Economic downturns can be boom times for prostitutes, according to an economist who has studied the oldest profession for decades.
Sudhir Venkatesh writes for Slate that in the short-term, prostitutes see an up-tick in business when bankers and other hot-shots lose their jobs.
“Their clients were coming to them for a mix of escape and encouragement.”
There seem to be more posts advertising erotic services than ever on Richmond’s Craigslist, the virtual billboard where people buy and sell everything. At the end of July, BizSense reported that Craigslist was flagging and taking down any post that advertised erotic services.
No more. There were more than 60 posts on Sunday. And although BizSense does not have concrete data, it seems that there are more local phone numbers (804) and ones from elsewhere in Virginia (703, 434. 540, 757). There also appear to be more white faces in the photographs.
Most charge between $150 and $250 an hour. (Which by comparison is about the same as junior-level lawyers). According to the Slate story, high-end sex workers “see themselves as therapists, part of a vast metropolitan wellness industry that includes private chefs and yoga teachers. Many have regular clients who visit them several times per month, paying them not only for sex but also for comfort and affirmation.”
The story also says that around 40% of customers don’t even have sex with the high-end prostitutes.
A few questions here: Do you think there are upscale madams here like in DC and NYC? Is prostitution recession-proof?
So far, none of the local girls have emailed us back.
Economic downturns can be boom times for prostitutes, according to an economist who has studied the oldest profession for decades.
Sudhir Venkatesh writes for Slate that in the short-term, prostitutes see an up-tick in business when bankers and other hot-shots lose their jobs.
“Their clients were coming to them for a mix of escape and encouragement.”
There seem to be more posts advertising erotic services than ever on Richmond’s Craigslist, the virtual billboard where people buy and sell everything. At the end of July, BizSense reported that Craigslist was flagging and taking down any post that advertised erotic services.
No more. There were more than 60 posts on Sunday. And although BizSense does not have concrete data, it seems that there are more local phone numbers (804) and ones from elsewhere in Virginia (703, 434. 540, 757). There also appear to be more white faces in the photographs.
Most charge between $150 and $250 an hour. (Which by comparison is about the same as junior-level lawyers). According to the Slate story, high-end sex workers “see themselves as therapists, part of a vast metropolitan wellness industry that includes private chefs and yoga teachers. Many have regular clients who visit them several times per month, paying them not only for sex but also for comfort and affirmation.”
The story also says that around 40% of customers don’t even have sex with the high-end prostitutes.
A few questions here: Do you think there are upscale madams here like in DC and NYC? Is prostitution recession-proof?
So far, none of the local girls have emailed us back.