Monday, July29, 2019

HOUSTON’S BUSINESS INSIDER INCx BOOK SMART, STREET SMART on recession, writing and regulation

TOMLINSON NEW RULES FORTHE ROAD

COMPLETELYLEGAL YETTER FIRM TAKES ON THE BIG DOGS TEXAS

COVER STORY Tilman Fertitta, by thebook

By PaulTakahashi airports across the country STAFF WRITER starting Sept.17. An audiobook, read by Fertitta, will also be ilmanFertitta offered. turnedasingle Fertitta, whoplans to go on a seafood restaurant book tour across the U.S. and in Katyintoa China, satdownwith TexasInc. multibillion-dollar to talk about the book,the hospitalityempire economy andmakingdeals. Tby constantlyworryingabout staying one step ahead of his Q: Yousay in your bookto competition. neverstopworrying about “Never,everstopworrying your business. What’s aboutyourbusiness,”the worrying youthese days? billionairewrote in his A: When things arereally newbook, “Shut Up and Listen!,” good, we forget there’sever settobereleased next month. Shut Up and Listen!: going to be badagain. We’ve “Because when it comesto HardBusiness been on an unbelievable businessand mosteverything 10-year economic run, so right else in life, thereisapaddle for Truths thatWill nowyou’vegot to start everybody’sass.” Help YouSucceed worryingthatthings aregoing Over the course of 167pages, By Tilman Fertitta to getbad.You’vegot rising Fertitta—soleowner of Fertitta 192pages labor issues,food-cost issues Entertainment,Landry’s, the HarperCollins Leadership and occupancyissues. So yeah, Golden Nugget Casinos and $24.99 I’mworried about everything. Hotels,the and It’stougher todaythanitwas star of the CNBC show “Billion 10,20years ago. The DollarBuyer”—sharesbusiness “Eat theweak” and “Thereare headwindsare alittleharder insights gleanedfromhis no sparecustomers.” Forbes and youjustgot to fight three-decadecareerinthe puts Fertitta’snet worthat$5.2 through them. hospitalityindustry.The book billion. features theGalveston native’s “ShutUpand Listen!,” Q: Economists have been straightforward adviceon published by Nashville-based speculating when thenext business, including “Tilmanisms” HarperCollins Leadership,will recessionwillhit.What’s such as “Knowyournumbers,” be sold in major bookstores and Fertitta continues on B14

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Jon Shapley /Staff photographer “This book wasn’t written forasuper-sophisticated Wall Street guy,”says billionaireTilman Fertitta.

TexasInc.com|TEXAS INC.|Monday, July29, 2019 | B13 TEXASINC.

Fertitta from page B12 zo Fertittawho owns Sta- tions Casinos. Howclose are your bet? youwiththemand do you A: Idon’t knowthatyou’re vieweach other as competi- goingtogointoarecession. tionasyou look to expand Recessionsreallydon’t come your footprintinLas Vegas? alongbut every20, 25 years A: Ihaveall therespect in or so.But Ithink you’re going theworld forthem. Every- to have adefinitedownturn. thing I’veeverneeded, they’re When real estate starts drop- there formeand I’m therefor ping on the East and West them. We mightnot talk to coasts and the bond market each other forthree or four starts trading down, the stock months, but when youpickup marketisalways afew months the phone and talk to each behind. Your smartpeopleare other,you cantelleach other in the creditmarket, not the anything.Weall think alike, stockmarket. we have all the same genes. If youown 100restaurantsand Q: Areyour restaurant my brotherownsone,every- salesaleading indicator of body’syourcompetition. wherethe economyishead- ing? Q: Earlier thisyear, you A: Yeah, moresoyoursub- launched your second urbanrestaurants than your blank-check companyto urbanrestaurants. Youmight acquire another business not see something insidethe and take it public. How’s Loop or in Galveston because thesearchgoing? it’s atouristarea. It’smore A: We have twoyears to do your suburban areaswhere the deal, and we’vebeen peoplestart strugglingwith KarenWarren /Staff filephoto focused on other things.Are theirmortgages.Most of my Tilman Fertitta,aGalvestonnativeand University of Houstonalumnus,owns theRockets, we looking at afew deals here restaurants areinhigh-profile Landry’s Inc. and other enterprises in thecity and beyond. and there? Yes. Butwehaven’t locations,likethe Riverwalkin gotadealyet. San Antonio,New York and LasVegas. ReallyonlySalt- Q: Areyou workingon grass Steakhouse is probably moreofadeveloper’s mind- “Never,everstop comeback your wayinafew anyother deals right now? ourmoresuburbanrestau- set,sowhatdid Ido? Iwentto years. Ithink we’regoingto A: Youwould be shockedat rant. San Antonio and opened up a worryingabout have astretch over the next 10 the deal flowthatcomes restaurant on the Riverwalk.I your business. years wherethere’s going to through here. It’sjust crazy. Q:Haveyou seen any went to Corpus Christi and be some greatopportunities, Youonlyhavesomuchhuman softness at Saltgrass loca- opened arestaurant. Iwent Because when it and that’swhen youeat the capital, so youhavetofishout tions? down to Kemah, an old fishing weak. things. Rightnow,we’re work- A: Not yet. village, and bought thatand comes to business ing hardonthree deals. We opened (the boardwalk)up. and most Q: Youwererecently have somethinginthe gaming Q: You’ve beenthrough outbidfor LasVegas gaming class, something in the restau- three downturns, including Q: Areyou gearing up to everything else in giant Caesars Entertain- rant class andsomethingin thesavingsand loan crisis makesomeacquisitions in ment.Doyou think Caesars hospitality. None of them are in the1980s that devastated thenextdownturn? life, there is a could comebackyour way? in Houston. theHouston economy. A: Ihaven’t donealot of paddle for A: Idon’t thinkCaesars as What did youlearn from acquisitions in the last few the wholecompanyis. Ithink Q:Restaurants arefacing these downturns? years. It’sbeen so frothy and everybody’sass.” you’re going to seealot of growingpressurefrom A: The wholeworld in there’sbeensomuch credit Caesarsbrokenupand differ- onlinedeliveries and the Texasbetween 1986 and 1996 outthere, it’sbeen easy for TilmanFertittainhis newbook, entpropertiescould come rise of meal kits and pre- wasinneutral. Therewereno people to overpay forthings. “Shut Up and Listen!” back my way. pared meals. Yourecently banks,because theyall failed. Youcan’t imagine the deals invested in Waitr,astartup It took us 10 yearstorecover. I’velooked at thatIhaven’t Q: Youhavecousins in that focusesonfooddeliv- That’show baditwas. Ihad gotten. Alot of timesthe deals LasVegas, Frank andLoren- Fertitta continues on B15

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Fertitta from page B14 Q: You’ve stated you want to bringaprofession- eries. Howdoyou seethis al hockey team to Houston. change impacting your What’syour interest in restaurant business? hockey and whereare you A: Home delivery is aprob- withthat? lemfor the restaurant in- A: I’m disappointed we’re dustry.Too manypeople are going to be the third-largest trying to makemoneyoff of it, city in Americaand we’renot but the consumer is only going to have aNational Hock- goingtopay so much. You’re ey League team here. Iwould starting to seecompaniesand love to be the person to bring local restaurant peoplesaying, it here, but the business mod- “I’m doingthisbusiness and el has to work forHouston. I’m losing moneyonit.”Re- Hockey teamshavestruggled member, you’ve gotthe driver, in the south.Inyournorthern the cost of the carand every- cities, alot of Canadians in- thingelse. We’redoing all this flux to America. In the South, business in home delivery and youhavedifferent people it’snot as profitable abusi- influx to the . If ness, but youhavetodoit youlook at the citieswhere right now. We tend to make hockeyisthe most successful, things better and figurethings they’renot as diverse as out, and Ithink that’swhat’s Houston. We’vepaid lots of goingtohappen. dollarsfor different studiesto tell me exactlywhatwould happen, and economically, it “Texas is avery couldjust be very tough. I would have to buythe right easy placetodo JerryBaker /Contributor team at the right amount to business in,and it’ll Tilman Fertitta,who is chairman of theHoustonPolice Foundation, is not onlyadeal-makerbut is bringthem here,and we behind manyprojects such as HPD’supcomingTilman Fertitta FamilyTactical TrainingCenter. would have to makesureit be disappointing if workshere. that ever changes.” Q: Howwas it working —TilmanFertitta Texasisavery easy place to on your book? Do youplan do business in, and it’ll be to writemore? disappointingifthatever A: Inever wanted this to be Q: What’syourpet peeve changes. abook thatsomebody,when in business? they’rereading it,their mind A: Ihate regulation. If you Q: You’re apartner in wandersoff.SoIpurposely want to order somethingata Gaming, aPhila- satthereand read everypara- restaurant,you shouldn’t have delphia-based e-sports out- graph over and over to make to look at the caloriesifyou fit that acquired your sure everyparagraph was don’t want to.Ithink people ClutchGamingcompany. interesting.Thisbookwasn’t want to go outand enjoylife. Wheredoyou seee-sports written forasuper-sophis- Minimumwagedoesn’t work going? ticatedWall Street guybut at if youdon’t have atip credit.I A: Iknowe-sportsgets alot thesame time, thatperson can’tpay the dishwasher as of eyeballs, but untilyou can would say, “That’skind of much because I’m having to show me sponsors and TV funny,and he’s right.” This paythe waiter so much.Peo- deals,Idon’t know. If you isn’t alifestory of Tilman. ple whomakethe rules, want to knowwhat’struly Thisisabusinessstrategy they’ve neverrun abusiness goingtohappeninthe future, book.Maybe my next onewill and theydon’t want to listen justlookatwhatthe kids are tell alot morestories. to what it takestorun abusi- doing today. E-sports is totally ness. Idon’t like the govern- Yi-Chin Lee/Staff filephoto goingtoevolve. The Fertitta family—Tilman, from left,Michael,Blake, Paige [email protected] ment getting involved in our .com/paultakahashi business in everyaspect. and Patrick—hostedGalveston’s SanLuisSaluteinMarch.

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