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Thread: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

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    Default Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    So I've heard the dancing industry is declining. But I'm just getting started! And it's discouraging... what are your thoughts I'd really like to get serious about it but extras are so common these days it's not just about selling a fantasy.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    I would say it's more important than ever to be very smart abt your earnings & have an exit plan.





    There are quite a few discussions on this subj in Stripping General, Industry Insight & Dollar Den.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    I still make way more than I could at a vanilla job but I don't plan on dancing for much longer than 4-5 years, until I graduate from school.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    It all depends on you. Maybe it's not like it was in the 90s but if you enjoy it, you can still make a good living. You do NOT have to do extras to make $$. Not all customers want extras. Many men are happy with the fantasy and your company. I have even out earned extras girls just because I've taken the time to learn how men think (also helpful in dating.)
    That said I very much believe in having a back up plan, and HIGHLY recommend having at least one other stream of income or at least saving as much as you can, because burn out does happen and when it hits, it hits hard. You also can't do this forever obviously.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Don't let the downsides discourage you. Part of the hustle is mindset and when you feel good about your capabilities you can earn good money.

    Yes the industry is changing- just like anything else - where you must adapt to survive. No longer can a pretty woman waltz into a club, flash some tits, then expect a windfall of money. Now one must earn money by not only looking good and feeling good but also by developing sales skills and learning how to swim with the Sharks so to speak.

    The money does not come as easy and in as large amounts as it used to. Dancers I know now either work more shifts or have another line of income (other adult work or vanilla careers) to compensate for the changes going on in the strip club economy. And if they have no responsibilities then they can travel dance.

    Also an awareness of the fact that this career is emotionally and physically demanding and your inner/outer health is important too. Stripping is like pro athletes as most of them stay in the game only a few years before they are forced to retire and the rare ones last 7+ years. So it not something to rely on long term and like others mentioned and you would be wise to invest your earnings.
    “Cook for him like a housewife, fuck him good like a nympho….pay the rent and the car note, he invests in me like crypto”

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    It's very important to remember that this job is what you make it. I see nothing "declining" except peoples' attitudes.


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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Numbers don't lie. This industry is experiencing a slow death. But what do I know, I'm just a "Debbie Downer".
    "Fake tits are like Kevlar. They don't guarantee your chances of survival but they sure as hell improve it."
    Tempest

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Quote Originally Posted by asiangem001 View Post
    So I've heard the dancing industry is declining. But I'm just getting started! And it's discouraging... what are your thoughts I'd really like to get serious about it but extras are so common these days it's not just about selling a fantasy.
    It depends on where you live. Certain areas in the country do not provide survivable (imo) income from just dancing. I've been getting the impression that certain areas that have been economically hit (aging industrial cities with declining populations), or more desperate have higher levels of contact and less earnings.

    I live in an area now where if I were to dance full time I would do well. Just have to get more motivated to actually go to the club when I have time, which is almost never these days.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Meanwhile, heads back in the sand, ladies. Everything is ok and we'll all go home with $1,000 tonight.
    The reality is this industry took a huge hit in 08. Nobody is saying that tomorrow we're going to be unemployed. With the puritanical stick Americans have up their asses we're probably good for now.
    Just don't delude yourselves that this industry is secure or that a "positive attitude" will pay your bills.

    More than ever, we need to be in survival mode and gather what we can before the end comes. And its coming. If girls shoving bejeweled things up their ass for money isn't a sign of the times I don't know what to tell ya.
    Last edited by tempest666; 06-16-2015 at 08:16 PM.
    "Fake tits are like Kevlar. They don't guarantee your chances of survival but they sure as hell improve it."
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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Quote Originally Posted by tempest666 View Post
    Meanwhile, heads back in the sand, ladies. Everything is ok and we'll all go home with $1,000 tonight.
    ^This! If you have a temporary sense of denial, confidence (or at least a projection of it) combined with keen hustle skills and a solid exit plan-then you will make it out relatively unscathed. In one sense, you should think yourself lucky that you can appreciate the industry for what it is now and the doors it can open for you-instead of having something to compare it too .
    “Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world” -Marilyn Monroe

    "True sexiness has many facets-confidence, strength, intelligence, and humor. It isn’t just about trying to look sexy; it’s an art and one becomes skillful in it when she realizes that there are all these conflicting elements that all come together to make something magical"-Dita Von Teese

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    The reality is this industry took a huge hit in 08.
    Arguably there have been three huge hits which have changed the exotic dancing industry forever ...

    - a successful 'sex discrimination' lawsuit brought by female stockbrokers in 2000, which outlawed strip club spending as a legitimate business entertainment' expense tax deduction

    - the 9/11/2001 attack ... which permanently reduced business travel and travel in general, and caused all businesses and individuals to begin to integrate the internet ( as opposed to direct person to person interchange ) as a larger part of their daily lives.

    - the 2008 recession ... which arguably established a permanent financial 'divide' between the top 10% 'haves' and the bottom 90% 'have nots'.

    Seeing the immediate after-effects of the 2008 recession on strip club customer numbers, customer spending levels, and customer expectations, is what convinced me to 'retire' from live dancing.


    I still make way more than I could at a vanilla job but I don't plan on dancing for much longer than 4-5 years, until I graduate from school.
    This is absolutely true, that dancing has offered in the past, and still does offer today, an earnings potential that is higher than virtually every vanilla job that doesn't require an advanced degree.


    you can appreciate the industry for what it is now and the doors it can open for you
    But the question now also needs to be asked regarding how much money can still be earned today, versus how much effort is now required on the part of the dancer to earn that money, and what negative 'side effects' may now result.

    For younger dancers, I now worry most about the negative 'side effects' ... i.e. the possibility of graduating from college a few years from now, seeking a 'professional' job, but having the prospective employer turn up 1099 tax records or facial recognition search matches to internet images posted by clubs or club customers, which prompts the prospective employer to move on to the next job applicant who doesn't have adult industry work in their background. Or, put another way, the proliferation of search technology ... both 'paper trail' based, as well as facial image recognition based ... poses a new / future risk of 'closing' certain 'doors'.

    How do you quantify the 'equivalent cash value' of an adult industry background resulting in a new graduate nurse whose 'stripper' work history turns up in a background check being rejected by suburban /religious affiliated hospitals, thus 'forced' to take a job at an inner city hospital ? How do you quantify the 'equivalent cash value' of an adult industry background resulting in a new graduate teacher whose 'stripper' work history turns up in a background check being rejected by suburban / private schools, thus 'forced' to take a job at an inner city school ? How do you quantify the probability that the use of such search technologies will become commonplace for 'professional' employers 4 years from now ? These are potential new 'side effects' of exotic dancing which effectively didn't exist in the past ... potential new 'side effects' which college student dancers now ignore at their own 'peril' !!
    Last edited by Melonie; 06-17-2015 at 03:11 AM.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Quote Originally Posted by tempest666 View Post
    If girls shoving bejeweled things up their ass for money isn't a sign of the times I don't know what to tell ya.
    Tempest... woman... I would sell the next guys left nut to have beers or coffee with you. You crack me up. Every. Single. Time.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    I would sell the next guys left nut to have beers or coffee with you
    Not to change the subject, but you have unintentially pointed out yet another way that the 'fantasy' based strip club business model has been 'commodified' ...

    Guys can now have coffee served up by bikini clad baristas ... Java Juggs, Grab-n-Go, etc.

    Guys can now have beers served up by bikini clad bartenders ... Twin Peaks, Bikinis, etc.

    Not surprisingly, there have been some incidents where those bikini clad baristas and bartenders have been busted for showing 'too much skin' to customers. However, bust risk aside, I suppose that a girl choosing to show her big tits in exchange for big tips at a 'breastaurant' carries less potential stigma than doing the very same thing at a strip club.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    More depressing threads...

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Quote Originally Posted by Melonie View Post
    Guys can now have coffee served up by bikini clad baristas ... Java Juggs, Grab-n-Go, etc.
    Ever the voice of reason Melonie...

    And then there's Tinder... how many guys will wander into a strip club if they jump on Tinder late at night and find they can have the real deal.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Quote Originally Posted by charlotte_ai View Post
    Ever the voice of reason Melonie...

    And then there's Tinder... how many guys will wander into a strip club if they jump on Tinder late at night and find they can have the real deal.
    Omg exactly what I post on the thread about strip clubs dying out and how I thought areas where strip clubs were forced to scale back on nudity and contact levels would eventually turn into bikini clubs or shut down completely and guys looking for extras would either travel to legal prostitutes or use the hookup sites to get laid.
    “Cook for him like a housewife, fuck him good like a nympho….pay the rent and the car note, he invests in me like crypto”

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Declining industry is an understatement. Ladies used to make around 2 grand a night at the busy clubs 10 years ago. It is fully saturated with ladies nowadays with equal/better age and appearance to where you get paid average income comparable to a vanilla worker who went through college. Or you make even less if you are not as successful and work in a terrible area. I left stripping because of this. It is no longer profitable sadly unless you are a college student needing quick bucks. I was in debt with credit cards and could barely afford milk and cereal back when I was doing it.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Quote Originally Posted by NightGoddess View Post
    It's very important to remember that this job is what you make it. I see nothing "declining" except peoples' attitudes.
    I'm goin' w/this..
    Just about everything's declining, am i supposed to jump off a cliff now?


    MANY MEN WANTED TO LAY ME DOWN, BUT FEW WANTED TO LIFT ME UP

    -Eartha Kitt

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Quote Originally Posted by Melonie View Post
    Guys can now have beers served up by bikini clad bartenders ... Twin Peaks, Bikinis, etc.

    Not surprisingly, there have been some incidents where those bikini clad baristas and bartenders have been busted for showing 'too much skin' to customers. However, bust risk aside, I suppose that a girl choosing to show her big tits in exchange for big tips at a 'breastaurant' carries less potential stigma than doing the very same thing at a strip club.
    Tell me about it! Just last night I was sitting with a customer who was waiting for his friends and they were going to get a bottle (according to him). Then all of a sudden his friend texts and says they've decided to go to Twin Peaks instead. He just finished his beer and left. I mean, don't get me wrong, I know if he'd actually wanted to get dances with me he would have anyway, but it does seem like guys aren't as attached to clubs because they know they can go see titties at a "regular" bar for a lot less money.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    I'm in the cynical realist camp regarding the future of the industry, but that doesn't mean you can't still make money. It just means you need an exit strategy. Be smart with every dollar you make--invest in yourself! Get an education or go into training for a skilled profession. Become financially literate. If you're not in school, make sure you do something while stripping that you can put on a resume, even if it's just short-term contract or freelance work. Network, and don't make your stripping career known to most people. I have never regretted NOT giving someone information that they could one day use to hurt me. Don't waste your cash on shit that's going to hurt you in the short- and long-term--drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, tanning beds, etc. Another big issue with a lot of dancers not making cash these days, from my experience, is that a lot of them look like shit. Maybe it's just Houston's poor hiring standards, but I've worked with a lot of girls who are overweight with poorly done makeup and no "skills" other than bodily orifices that are open to business. When club managers will hire anyone to get that sweet house fee, it's no wonder customers are turning to establishments that actually have standards. Put effort into your appearance, work hard, be smart, and you can still make some money at a decent club. But I wouldn't bank on that money carrying you your whole life.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    I don't see the point in thinking "stripping isn't as good as the 'old days' so why bother". I have bad nights but that doesn't make me automatically think "the industry is declining!!" I'm sure it isn't as great as it used to be but I make more than enough to support myself, save for a new car, build a savings I couldn't do with any other job and still have extra money to do what I want. I've never looked at this job as a career, but it's been my only source of income for a while and will continue to be until I'm done getting all of my degrees. If stripping doesn't give you the income to support yourself and more then you should clearly find another job or maybe you're just in a terrible location. My club is FULL of dancers and there are some who bank and then there are some who are constantly saying they barely made house and have to hear the manager talk shit to them about not making money. I bank some nights and other nights I barely make anything, but that's just how it is. It has just taught me the importance of saving. Stripping may be declining but I'll take advantage of the money I can make in the club for as long as possible and I'm not going to keep thinking about the negatives because that's a waste of my brain space. lol.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Best analogy I can give you is Mad Max. If any of you have watched the movies you'll know what I mean.
    I make more than enough to support myself too. I don't dwell on the old days. It's pointless.
    "Fake tits are like Kevlar. They don't guarantee your chances of survival but they sure as hell improve it."
    Tempest

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    I've never looked at this job as a career, but it's been my only source of income for a while and will continue to be until I'm done getting all of my degrees
    Get an education or go into training for a skilled profession
    Again I return to my major future concern that a history of exotic dancing, in combination with more widespread use of IRS searches and/or facial recognition searches by future 'professional' employers, may limit future 'professional' job opportunities for college student dancers. Of course, we'll have to wait another 4 years for this year's new college student dancers to graduate and seek their first 'professional' job to actually find out how much of a 'problem' their exotic dancing work history may or may not create.

    However, odds are that future 'professional' employers won't ever explain the reason they chose not to hire a college graduate ( former ) exotic dancer versus a college graduate who doesn't have an adult industry work history. As such, it's likely that they'll still be speculating that the reasons they aren't being hired for good 'professional' jobs is that the economy is still poor, that there is still an overhang of unemployed 'professionals' with actual job experience, that the number of H1-B visa foreign professional workers continues to go up by tens of thousands every year, etc.


    Put effort into your appearance, work hard, be smart, and you can still make some money at a decent club. But I wouldn't bank on that money carrying you your whole life.
    I wouldn't put this in the 'simply no longer possible' category quite yet, but admittedly it requires a whole lot more time and effort today than it used to !!!
    Last edited by Melonie; 06-17-2015 at 01:29 PM.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    ^Unfortunately, this could be very true. I've known a few female bartenders at regular clubs that make good money, and they don't get the potential black mark on their records. Perhaps girls who haven't entered the industry would be better off working their way up to a main bartending position while completing their studies? Hell, a waitress at Ritz in Houston once told me that the average for the TWO clean dancers in that club was $200/night. Granted, most of the girls who worked there looked like hell, and customers generally went there expecting extras, but damn.

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    Default Re: Dancing. Declining industry? Is it worth really getting serious about?

    Just remember that none of us have any fucking clue what we're talking about.

    We can throw numbers and anecdotes around all day, but that won't change what's possible for YOU to make in YOUR club with your look, your hustle, your customer set, your work ethic, etc.

    Forget what everyone is saying, get your ass into a club, and figure out for your specific situation if dancing is worth getting serious about or not.

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