Lotriet living his dream
INSPIRATION: CLASSIC AL PACINO MOVIE, CASINO, SET HIM ON HIS WAY
New VIP services manager at Montecasino has travelled an unconventional route.
Greg Lotriet is living a dream that started as a young teen when he first saw the classic Al Pacino movie, Casino. As a gifted people person, he is thriving in his new position as VIP services manager at Montecasino, overseeing the Privé and ensuring memorable guest experiences for casino players.
Lotriet’s trajectory through his working career has bordered on the unconventional.
He grew up in Durban with parents who loved to gamble and many holidays were spent visiting and staying in the best casinos in the country.
In 2002, Greg’s life was turned upside down when his father was retrenched and the family lost everything.
By then Lotriet had achieved his South African colours in boxing and he joined Sun International’s Sibaya Casino security team. Within three years he was casino complex security duty manager and had achieved a diploma in hospitality management from the International Hotel School.
Lotriet was then headhunted by a company that provided outsourced food and beverage services to Sun International and he quickly embraced his new career direction.
He was sent to Johannesburg and worked at a variety of Sun International units.
After leaving to run the Orient restaurant at Melrose Arch and Oyo in Bedfordview, he then joined Inn Staff, where he soon advanced to the position of group operations manager for the company’s casino contracts.
In 2015, he grabbed the opportunity to move into the casino world and he joined Gold Reef City as food and beverage manager, giving him the opportunity, says Lotriet, to move into the best possible organisation to further his career.
In the new position he became a firm believer in the value of coaching.
“People are only as good as the people they’re developing and you need to put time and effort into them,” he says, noting that his days at Gold Reef City were spent coaching staff and building a strong and successful team.
He was responsible for implementing a strategy for staff to engage with customers to fully understand the needs of the casino’s clientele – which saw the property improve its ratings according to electronic guest service comments.
This year he was appointed VIP services manager of Montecasino.
Lotriet is extremely enthusiastic about his new job, which he started in July.
“Montecasino really is the flagship casino of the group – it’s a beautiful property and it’s a huge personal achievement to be here.
“This is the A-team; they are all specialists in what they do and it feels great to be a part of it,” he says. – Citizen reporter