Bloomberry back in black last year

MANILA, Philippines - Bloomberry Resorts Corp., owner and operator of Solaire Resort & Casino and Jeju Sun Hotel & Casino, returned to profitability last year.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), Bloomberry said it posted a net income of P2.32 billion in 2016, a reversal of the P3.375 billion loss incurred the previous year.

Bloomberry chairman and CEO Enrique Razon Jr. said the year was not without its challenges despite the company’s turnaround story.

He said the continuing programs on financial management, marketing, property and systems improvements, and staff engagement rallied the company through.

“Overall, we are more than pleased with the results that put us in good standing with the competition. We hope to use this position of strength to carry us into, if not surpass, the results for the current year,” Razon said.

VIP volumes grew 29 percent while mass table drop rose 12 percent. Electronic gaining machine coin-in likewise went up 18 percent.

Despite VIP hold rates declining to 2.61 percent from 2.87 percent in 2015, Solaire’s gross gaming revenues still managed to grow 19 percent to P38.342 billion.

Inclusive of the P195 million contribution from Jeju Sun, Bloomberry’s gross gaming revenues grew 19 percent to P38.54 billion.

Non-gaming revenues, meanwhile, jumped 26 percent to P2.38 billion.

Without the drag from Korea operations which suffered la oss, Solaire would have reported a P3.46 billion net profit.

In the fourth quarter alone, Bloomberry generated P732 million in net earnings, a turnaround from the P1.87 billion loss recorded in the same period a year earlier.

Bloomberry Resorts Corp. was the first property to open in the 100-hectare Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.’s Entertainment City.

Just recently, Solaire’s high-end retail area, The Shoppes@Solaire rolled out the following luxury boutiques: Louis Vuitton, Prada, Bvlgari, Salvatore Ferragamo and Givenchy.