Nice workplace in Kurhaus
Thomas Schindler started his career as a croupier in Aachen as an alternative to his planned studies. He “can’t imagine anything better” than his job as a Baden-Baden casino manager.
Photo: Bernhard Margull
Thomas Schindler has already visited around 25 to 30 casinos around the world. Which one of them did he like the most? He doesn’t need to think for a long time.
“No casino in Baden-Baden could be more beautiful than ours,” says the casino manager. At best Monte Carlo could keep up in some respects. “This casino is at least as nice as the one in Baden-Baden.”
So it’s no surprise that a 60-year-old enjoys going to work every day. “When you enter the rooms at the Kurhaus you are immediately surprised,” he says – and is still happy today about the fact that as a young man he was suddenly inspired to become a croupier rather than a business student. .
Thomas Schindler loves background noise
At that time, in the mid-80s, he actually just wanted to taste the casino atmosphere in Aachen for a short time. However, the very special atmosphere in the casino fascinated him so much that he spontaneously applied for training to become a dealer and was accepted, despite great competition among applicants. He started working at the casino in Aachen in 1985 and over the next few years completed more and more training and examinations in a wide range of areas of the casino.
He has never regretted his decision to pursue this extraordinary profession: to this day he “cannot imagine anything better” than his job. “I love the background noise, the elegance of the rooms and guests, the clattering of chips.” This was the case in Aachen, where he worked from 1999 to 2013, and later in Bremen, and of course this is especially true. So is Baden-Baden.
Casino chic without having to wear a tie
Elegance despite its removal? Tie requirement is it still under warranty? “Absolutely,” says the casino manager. “You can dress well without a tie.” However, a jacket is still mandatory, but if you don’t have it with you, you can borrow it. “It’s important to get the overall picture right,” says the experienced casino boss.
According to Schindler, a casino is much more than a place where you can play roulette, blackjack, poker or slot machines. “We have a trendy restaurant, bar and Bernstein Club. “We organize concerts, cabaret, fashion shows and much more.” Sample readings: Wladimir Kaminer will be the guest on October 12, and Jan Weiler will be the guest on December 4.
Every guest will find what they are looking for with us.
Thomas Schindler
Casino manager in Baden-Baden
Explaining the philosophy of his hotel, Schindler says, “Every guest will find what they are looking for with us.” The numbers show the concept works. A total of nearly 280,000 visitors are expected this year in the rooms of the spa house built by Friedrich Weinbrenner.
Theoretically, you can win so much money in one evening at a casino that you’ll never have to work again. But you can also lose a lot of money.
Professional help for acute problems
How can the casino prevent people from destroying all their assets? “We are applying a complex social concept,” says Schindler. “On the one hand, this social concept aims to support affected players in identifying, examining and, if necessary, changing problematic player behavior.
On the other hand, we aim to provide professional assistance to those affected and their relatives in acute problems.”
In plain language: “For example, if we have a guest who has always been betting with 5 Euro chips for months or years, and then suddenly only bets with 50 Euro chips and seems tense and annoyed himself, then we talk to this guest: Our mission is to keep gambling regularly.” to present. We do not aim to maximize profits and therefore we can focus on gaming behavior and take countermeasures if necessary.
A guest from South America didn’t need that kind of help: He once took home the top prize, winning 1.3 million euros in Baden-Baden.
Last question to casino manager Thomas Schindler: Are there really systems where you can play roulette? “Yes,” he laughs. “The systems already exist, but of course they do not guarantee profits.”