The Cost of Doing Business 
The Indian Gaming industry has grown rapidly over the past 20 years. Much of this growth has centered on casino expansion, acquiring equipment, buying out existing management contracts, and tribal/national politics. There has been little time to focus on internal financial performance. Most casinos have been content making a profit and providing employment for tribal members and surrounding communities.
Numerous questions have gone unanswered, such as: How profitable should we be? How profitable can we be? What type of return on investment have we generated for tribal members? How leveraged are we? How much debt can we service? Often these questions arise when there is a change of administration or the tribe is seeking additional funding from outside sources.
JOSEPH EVE’s Indian Gaming Cost of Doing Business Report is a valuable business management aid designed to help answer some of these questions. It serves as a tool for financial analysis and planning, and the report includes the guidelines needed to use it effectively.
This report is the only publication that contains detailed operating statistics for Indian Gaming operations. You will see how your gaming operation’s performance measures up to the industry standards we have developed by compiling this data from tribes around the country. Using the information in the report, you can learn what changes you can make to improve your own operation.
Generating profits is not necessarily the only reason a casino exists - tribal employment is often the motivating factor for opening a casino. However, when profit is the motive, your casino's success will be measured in financial terms such as gross profit or departmental contribution margin, net profit, liquidity, solvency, return on investment and others. Your continued success in business depends on your ability to understand these key financial measures and how to apply them to your casino.
There are other sources of industry data available such as the Nevada Gaming Abstract, Dunn & Bradstreet, and information generated by state gaming agencies. However, this information often does not apply directly to Indian Gaming facilities or focuses more on the top line rather than the bottom line. This study applies directly to the financial performance of Indian Gaming facilities.
If you have additional questions about the content of this report, please contact us.
