With Valentine's Day around the corner, we figured we would tell you the story of how our hospitality guru Giovanna Paolella met her boyfriend Brad Hayslip.
Giovanna’s story started with the opening of Revel in 2012 where she was a server in the high limit lounge. Although she was juggling many things at the time, through hard work and resilience, she was able to graduate college, and quickly move up within the casino industry. Her superiors took notice, and she was named the Manager of American Cut Steakhouse in Ocean Casino Resort, Atlantic City. This is where Giovanna thrived and was able to catch the eye of other professionals in Atlantic City. She eventually accepted a position as a Manager at the high volume and very famous Carmine’s Italian Restaurant. Here she learned a new skill set, and was able to train in New York City in the middle of Times Square under some of the best in the business. With her drive and commitment, the eyes of Las Vegas were now upon her, and she seized the opportunity to move here and hasn’t looked back since.
Giovanna was presented with an opportunity to move to Las Vegas for two reasons, one to take a chance on love and two to advance her career in the food and beverage industry. During the challenges faced during the quarantine, Giovanna decided to create her own business, Giovanna Hospitality to showcase her love and knowledge for this industry. The mission of her company was to create a plan to help get them back on track during these uncertain times. She also aimed to target new start up businesses as well, her goal was to elevate hospitality through providing exceptional guest services based on the businesses individuality. As the world saw a touch of normalcy, Giovanna started working at Carmine's in The Forum Shops located in Caesars Palace. She guided Carmine’s through a pandemic which wasn't the easiest task, but she pulled through every day and tried to make the best of the situation. Although the task at hand was tough, she put her heart and soul into trying to make it on a daily basis, even when each day presented a new challenge to overcome and work through. Timing is of the essence, because Giovanna impressed her peers so much that she was offered a new opportunity to become General Manager of Bella Vita in Green Valley Ranch, at the District in Henderson.
Bella Vita Restaurant Group is rapidly expanding, and Giovanna will be falling into a Director of Food and Beverage role, which means she will now run 3 highly popular restaurants in prime locations in Las Vegas. At 27 she has done more with the opportunities that have been presented than most at her age. Her journey is not over but we’ll get back to that later. Brad began his casino career in 1997 while attending college in New Jersey. He started at the bottom doing Coin Wrapping at the Showboat Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey, which was his initial profession, but it gave him room to advance. He eventually worked as a slot attendant, and was quickly promoted to slot supervisor at Showboat. In 2006, he received a call to become an entry level Casino Host, and this was only the beginning. Shortly thereafter, Brad took his career to Las Vegas at the Venetian. Although Brad was determined to become successful, the young boy was still inside of him and he needed some time to experience life before he just gave it his all to his career. Throughout his journey, Brad worked not only all over the country, but all over the world.
He was hired as a casino marketing consultant for the Ritz Carlton of Aruba, Director of Casino Marketing at Revel Casino in Atlantic City, Hard Rock Punta Cana in Dominican Republic, Sugar House in Philadelphia and Hard Rock Hotel Casino in Atlantic City. After getting extensive experience, Brad's boss hired him back for a second turn at the Venetian in Las Vegas, to be the Director of Marketing for the East Coast. This was a unique position, because Brad didn't reside in Las Vegas but lived in New Jersey and traveled back and forth monthly bringing in high end gamblers from the East Coast to Las Vegas.
Brad excelled at this point in his career and started his own company which consisted of Customer Relationship Management. Brad was so passionate about this unbelievable idea, that he made a thriving business out of it. He took all of his hard earned savings and dedicated it to this company. He designed a computer program built to track player activity, and information which went hand in hand with his business. He presented his CRM program to casinos all over the country. Being in casino marketing, it was key for Brad to experience all of these different markets throughout the country and have the opportunity to live in many different places. All of these amazing opportunities molded Brad into the man he became, and gave him so much experience and knowledge to put towards his career. He fell in love with the day-to-day interactions and the hustle that it required. He was able to do this job all over the country, but he knew his place was always in Las Vegas, so he took it back to the casino where it all really began for him. Brad went back to the Venetian in 2019 as a Director of Marketing. It only took one year, and a pandemic, and he is now the Executive Director of Marketing for the Venetian | Palazzo in Las Vegas. What an amazing accomplishment, especially during these uncertain times. Hard work and determination is how Brad got to be where he is today, in no time Brad will be a Vice President. Giovanna and Brad met in Atlantic City, but their love for one another and the casino restaurant industry blossomed in Las Vegas. They constantly push and motivate themselves as well as others to be at the top. They both elevated many careers, whether it be through job opportunities or simple coaching and direction. They recently purchased a home in Las Vegas with the intention of planting roots, and becoming a fixture in the cultural, casino, and culinary scenes. They have ambition and goals, and they also understand that you need others to achieve these goals. Although Giovanna and Brad have an age difference, it’s actually been an advantage not only in their personal relationship but for their careers as well. Especially the times when Giovanna is able to show Brad how to not overthink and stress certain situations, and she gave Brad the opportunity to settle down which makes him even more focused on his career. Through his knowledge and experience, Brad has taught Giovanna some really valuable tricks of the some tricks of the trade, and helped her from his own experience to avoid certain mistakes he may have made. He’s showed her to always be humble and that receiving some humility sometimes isn't always bad thing. They have big plans to be a part of the growth of Las Vegas and dedicated themselves to solidifying relationships within the community. Las Vegas is the greatest city in the world, and Giovanna and Brad look to add flair and personal touch to help this city get back to all of its greatness and glory.