at the nightclubs in Las Vegas.
Rebeccah Gannon at Wet Republic [Photo: Julio Castillo]
Rebeccah Gannon is the director of guest services at Wet Republic, the original daytime pool party over at the MGM Grand. That title means she deals with casino royalty, the CEOs and high rollers who come through the dayclub and want the best experience of their life. “Every day it’s someone new,” she says. In this edition of The Ropes, we get Gannon’s take on what it takes to make casino royalty happy.
How is hosting at a dayclub different then a nightclub?
?It’s very different because people coming to the pool parties, they’re interested in a unique experience. They want you to go more outside the box. Someone might want a swimsuit some other girl is wearing or a specialty cocktail you can only get at night. At night, they just go there to party. During the day, they expect to mingle and meet people. They want you to go to the extra mile for them, and you should.
How do you take care of big clients?
First, I think it’s really about listening to the and understanding their needs. I do research beforehand what they own and operate. Its about being that person for them, doing anything they need. Well, pretty much anything they need, as long as it’s legal.
We had a big CEO who wanted one of our hosts to dress up like Gumby. I don’t know where he got the costume. We’re giving them something they wouldn’t get anywhere else.
What’s the most extravagant experience you can create?
?It depends. It starts with something as simple as a bachelor, bachelorette or birthday party where we decorate the cabana. Some people want us to buy a Rolex. We’ll go do that for them. Not with our money. We have a $100,000 bottle of alcohol. We have guys who come in who want that experience
What should the average customer do to ensure that they can get on Labor Day weekend??
Definitely make reservations beforehand. Showing up is not the method of getting in. We like to prescreen anyone coming in, especially for a cabana or bungalow so we can create that VIP experience.
Does anything go for dress code?
?No. We actually have a very strict dress code. Some of the guys we’re dealing with come dressed in suits. It’s odd, but they think it impresses the girls. Gentlemen have to come in swim trunks. It’s a pool party. You don’t want to walk through and see a guy in a three-piece suit.
All the girls are glammed up, have their hair done, their eyelashes done and six-inch heels. They get ready to come here.
But the dress code is more for gentlemen. We don’t like tennis shoes. Maybe a nice little hat.
Anything crazy??
We have a lot of guys attend in their animal print Speedos. There will be a whole party of 10 guys dressed like that. It’s weird.
We have guys who want to dress in a bikini. They’re usually here for a bachelor party. They think it attracts more girls to them. Everyone here has a good time.
Does anything shock you??
Not anymore. I would have to say no. People always try to go for that shock factor. In this industry I’ve seen it all.
What was the first thing that shocked you?
We had a guy spraying $150,000 in Cristal champagne. This guy, his idea of fun was spraying the Cristal around. We have Make It Rain Champagne when anyone orders an expensive bottle of champagne, but we use a very cheap bottle that we spray. He wanted to spray the expensive stuff.
What time do you recommend people arrive??
They should arrive before noon if they chose not to make reservations. If they have a reservation, whenever they want.
What would you say is your best day??
Really any day we’re open. On Fridays we have the hot 100 contest. On Saturdays, we have a celebrity host. On Sundays, Skyblu from LMFAO hosts the party.
Is there a local’s day??
Our industry days are Sundays We’re always very industry friendly. We take care of them any day of the week.
What should people bring to the pool?
A good attitude and their ID. Be ready to have fun. And bring a credit card.
When you’re not working, do you go out?
?It’s funny, our position is a 24-hour job. We don’t turn off our phones. We learned how to shower with our Blackberries. Going out is always about work or entertaining someone. We used to go out before this job. I remember those days.
For cabana and bungalow reservations, call Gannon at 702-629-9959 or email her at rg@amgcorp.com.
· All Coverage of Wet Republic [~ELV~]
· All Coverage of The Ropes [~ELV~]
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