First Ever Raid on Illegal Kabukicho Brothel: Surprising Popularity Among Foreign Tourists
On February 4, the Metropolitan Police Department’s Security Division arrested seven people, including the manager of two brothels, including “SPARAKU” in Kabukicho, Shinjuku-ku, for providing a place of prostitution for foreign visitors to Japan, in violation of the Anti-Prostitution Law. This is the first time in Japan that an illegal sex store targeting inbound customers has been exposed.
At the stores exposed this time, 70-80% of the customers were foreigners. In addition to major currencies such as US dollars and euros, the shop had prepared currencies of 16 countries and regions including India, Switzerland, Mexico, China, Turkey, and Qatar for payment. What exactly was going on in the store?
A system known as Kabukicho-style
SPARAKU was a type of adult entertainment establishment known as “Kabukicho-style,” located in a building along Shinjuku’s Kuyakusho Street. While its website described it as a men’s esthetic salon, in reality, it operated as a short-time brothel (also referred to as “chon no ma”) where full-service encounters were available.
The women working there were sometimes directly scouted by the arrested male manager, who would approach street workers around To-Yoko and Okubo Park, saying things like, “It’s cold outside, why not work at my place?” or “The cut is lower, but you can do whatever you want while inside.”
Upon entering the shop, a male attendant would present a panel displaying available women, saying, “These are the girls who are available now.” Customers would then choose from the images. The uniqueness of this panel-selection system led to it being referred to as “Kabukicho-style.”
If none of the available women suited their preferences, customers were free to leave. The prices were ¥10,000 for a full-service course and ¥6,000 for a health course, with both offering 40 minutes of service. Price-wise, both options were cheaper than standard adult entertainment establishments.
However, the main reason why the shop attracted many foreign customers was not just its affordability.
