Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Avril Baynes

Transcript

Avril Baynes · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: And she joins me on the line. Right now, the
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: new general manager is Avril Bains. Good morning to you, Avril, Good.
• 0:07
  Speaker 2: Morning Katie, and good morning to your listeners. Avril.
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: This is a great move obviously. Like I said, you
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: are a thirty year Northern Territory and you've been here
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: for a long time, and I know that you're incredibly
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: passionate about the territory coming in at a fairly tough
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: time though as the GM, aren't you.
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: Yes, it certainly still a lot of challenges ahead for
• 0:30
  Speaker 2: the property. So I'm very confident though that we have
• 0:35
  Speaker 2: the right team around us to make sure that we
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: can navigate through those effectively. Avril.
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: There's been a few people get in contact with us
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: this morning wondering at the moment what parts of the
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: resort are opened at the moment.
• 0:49
  Speaker 2: Okay, So we have all of our gaming areas, so
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: the main part of the casino is open. We also
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: have the sports bar open that's under its normal trading hours,
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: and the View restaurant is open as well, but that
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: is no longer a buffet now. We've moved away from
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: the buffet offering just because of the concerns around safety
• 1:11
  Speaker 2: and COVID risk and we have a fantastic new distro
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: menu that's available in there now, and we've also just
• 1:18
  Speaker 2: recently reintroduced our seniors meals offerings because seniors meals were
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: very popular leading up to the closed down, so we've
• 1:25
  Speaker 2: managed to introduce those back, which is fantastic. So of
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: course most people would be used to the casino being
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: a twenty four to seven operation, it's no longer that
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: at this point in time. So the property is open
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: from ten am until four am.
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: And Avril with the actual resort side of things, so
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: with the hotel, accommodation and the other parts of the resort,
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: when do you anticipate that they may be able to
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: get reopened?
• 1:53
  Speaker 2: Look, Katie, good news. We did actually have a bit
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: of a soft opening of a small part of the
• 1:58
  Speaker 2: hotel just over the last weekend. And so what we're
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: planning on doing is just having a limited number of
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: rooms available on limited nights they're covering on those weekends,
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: and then that gives us an opportunity to gauge demand
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: and see whether we can start to look at opening
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: up some additional rooms. At this point in time, the
• 2:18
  Speaker 2: resort isn't open.
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: Ok, We've had quite a few people get in contact
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: this morning about that, just wondering when it may open.
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: So it's obviously something that people are missing missing at
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: the moment and they want to get back there.
• 2:32
  Speaker 2: Look, it's very popular, It's always been very popular for staycations,
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: and we certainly know that and nothing would make me
• 2:38
  Speaker 2: happier to be able to sit here and share with
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: the listeners that we were fully reopening as but obviously
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: we need to be very conscious of the fact that
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: the COVID environment still lacks a lot of certainty, so
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: it's really difficult to set definite dates around the reopening
• 2:54
  Speaker 2: of other areas of the business. And we're also coming
• 2:57
  Speaker 2: into that low season as well, you know, traditionally this
• 3:01
  Speaker 2: is when things wind down. But we do have the
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: Infinity Pool open, which is a great spot for those
• 3:07
  Speaker 2: people who are sort of looking for that Bali experience.
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: So the Infinity pools open Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: that's always been hugely popular and still is with the
• 3:17
  Speaker 2: locals looking for that kind of beach club experience.
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: And Avril, as you touched on, you know, we know
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: that there has been a lot of uncertainty as a
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: result of COVID, and it's something that I just don't
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: think anybody you know, ever really saw coming. And for
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: a big employer like the Mindle Beach Casino Resort, it's
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: been a difficult time for you guys, hasn't it.
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: Look it has been very difficult. It's one of those
• 3:42
  Speaker 2: things that I remember well leading into the twenty third
• 3:47
  Speaker 2: of March, which is when we officially had to close down,
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: that the landscape, this COVID landscape, was changing almost hourly, Katie,
• 3:54
  Speaker 2: and it was something that nobody could be prepared for
• 3:57
  Speaker 2: and nobody had any idea how to manage. So it's
• 4:01
  Speaker 2: one of those things that we've the same as the
• 4:04
  Speaker 2: rest of the industry. We've all had to learn from
• 4:06
  Speaker 2: our experiences as we go along, and we're just doing
• 4:10
  Speaker 2: the best we can to stay up to pace with
• 4:14
  Speaker 2: the changing economic environment, but also our commitment to care
• 4:18
  Speaker 2: standards that we're set in in ensuring that we're keeping
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: our staff and visitors to the property safe from COVID
• 4:25
  Speaker 2: and Avril.
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: As I said at the start, you know, obviously you're
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: taking over the role as general manager. You've been living
• 4:32
  Speaker 1: in the territory for thirty years, and you know many
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: people will know you as a long term territory and
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: you must be pretty proud to be taking over this role,
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: even though it is in you know, a difficult period
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: as such as COVID.
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: Oh look I am I'm so honored and proud to
• 4:49
  Speaker 2: have been selected to lead the team. You know, it's
• 4:53
  Speaker 2: a real indication that Delaware North acknowledges the importance that
• 4:57
  Speaker 2: this property has with its connection to the community. It's
• 5:00
  Speaker 2: the first company that's sort of recognized that and as
• 5:05
  Speaker 2: a result appointed the GM from the local community. So
• 5:08
  Speaker 2: I could not be prouder. And I've got a wonderful
• 5:12
  Speaker 2: team around us. And I was just chatting this morning
• 5:15
  Speaker 2: as I was coming across the gaming floor Katie to
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: one of our staff members who have been here since
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: day two, nearly thirty seven years.
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: So yeah, yeah, it's a long time, isn't it. And
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: Dick does go to show you that, you know that
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: they're at Mendel Beach Casino and Resort, there are people
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: that have worked there for an incredibly long time, and
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: it does sound like it's a close knit team.
• 5:40
  Speaker 2: It's a very close knit team. There's me and there's
• 5:44
  Speaker 2: families amongst the bigger family as well, so you know,
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: we went a hospitality's largest employers and we do consider
• 5:51
  Speaker 2: ourselves to be a big family. And then of course
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: you know your restaurants have their own smaller families. And
• 5:57
  Speaker 2: it's an absolute pleasure to come to work every day
• 6:02
  Speaker 2: and know almost everybody by their first name and be
• 6:05
  Speaker 2: able to have that genuine engagement with people who share
• 6:08
  Speaker 2: the same commitment and passion to providing an exceptional guest experience.
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: And Avril, are there any priorities that you sort of
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: want to get stuck into when taking on this new role.
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: Look, I think the key priority needs to be, Katie,
• 6:24
  Speaker 2: is doing what we can do to set ourselves up
• 6:28
  Speaker 2: before what is hopefully going to be post COVID. Of course,
• 6:31
  Speaker 2: we're not there yet, and until we have sort of
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: vaccine or potentially a cure, we're going to be left
• 6:37
  Speaker 2: with some restrictions such as social distancing and other sorts
• 6:41
  Speaker 2: of requirements along those lines. So for me, it's about
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: providing great leadership to the team that are here and
• 6:49
  Speaker 2: making sure that we are setting ourselves up as best
• 6:52
  Speaker 2: we can to emerge from the COVID.
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: Avril, I have just got a message from one of
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: our listeners and it says, would you be able to
• 6:59
  Speaker 1: ask Averril about the redundancies, will you hire any back?
• 7:05
  Speaker 2: We would like to be in a position that we
• 7:08
  Speaker 2: can hire the redundancies back. Unfortunately, I mean one redundancy,
• 7:14
  Speaker 2: as we know, is too many. We were very fortunate
• 7:19
  Speaker 2: that job Keeper did provide us with a support so
• 7:22
  Speaker 2: that ultimately we only made twelve people redundant, which was
• 7:28
  Speaker 2: significantly less than we thought we might be looking to do.
• 7:33
  Speaker 2: As I said, job Keeper really assisted us with that.
• 7:36
  Speaker 2: What we have done is provided the stuff have been
• 7:39
  Speaker 2: made redundant with appropriate support. So we've paid for career
• 7:44
  Speaker 2: transitioning and resume writing and other sorts of supports for
• 7:50
  Speaker 2: them to try and put them in the best possible
• 7:53
  Speaker 2: position to get suitable employment for them now, because that's
• 7:56
  Speaker 2: what's critically important to them is being able to get
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: employment and get wages and salary coming back into their families.
• 8:04
  Speaker 2: We would love to have anybody that was made redundant
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: return to the workforce if we are in a position
• 8:09
  Speaker 2: to do that at.
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: Some point, yeah, averl. One of the other things that
• 8:13
  Speaker 1: was announced last week is obviously the government came out
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: and said that they're going to introduce well I guess
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: you'd say greater measures to be able to do that
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: contact tracing. So, whether it's the QR codes or whether
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: you actually have to fill in your details when you
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: enter different locations, is that something that the casino obviously
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: is supportive of.
• 8:34
  Speaker 2: Oh, we're very supportive. Event We've been working very closely
• 8:37
  Speaker 2: with the government and the Department and Health to partner
• 8:41
  Speaker 2: with them in the best possible way we can to
• 8:43
  Speaker 2: ensure that in the event that there is a positive
• 8:47
  Speaker 2: COVID case somewhere in Darwen, we would be able to
• 8:50
  Speaker 2: provide any support for them that they would need to
• 8:54
  Speaker 2: track that down well.
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: Avril Baines, the new general manager at Delaware North at
• 8:59
  Speaker 1: Darwin Mindle Beach Casino Resort. Lovely to speak with you
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: this morning. Congratulations on taking.
• 9:04
  Speaker 2: On the role. Thank you, Katie. Always a pleasure.
• 9:08
  Speaker 1: Good to talk to you. Thanks Averril,