It is a felony to “lay hands on another host’s guest! Fines of more than 1 million yen… “Bombs” are on the rise in Kabukicho!
Reiwa 2024, Kabukicho is now ...... #97
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Did you know that “bombs” are now rampant in Kabukicho?
The “bombs” refer to various prohibited behaviors in host clubs in general, ranging from small acts such as “asking a customer about his/her occupation” to police action such as a fistfight with another host club employee.
In short, “any action that may lower the sales of other hosts or stores” is absolutely forbidden, and one of the most serious offenses is “touching a customer of another host in the same store.
When the host in charge is busy, the help host will often come to the bar after hours and drink with the host for a long time without the host in charge. We often drink together for long periods of time without the host being in charge. We gradually began to have a physical relationship. ……
Amika (pseudonym, 23) fell in love with Shoma (pseudonym, 25), a help host, several years ago. Since then, she has been going on more and more dates with Shoma outside of the restaurant, while she has been nominating the host in charge at the restaurant. Naturally, this behavior constitutes a “bomb.
She said, “I like my host, but I really fell in love with the help who always consults with me and takes my side. It was a thrill, like having an affair. Somehow the guilt of betraying my charge was comforting” (Amika, above).
If Amika’s actions were to be discovered by her host or the restaurant, Shoma would be fined over one million yen.
“I was also a fool, so I was impressed, thinking, ‘He doesn’t want to let me go …… even at the risk of a million yen.’ But then Shoma moved to another store and I immediately nominated her, but I wasn’t that into her. In the end, I wondered if I just liked the thrill of cheating.
It is basically a “bomb” to have a physical relationship with a help, or even to contact a cast member other than the host in charge. If it is too severe, he will be fired, but in some cases, he may be allowed to stay with the company with only a fine.
One of my subordinates, whom I trusted very much, had his hands on one of my ace customers,” he said. I thought again that men and women can’t be trusted. But he was a great help, so I had no choice but to reduce the fine and leave him in the store. Hosts are also shorthanded ……” (Shin, pseudonym, 25)
Recently, there have even been some who have taken advantage of the “bombshells” and dared to bring their customers close to their helpers.
I didn’t want to do pillow talk with my own customers, so I let my help hold me. It was a “bomb,” but I’m okay with it because I’m the one in charge and I’m allowed to do it.
In the wake of the “Riri-chan” scandal, the host industry is now required to be more compliant, and it is not difficult to imagine that the rampant use of “bombs” is causing problems for the management.
At a host club I have been going to recently, we are asked to write our full names when we first enter the club, and kids with day jobs are asked to show their employee ID cards. It was explained to me that I should go to …… so that I could deal with any problems immediately if they occurred, and I obediently followed the instructions.
However, I witnessed one of my designated hosts divulging my place of employment to another customer. …… I thought that leaking customer information was also a “bomb” act! I thought. Even if the system is expanded, it will be meaningless if the literacy of the hosts remains low.
The time has come for hosts to be literate and compliant.
From the June 28, 2024 issue of FRIDAY
Interview and text: Sasaki Chihuahua
Born in Tokyo in 2000. After attending an integrated school in Tokyo from elementary school to high school, he went on to Keio University. He is studying the sociology of downtown areas including Kabukicho. After graduation, he worked as a writer. His new book "Host! Tachinbo! To Yoko! Overdose na Hito-tachi" (Kodansha) is now on sale.