The past few months have seen Okada Manila establish a stronger presence and have shown how they are moving forward excellently after the past few months of a volatile battle in higher management. Their team was able to overcome the circumstances and is thriving.
Okada Manila Byron Yip, President of Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment, Inc., welcomed the chance to let the public know how the company’s performance has flourished towards the latter months of 2022. At a media briefing held in Paranaque City on Wednesday, the 5th of October, he first revealed the remarkable increase in visitor count. The higher foot traffic was tallied during the past nine months up to September.
Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment, Inc. (TRLEI) operates Okada Manila and is under the wing of Tiger Resort Asia Ltd. (TRAL).
Byron Yip digresses, “Compared to the same time last year, there’s then been over 300% improvement (in foot traffic), and now we happen to have an average of over 300,000 visitors on a monthly basis.”
He also emphasized, “We at Okada Manila are seeing green shoots of recovery from when the pandemic struck the Philippines in 2020. Through the collaboration of our employees and leaders, Okada Manila was able to record more than two-fold growth in our monthly foot traffic.”
He included future plans and opportunities that will take Okada Manila further on higher ground. “Our retail selection has also increased. We have 14 new brands joining us this year and 16 incoming brands, in addition to the already 29 brands that are here. We can expect more stores and restaurants to open soon.”
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He also forecasts that there will be a reinvigoration of sectors that have been held back by the pandemic. The ease of restriction and continuous effort from the government and the public to overcome the pandemic contributed to very positive gains for everyone.“It is our goal to be the premier integrated resort not just in the Philippines, but in Asia. We’re looking forward to working with all our stakeholders towards a stronger end-of-year as we welcome 2023.”
Okada Manila and fellow casino resorts will be seeing a definite boost in performance in the remaining months of 2022. “With the revitalization of the travel, hospitality, gaming, and entertainment sectors we are optimistic that we will continue to ride on a growth momentum and end 2022 on a positive note.”
The holiday season also harkens a higher stats in the resort’s occupancy rate. Hans Van Der Sande, TRLEI’s Chief Financial Officer is also banking on the holiday season. In a separate interview, he said, “November, December, and January are always the best months. As you get towards the real Christmas period, people start taking longer vacations,” he said. “Absent of a new COVID-19 variant, I think this will be a great year.”
He also revealed that there is a planned merger between (TRAL is a unit of UE Resorts) UE Resorts International, Inc. and US special purpose acquisition firm, 26 Capital Acquisition Corp., “We agreed to a year-long extension to give time to update all information. The process is very complex and takes a long time,” Though there is a delay, this event will make Okada Manila public.
