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A hostess club is a type of
night club A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...
found primarily in
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
which employs mostly female staff and caters to men seeking drinks and attentive conversation. Host clubs are a similar type of establishment where mostly male staff attend to women. Host and hostess clubs are considered part of ''
mizu shōbai In Japanese culture, , literally the water trade, is work that does not provide a contractually fixed salary, but instead relies on the popularity of the performer among their fans or clientele. Broadly, it includes the television, theater, and ...
'' (), the night-time entertainment business in Japan.


Hostess clubs


Japan

There are a few types of hostess club-type establishments in Japan with the majority falling into one of two categories: , a
portmanteau In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together.
of , or the more exclusive . ''Kyabakura'' hostesses are known as (''cabaret girl''), and many use professional names, called . They light cigarettes, provide beverages, offer flirtatious conversation, and sing
karaoke is a type of interactive entertainment system usually offered in nightclubs and bars, where people sing along to pre-recorded accompaniment using a microphone. Its musical content is an instrumental rendition of a well-known popular song. I ...
. The clubs also often employ a female bartender usually well-trained in
mixology ''Mixology'' is an American sitcom that aired during the 2013–14 television season on ABC. The series was co-created by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, who also serve as co-executive producers with Ryan Seacrest and Nina Wass for Ryan Seacres ...
, and who may also be the manager or '' mamasan''. Hostesses often drink with customers each night, and alcohol-related behavior problems are fairly common. Most bars use a commission system by which hostesses receive a percentage of sales. Businesses may pay for tabs as company expenses with the aim of promoting trust among male co-workers or clients. At one establishment, about 90% of all tabs were reportedly paid for by companies. Patrons are generally greeted at the door and seated as far away from other customers as possible. In some instances, a customer can choose with whom he spends time, but most often that is decided by the house. In either case, the hostess will leave after a certain amount of time or number of drinks. Hostess clubs have a "no touching" policy, and patrons who try to initiate private or sexual conversation are removed. A
red-light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex industry, sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light district ...
version of the host/hostess club exists, called ''seku-kyabakura'' or ''ichya-kyabakura'', where patrons are permitted to touch their host/hostess above the waist and engage in sexual conversation topics or kissing. Normal hostess clubs are classified as food and entertainment establishments and regulated by the ''
Businesses Affecting Public Morals Regulation Act The , also known as or , is a law that regulates entertainment places in Japan. History * 1948: Creation of the law. * April 1, 1959: Name change. * August 14, 1984: Extension to some businesses before midnight. * April 1998: Extension to so ...
'', prohibiting any form of sexual contact between employees and customers. Normal hostess clubs also need a permit to allow dancing. Clubs are inspected often by the Public Safety Commission. Any club found violating its permitted activities can have its business license suspended. At some establishments insufficiently monitored, people unable to pay bar bills have been forced into coerced
sex work Sex work is "the exchange of sexual services, performances, or products for material compensation. It includes activities of direct physical contact between buyers and sellers as well as indirect sexual stimulation". Sex work only refers to volun ...
and
sex trafficking Sex trafficking is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Perpetrators of the crime are called sex traffickers or pimps—people who manipulate victims to engage in various forms of commercial sex with paying customers. Se ...
. Hostessing is a popular employment option among young foreign women in Japan. Most visa types do not allow this type of work, as hostessing falls under the category of , so many choose to work illegally. The clubs sometimes take advantage of the women's precarious legal situation. The industry and its dangers were highlighted in 1992 when Carita Ridgway, an Australian hostess, was drugged and killed after a paid date, and in 2000 when Lucie Blackman, a British hostess, was abducted, raped and murdered, allegedly by the same customer, serial killer
Joji Obara , born Kim Sung-jong () (born on 10 August 1952) is a Korean-Japanese serial rapist who raped between 150 and 400 women between 1992 and 2000. He had a predilection for white women. Obara was charged with drugging, raping and killing an English wo ...
. The government promised to crack down on illegal employment of foreigners in hostess bars, but an undercover operation in 2006 found that several hostess bars were willing to employ a foreign woman illegally.Nightclub hostess world still seen as one where profit trumps visas, safety
''The Japan Times'', 3 July 2007
In December 2009, the Kyabakura Union was formed to represent hostess bar workers.


Snack bars

A , "snack" for short, refers to a kind of hostess bar. It is an alcohol-serving bar that employs female staff to serve and flirt with male customers. Although they do not charge an entry fee (and often have no set prices on their menus), they usually either have an arbitrary charge or charge a set hourly fee plus a "bottle charge". (Customers purchase a bottle in their own name, and it is kept for future visits.)


Venues outside Japan

Hostess bars are also found in other east Asian countries, and in Hawaii, Guam, California, and British Columbia. In Hawaii, approximately half of Oahu's 300 bars are licensed as hostess bars. Some bars in Thailand label themselves as hostess bars; these are loosely related to the East Asian practice, although they are essentially
go-go bars A go-go bar is a type of business establishment where alcoholic drink is sold and dancers provide entertainment. The term ''go-go bar'' originally referred to a nightclub, bar, or similar establishment that featured go-go dancers; while some go- ...
that do not feature dancing.


Host clubs

A has female customers pay for male company. Host clubs are typically found in more populated areas of Japan, and are numerous in
Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
districts such as
Kabukichō is an entertainment district in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. Kabukichō is considered a red-light district with a high concentration of host and hostess clubs, love hotels, shops, restaurants, and nightclubs, and is often called the . Shinjuku Golde ...
, and
Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...
's
Umeda is a major commercial, business, shopping and entertainment district in Kita-ku, Osaka, Japan, where the city's main northern railway termini ( Ōsaka Station, Umeda Station) are located. The district's name means "plum field". History Umeda ...
and
Namba Namba (, ) is a district in Chūō and Naniwa wards of Osaka, Japan. It is regarded as the center of Osaka's ''Minami'' ( :ja:ミナミ, "South") region. Its name came from a variation of '' Naniwa'', the former name of Osaka. Namba hosts som ...
. Customers are typically wives of rich men, women working as hostesses in hostess clubs, or
sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work is ...
s. The first host club was opened in Tokyo in 1966. In 1996, the number of Tokyo host clubs was estimated to be 200, and a night of non-sexual entertainment could cost US$500–600. Professor Yoko Tajima of Hosei University explained the phenomenon by Japanese men's lack of true listening to the problems of women, and by women's desire to take care of a man and be loved back. Young women lured to "malicious" host clubs can rack up large debts; some of them turn to prostitution to pay them back. Habitually, the store also co-signs for the customer's debts with the host. These schemes have become a problem in Japan, and some stores have banned them.


Hosts

Male hosts pour drinks and will often flirt with their clients. Hosts' ages usually range between 18 and the mid-20s. They will take a stage name that will often describe their character. Men who become hosts are often those who either cannot find a white-collar job, or are enticed by the prospect of high earnings through commission. While hostess bars in Tokyo often have designated staff who work on getting clients to come into their clubs, some hosts are sent out onto the streets to find customers, who are referred to as , usually the younger, less-experienced hosts. A common look for a host is a dark suit, collared shirt, silver jewellery, a dark tan, and bleached hair. Pay is usually determined by commission on drink sales with hosts often drinking far past a healthy limit, usually while trying to hide their drunkenness. Because the base hourly wage is usually extremely low, almost any man can become a host regardless of looks or charisma (depending on the bar). Hosts who cannot increase their sales usually drop out very soon, because of the minimal wage. The environment in a host bar is usually competitive, with tens of thousands of dollars sometimes offered to the host who can achieve the highest sales.


Drinks

Many of the clientele who visit host bars are hostesses who finish work at around 1:00 or 2:00 a.m., causing host bars to often begin business at around midnight and finish in the morning or midday, and hosts to work to the point of exhaustion. Business times have changed in recent years, by order of the police, due to the increased incidence of illegal prostitution by host club customers who could not pay the host club debts they had accumulated. Most of these clubs open about 4:00 p.m. and have to be closed between midnight and 2:00 a.m. Buying bottles of champagne usually means a . All the hosts of the club will gather around the table for a song, talk, or a mic performance of some kind. The champagne will be drunk straight from the bottle by the customer, then the host, and then the other hosts. Often a wet towel will be held under the chin of the customer and hosts while they drink to prevent spills. The performance differs from club to club, and is believed to have originated at club Ryugujo in Kabukicho by the manager Yoritomo. A can usually be done for special events. Champagne glasses are arranged into a pyramid, and champagne is poured onto the top glass until it trickles down the layers of glasses. This costs typically 500,000-1,000,000 yen (US$3,500-7,000) or more.


Etiquette

On the first visit to a host club, the customer is presented with a menu of the hosts available, and decides which host to meet first. Over the course of the night, the customer will meet most of the hosts. The customer then decides which host they like most, and can make him their . This can be done by buying a "
bottle keep , or bottle-keep, is a service which is provided at some Japanese drinking establishments where a patron can purchase a bottle of liquor and have the unfinished portion stored until a later visit. A bottle retained in this manner is called a ''k ...
" (a bottle of liquor that can be saved for next time). The named host will receive a percentage of the future sales generated by that customer. Most clubs operate on a system: once the named host has been nominated, a customer cannot change hosts at that club. Sometimes a host will go with a customer for a meal or karaoke after hours. This is called . Staying longer at the host club is considered the proper way to treat a host. It is possible to go on day trips or travel with a host, but a host can only go with their own customer. A host interacting with another host's customer is liable to be fined or fired from the club. Drinks can be purchased on tab, but contact information is taken and the customer must pay later. If the customer does not pay, the host must. It is considered rude to leave a customer alone, called . A customer who is abusive and troublesome is called a and may be expelled from a club.


Business strategy

Usually, hosts try to make the clients feel loved without having sex with them. Sometimes, if a customer pays a large amount of money or if the host likes them in return, the host can have sex with the client.Tokyo plays host to sexual shift
''The Guardian'', 18 September 2005
is the practice of a host emailing a customer regularly to ensure their return. Similarly, a host may call their customer.


Kyabakura Union

The is a
trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
for hostess club employees in Japan. It was formed on December 22, 2009, by Rin Sakurai, who formed the union in response to problems hostess-club employees reported with their employers, including harassment and unpaid wages. The union is affiliated with the Part-timer, Arbeiter, Freeter & Foreign Workers Union, often referred to as the "Freeter" Union.


China


KTV/hostess bar in China

KTVs are a source of interactive musical entertainment through the use of a karaoke bar. KTVs are usually found in
East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...
n nations and are a principal location for Chinese business meetings.Osburg, John. Anxious Wealth: Money and Morality among China's New Rich. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.


Hostesses within the KTV

Chinese businessmen use hostesses as a means of persuading other businessmen and as an outlet to earn favors in the future. Hostesses are expected to pressure customers to drink, sing and gain as much attention as possible. Chinese businessmen that visit the KTV maintain a priority of establishing connections within their respective companies. Hostesses internally degrade their personal and "moral appearance" in order to satisfy a sentiment of masculine pleasure. This may entail the loss of moral code and ethics for the women in the KTV. These values also relate to the foundations of ''
guanxi ''Guanxi'' () is a term used in Chinese culture to describe an individual's social network of mutually beneficial personal and business relationships. The character ''guan'', 关, means "closed" and "caring" while the character ''xi'' 系 mean ...
'', by which there is created a hierarchical system of social order because men possess more power in the KTV than do the hostesses.


Implications of mass alcohol consumption

KTVs are a typical location for Chinese business practices where businessmen attempt to formulate connections and loyalty with other businessmen. They will try to establish a comfortable setting by providing fruit plates, women, or
alcoholic drink Drinks containing alcohol (drug), alcohol are typically divided into three classes—beers, wines, and Distilled beverage, spirits—with alcohol content typically between 3% and 50%. Drinks with less than 0.5% are sometimes considered Non-al ...
s. Chinese businessmen can be seen drinking ''
baijiu ''Baijiu'' (), or ''shaojiu'' (), is a colorless Chinese liquor typically coming in between 35% and 60% alcohol by volume (ABV). Each type of baijiu uses its own type of ''qū'' for fermentation to create a distinct and characteristic flavo ...
'' up to six or seven days per week solely to portray their loyalty to the businessmen principles and fulfill the pleasurable environment of the KTV. Mass alcohol consumption has negative effects on the bodies of the individuals that frequently visit KTVs. Alcohol is a very prominent factor of KTVs. Extreme consumption methods are usually used by the Chinese businessmen in exchange for personal health and moral conduct similar to the hostesses sacrificing their moral ethics to please the male consumer."Alcohol's Effects on the Body , National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)." U.S National Library of Medicine. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.


See also

*
Bargirl A bargirl is a woman who is paid to entertain patrons in a Bar (establishment), bar or nightclub. Variants on the term include "B-girl" and "juicy girl". Many bargirls work as a bar hostess, engaging individual customers in conversation. They m ...
*
Karaoke box A is a type of karaoke establishment commonly found in Asia, the United States and Canada. It originated in Japan, and is now popular worldwide, particularly in Asia. Karaoke boxes consist of multiple rooms containing karaoke equipment, usually ...
*
Maid cafe A maid, housemaid, or maidservant is a female domestic worker. In the Victorian era, domestic service was the second-largest category of employment in England and Wales, after agricultural work. In developed Western nations, full-time maids a ...
*
Prostitution in Japan Prostitution in Japan has existed throughout the country's history. While the Prostitution Prevention Law of 1956 states that "No person may either do prostitution or become the customer of it", loopholes, liberal interpretations and a loose ...


References


External links


Diary of a Tokyo hostess
Salon.com
My month as a poor man's geisha
''The Standard'', 22 April 2006 {{Authority control Drinking culture Entertainment venues in Japan Types of drinking establishment Drinking establishments in Japan