Is Stripping A Recession Proof Profession?

If you lost your cushy desk job because of layoffs and budget cuts, what would you do? The simple answer might be to amp up your resume and hit the streets, but in this economy you would be in a crowd of thousands seeking the same job.

As time passes by, and your unemployment compensation runs out what’s next? Do you go to Walmart and make 6 bucks an hour? Could you survive off of that hourly wage after making 6 figures?

These questions and more are posed everyday in these hard times and lives are changed everyday after a job loss. I can fully attest to it since I was laid off myself from my City of Atlanta job over a year ago and it hasn’t been easy.

The AJC recently did an expose about how this recession is causing more women to work as strippers. Not hard to believe at all, since stripping is a recession proof profession or at least that’s what we’ve been led to believe.

So I pose this question: Is stripping “recession proof”…?

In times of stress and economic instability, the one thing people WILL do is spend money they don’t have for a moment of pleasure. That seems to be the overall consensus….at least on Twitter.

The AJC article claims that more and more women are turning towards stripping but it also reveals that the out of pocket costs to the stripper has gone up as well.

The money may be easy and the patrons are never-ending, but consider all of the expenses before you start swinging on the pole. Like the fact that you’ll have to have a permit. Yes. A permit to shake your “A”zz, which also consists of a background check:

Getting into the industry is tougher these days. Would-be dancers must have a job offer from a club before they can get a permit, which involves an extensive background check. The city prohibits anyone convicted of a felony or sex-related crime from dancing, police spokesman Otis Redmond said. The tougher scrutiny has shaved the new permits granted from a decade high of 3,448 in 2007 to 2,642 last year.

Ok. So now you’re down 3 or 4 hundred bucks before you even get started! I haven’t been in a strip club lately and don’t plan on going but from what I’ve heard, it ain’t what it used to be. I’ve had friends who left the spot with duffle bags full of cash, but now? You better be happy to get a fist full of dollars…

With the exception of “stack nights” — when the money rolls in with little effort, as when celebrities and high rollers show up — patrons aren’t spending as much. Dancers who could once make $5,000 in a single evening say those nights are increasingly rare. The trickle-down effect hits the pockets of DJs and other support staff.

Among customers, bottles of champagne have been replaced by bottles of beer or a few drinks that are nursed all night. The city’s slower convention business has dried up the pool of out-of-towners. As for more frequent visitors?

“The regulars aren’t so regular,” said Simone Neal. “I have to watch my money more closely now. I can’t spend like I used to.” (MORE)

The AJC article is great, but are women really turning to stripping out of desperation in this economy? And if they are turning there as a last resort, is it really worth it?

Again I ask….is stripping really recession proof?

Photos via MagicCityPics

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