Slot Manager - January 2009 - (Page 12)

COVER STORY Still Going Strong at Commitment to customers and to innovation are keys ommitment innov vation ss, to family-owned AC Coin & Slot’s success, founder says BY MARIAN GREEN because of who he is,” said Tjoumakaris, who is vice president of gaming operations, for the Seminole tribe in Florida. “He has earned everything he’s sold.” Seelig and AC Coin have gone above and beyond expectations on many occasions, Tjoumakaris said. The most recent example is the opening of the Borgata hotel-casino, where Tjoumakaris was vice president of slot operations. Right before the casino-hotel opened, Tjoumakaris had a warehouse set up, and Seelig provided forklifts and manpower to help set up shelving and move in slot equipment. “He literally provided all that with no cost,” Tjoumakaris said. And when Borgata required specific expertise in creating a ergonomic slot base and seating, Seelig and AC Coin came through again. If you get something from Mac, it’s not a cookie cutter,” Tjoumakaris said. “With Mac, he will create that look for you.” He noted that AC Coin and the Borgata spent three months ensuring that everything was just right from the footrest to the chair seat. “A lot of people don’t realize what it takes [for someone] to sit for three four hours. We developed something good and Mac was the guy,” he said, But Seelig is not all business, Tjoumakaris noted. oumakaris “He’s all about giving back to the community. His wife and he, they put a lot of time into the community,” Tjoumakaris said. “Whenever there was something to promote in Atlantic City , he would be right behind it.” Relationships with customers such as Toumakaris have helped AC Coin get where it is today. “If you have good relationships, good products and good service, that takes you a long way,” said Seelig, who ran the company out of its home for the first couple of years. He further describes his company’s core values as “responsiveness to our customers’ needs, commitment to innovation and dedication to strengthening the communities in which we operate.” For Seelig, the customer is king. “In 30 years, I can never remember one customer calling and saying, ‘You really let me down,’” said Seelig. Seelig, who is president of AC Coin, said he has strived to instill the values of “honesty and doing the very best for your customer” in his three sons, Jerry, Jeff and Jason, who all have key roles with the company. W hen Paul Tjoumakaris first met AC Coin & Slot Co. founder Mac Seelig, neither was in the gaming business. Seelig owned and operated Globe Vending, a vending machine business that his wife, Kay, still operates today, and Tjoumakaris owned a restaurant. “My first encounter with Mac was way before gaming. He put cigarette machines in my lobby,” Tjoumakaris said. A fire later destroyed Tjoumakaris’ restaurant, and he joined Caesars, one of the new casinos in the fledging Atlantic City, N.J., casino market. “At that time there were only two [gaming] machines available – the Jennings and the Bally electromagnetic. He [Mac] had the Jennings game [as a distributor].” Over the years, Tjoumakaris has found much to admire about the way Seelig has operated AC Coin & Slot Co., which is in the midst of celebrating its 30th year in business. “He made it happen because of his work ethic and sales ethic. He made it 12 SLOT MANAGER ❘ JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2009 ❘ www.slotmanager.net http://www.slotmanager.net

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Slot Manager - January 2009

Slot Manager - January 2009 Contents Editor's Note Quick Hits New Games Cover Story: Going Strong At 30 Game Changer: IGT's REELdepth Operations: Where There's a Will, There's a Way Games: G2E 2008 Slot Report Common Ground Marketing Inside Edge Advertiser Index Forum

Slot Manager - January 2009

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.