Although the Gaming Board has yet to issue web shop licenses, Island Luck yesterday opened a "premiere version" of its latest web shop design in the Village Road Shopping Centre.
Boasting over 50 computers that look and function like slot machines, a cashier's cage, large flat-screen televisions, a sports lounge and drive-through services, Island Luck has rolled out its version of a small-scale casino.
"The next big thing is here again as Island Luck unfolds its new Island Luck Select web shop," said Island Luck CEO Sebas Bastian.
"What you see here today is where we are seeking to change the standard of web shops and bring them into tune with the international type of atmosphere that we have grown accustomed to when we travel. This is what people in gaming see when they go into various gaming operations and casinos."
The Gaming Board accepted applications for web shop licenses from 10 web shops last month. When contacted, a Gaming Board representative said no licenses have been issued to date as of yesterday. Asked whether Island Luck has been given any assurance of a license, Bastian said, "Not at all. This is a pure gamble. If we don't receive a license, this will be one beautiful place that will be for rent."
Bastian said the Village Road Shopping Centre gaming house is one of four new stores Island Luck plans to open over the next month, with the other locations at the Mall at Marathon, Prince Charles Shopping Centre and Paradise Island. He said the new store was in development long before the Gaming Bill was passed. He said the same applies to the three new stores, where the properties were already leased and have been renovated.
"It's just that we took a long time to get them to market because we wanted to offer the best experience possible," Bastian said. "So, this is not something that popped up yesterday. Obviously, as you can see, to do something this beautiful, it was not done overnight. This was four-and-a-half months in the making."
The 2014 Gaming Bill was passed in the House of Assembly and the Senate last September.
Bastian said the premiere store will facilitate mobile gaming by allowing customers to access "wireless infrastructure where people can do their mobile betting". But in November 2014, Bastian said the company had to let go of 47 people as their positions are not provided for in the new Gaming Act.
All of the personal device apparatus (PDA) operators and mobile bookies' positions were made redundant.
Bastian said a portion of Island Luck's patrons do not want to come into the web shop, but they "love to gamble".
The drive-through, a new concept for web shops, offers customers access to their accounts and gaming services in comfort and discreetness, he said. Renovations on the new store carried a $250,000 price tag, according to Bastian.
Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian
