Following the acquisition by Meruelo Group

SLS Las Vegas could rebrand back to Sahara

SLS Las Vegas' CEO Alex Meruelo reversed the fortunes of the then-struggling Grand Sierra Resort in Casino in Reno in 2011 and promised to do the same with SLS.
2019-06-12
Reading time 1:34 min
Having made the purchase, Meruelo Group announced it would renovate the venue and rebrand it once again. The rebrand would see the removal of the 32-foot tall white blob statue outside the front of the casino. The Sahara Hotel & Casino closed in 2011 and was developed to the tune of a USD 415 million in 2014 reopening as SLS.

SLS Las Vegas, a 1,720-room casino resort at the north end of the Las Vegas Strip, is considering changing its name back to the Sahara Hotel & Casino, a name synonymous with Las Vegas’ Rat Pack history.

The information comes from renowned Las Vegas blogger Scott Roeben, who runs the Vital Vegas website. Alex Philby, Director of Leisure Sales at SLS Las Vegas, said in an interview with ABC Mundial TV published Monday that a change of name was expected within the next few days, and that it would be a “strong” name.

Robben said: “Renaming SLS as Sahara is a brilliant move. It plays upon the storied history of the casino, while saving a metric hell-ton of money by playing up an existing brand rather than trying to create a new one from scratch.”

The rebrand would see the removal of the 32-foot tall white blob statue outside the front of the casino. The property was bought by Meruelo Group in 2018. Company CEO Alex Meruelo reversed the fortunes of the then struggling Grand Sierra Resort in Casino in Reno in 2011 and promised to do the same with SLS.

Meruelo said then: “I was told there was no way in hell that I would be able to turn the Grand Sierra around. If I can turn around the Grand Sierra Resort, I could do that at SLS.”

The first casino to open on the site was Club Bingo in 1947. It became the Sahara Hotel & Casino in 1951, becoming famous as a hang-out for the Rat Pack. The Sahara Hotel & Casino closed in 2011 and was developed to the tune of a USD 415 million in 2014 reopening as SLS which stood for style, luxury, and service. It struggled though due to a lack of footfall at the north end of the Strip.

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