Massage Shop Profitability

Has anyone given any thought to opening a shop? What's the profitability on these things?

My quick run of the numbers... let's say you have ~5 ML who provide 4-5 massages a day on average and shop keeps $60 per session (using rough averages).

You'd take in 5 x (4-5) x $60 = $1,200-1,500 a day in revenue.

Then if you don't want to run the shop yourself, you'd need to pay a manager ~$300 a day.

Doesn't seem like there's much left for you considering you still need to pay for rent, consumables, run the risk of getting fined (unless you get a licence), risk losing good performing girl etc, covid etc...

Are these numbers too low? Would love to hear thoughts from anyone who has first hand experience running a shop.

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Originally Posted by punter00

Has anyone given any thought to opening a shop? What's the profitability on these things?

My quick run of the numbers... let's say you have ~5 ML who provide 4-5 massages a day on average and shop keeps $60 per session (using rough averages).

You'd take in 5 x (4-5) x $60 = $1,200-1,500 a day in revenue.

Then if you don't want to run the shop yourself, you'd need to pay a manager ~$300 a day.

Doesn't seem like there's much left for you considering you still need to pay for rent, consumables, run the risk of getting fined (unless you get a licence), risk losing good performing girl etc, covid etc...

Are these numbers too low? Would love to hear thoughts from anyone who has first hand experience running a shop.

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And you have to factor in advertising for customers and girls not to mention agro from rival businesses in the same industry, and the threat of robberies etc etc.

I know a pretty smart WL and she says that the Chinese owner clears at least $2000 a day after paying the girls their share. That’s average, 7 days a week. And it’s just a day time brothel from 10.00 - 6.00pm.

So that’s $14k a week for her and she has to pay rent of $2k a week. She’s basically pocketing $624k a year, tax free.

I’m not sure how much she has to pay off the Chinese mafia each month.

Massage profit is definitely not as good as brothel.
Secondly it depends on how busy you are.
Normally if you have 3 girls can work 10 hrs non stop,gross probably 900 a day before you pay any marketing and rent

To increase profitability own the premises.....rents are a killer
Wonder how franchising would work...?

Good points.. didn't think about advertising. Brothel would definitely have better profitability than massage shop.

But I think there'd be more risks given the operating hours, clients rocking up drunk, being violent and attacking staff/girls etc. With a massage shop the 10am-8pm operating hours seem more "normal" and the key thing would be to make sure your best performing girls don't leave to go to another shop. If they choose to start their own shop.. not much you can do about that.

@Fred Flintstone I didn't know 10am-6pm brothels existed hahaha. She's probably licensed and will need to report some of the figures for tax but still, those numbers are quite good!

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Originally Posted by punter00

Good points.. didn't think about advertising. Brothel would definitely have better profitability than massage shop.

But I think there'd be more risks given the operating hours, clients rocking up drunk, being violent and attacking staff/girls etc. With a massage shop the 10am-8pm operating hours seem more "normal" and the key thing would be to make sure your best performing girls don't leave to go to another shop. If they choose to start their own shop.. not much you can do about that.

@Fred Flintstone I didn't know 10am-6pm brothels existed hahaha. She's probably licensed and will need to report some of the figures for tax but still, those numbers are quite good!

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Marlenes is a day time brothel only and yes she’s licensed. Agree that she will have to report a small portion to the tax man

Do you realise how many troublesome customers you have to deal with?

I've been to a small shop which keeps only 2 girls. The mamasan/owner doubles to do massage when it gets busy.

She doesn't need to pay the girls (her employees) upfront. The customers pay them and she takes a cut. Which business enjoys such low upkeep? She told me she depended largely on the girls bringing in business as punters tended to follow her favorite MLs around. There is a Chinese cook who has been coming to see a particular girl 3 times a week.

So there is no promotion or advertising costs there. All she needs is a small MASSAGE LED sign flashing away on the shop front.

Running a business on cash and almost tax free is a big attraction.

Another small shop is located along a street which is full of sleepy shops and empty shops. There is hardly any foot traffic. I assume she pays a low rent. She keeps a low key and doesn't even has a web site. She depends on a base of royal regular customers. She doesn't have too many problems with difficult clients.

However sitting in a shop with boredom 7 days a week, weekends and public holidays and from 10am - 8.30pm is something you don't want to do.

I think the MLs could smell the opportunity to make more money. Two of them have spoken to me about the hope to set up shops one day.

Very simply you are really going to make a very small profit, the same as a wage once you cover all the monthly expenses and have a huge headache every day after dealing with girls who don't want to show up to work,
and if you or your partner is not asian don't even bother trying to set up this type of business as asians only work for asians
and don't forget you are a target not only for the criminal world but for the police, immigration and health authorities, good luck

There is not just rent. There are bills. Rates, utilities and electricity as well as towels and consumables.

There are a handful of well run shops which should be profitable, they are comparatively bigger size operations to most other city and suburbs RnT shops which on average only have 2 to 3 MLs on a shift plus may be the owner/Mamasan whom will jump in to help when busy or simply being a working Mamasan such as Yuki and Candy and many other especially those who used to be a ML before opening up her own shop.

So who are the successful shops ? 227 Broadway, Summerville, Sydney Baby etc are the usual suspects. They do have a few things in common: much larger shops with more than 10 rooms, fitted with on suite shower and most importantly, they are all licensed brothels but preferred to operate as RnT.

Then the owners, all very smart and hard working business ladies .

Then you have the next level of reasonably busy shops such as 227 NSM, 200 Stanmore, Sussex Star etc plus a few others over the years, some were quite popular in their hey days and many were no longer existed. 501 Newtown was a prime example.

So , are RnT shops all profitable ? I think only the actual shop owners can answer this question, what do I know ?

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Originally Posted by Peterpecker

There is not just rent. There are bills. Rates, utilities and electricity as well as towels and consumables.

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Rent is actually the big part. Others like bills are not so important

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Originally Posted by EYA06072021

Rent is actually the big part. Others like bills are not so important

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Rents for these shops are actually not very much. They're MPs, not retail outlets or restaurants. Their modus operandi is to be discreet. That means they would usually go for either shop lots that are out of the way (second floor and above with no ground floor frontage), or even residential locations (old terraces).

The rents for those would be much cheaper than what has to be paid for a "premium" lot.

I mean, sure if they can get a premium lot for cheap they might go for it, but their bread and butter are all those out-of-the-way premises, because they know us wolf brothers can smell them from a mile away!

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Originally Posted by EYA06072021

Rent is actually the big part. Others like bills are not so important

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this depends of the location. Even if its out of the way, anything closer to the main hub or CBD would start to get expensive.
However i would say its profitable based on talks with mamasan they have about 2-3 shops!

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Originally Posted by OLD SNAKE

....and if you or your partner is not asian don't even bother trying to set up this type of business as asians only work for asians

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It's more of a language problem as the girls from PRC have limited English ability.

Many of the girls who are here on English student visa don't see the economic advantage of seriously learning it.

Even among some of the middle-aged mamasans their English is limited to:

"Hello darling today we have three beautiful girls for you. When you come?"