In the short time since Noe Knows Vegas sat down with Manny Kess at El Dorado Cantina in Tivoli Village on Nov. 8, the nightlife, political and business figure has become engaged and is a dad-to-be. Time flies! Here are highlights of our conversation:
Manny, you have had a very prolific life. You have worked in nightlife, politics and business. What are you mainly focused on right now?
Right now I’m focused on some businesses in which I’m a partner. I still have my hospitality business here, The Kess Group; that’s still my bread and butter. I’m an investor in a couple of restaurants in California. I’m working on a sports memorabilia business. I will have been in Las Vegas for 14 years next March.
Why did you decide to get into politics? You ran for state treasurer.
COVID happened, and I was basically out of business. It was a time when none of us knew what was going on, and it was crazy. We all sat at home watching Netflix and the news. I kept seeing how every state was doing different things, how everyone was giving out money left and right.
I own a hospitality company, and all my employees are independent contractors. We were not eligible for any PPP money. … Why can’t a small-business owner take care of his employees? That was the first thing that bothered me. … We needed change. I started talking to local politicians, and they just gave me the runaround.
One person said, “If you don’t like the way it is, you should run and change it.” I had all the time in the world, so I said, “Why not?” … I was the only Republican in the race for state treasurer for 15 months. On the last day to file, Michele Fiore filed to run for state treasurer because her race for governor wasn’t going well.
I lost to her in the primary. … I spent two years fully immersed in politics, and I learned a lot. It’s not a pretty world. It’s a very ugly, backstabbing world. The worst part is people will tell you they support you, then they will turn around and stab you in the back.
Would you run again?
I would consider it (laughs). I don’t like a lot of the politics in Nevada. I’ve had a lot of conservations with people outside the state. This state is a very unique animal. Things aren’t organized, and we’re a transient state. At the moment, though, it’s the furthest from my mind
What do you think is the most pressing issue for Las Vegas today?
We have a lot of issues right now. We’re lucky that we have a great governor right now who actually pays attention and is trying to fix things. Las Vegas has always run with policies that are outdated. We’re getting a breath of fresh air and people who actually care and didn’t just want the title. That’s not knocking previous governors or politicians.
I think the most pressing thing right now is figuring out what we’re doing with the sports teams. The A’s and what they’re trying to do – that’s a huge economic situation for the city. Are we going to get an NBA team? That plays a huge role. We have casinos trying to open. These are things that will help the city grow.
What do you think Las Vegas is doing right?
A lot of things! We’re growing. We’re bringing sports teams to town. People who come here from hockey cities, it’s incredible for them to see what they’ve done with T-Mobile Arena. The Vegas Golden Knights have crushed it. The WNBA – they’ve crushed it. We love sports, we’ve embraced it, and people are coming here for sports. It’s amazing.
Where Las Vegas excels is our ability to do so many things well in such a small proximity.
What is The Kess Group focused on right now?
We’re a full-service hospitality group, but having said that, we’re a niche business. We don’t advertise. We’re strictly word of mouth and referral-based. We are referred to a client, and we do as little or as much as that client wants – hotels, shows, dinner reservations, nightclubs, pool parties, corporate buyouts.
Our focus is that each client has the best experience that is catered to them. You have to customize based on what each client wants. Our focus is on clients being happy and coming back. If they don’t like what we do, they’re not going to refer us. They want to be wowed, and this city has plenty of wows.
What do you think are some of the top hotels in Las Vegas?
Most properties on the Strip are beautiful. If I have to do a top list, in no particular order, it’s Wynn, Cosmopolitan, Crockfords at Resorts World is fantastic, and Fontainebleau – it’s the newest one, and their suites are gorgeous. Those are the top four in no particular order.
But you can go to Bellagio and stay at the villas and be blown away. You can go to MGM Grand and stay at The Mansion there. But not everyone gets this experience. It’s a different world for high-end guests and regular guests. This city caters to high-net worth and big gamblers. Caesars has incredible suites for high-end guests.
What are you working on right now?
I’m working on this sports memorabilia business called Trace and Chase. Right now there is an existing location in Greece, and we’re in construction and opening in a few months a location in New Jersey. We’re negotiating for a space on the Las Vegas Strip and hope to open in the second quarter of next year (2025).
Our city is growing at an amazing rate. If we continue to nurture and build within, we’ll do really well, Kess summed up.
