THEIR job during the week is to entertain men - drinking, singing and chatting with them. And for some, if not all, sleeping with them.
Yet, to unwind, these KTV club hostesses opt to spend more time with men.
Except that they become the clients, paying for male hosts.
This is an emerging trend, The New Paper on Sunday learnt after speaking to operators of five male-host clubs.
Kevin, a senior manager at one such club on Orchard Road, said: "Three out of 10 customers are young mamasans and their girls.
"We know who they are because they are quite open about what they do for a living."
And it seems these women are generous spenders with few demands.
Quentin, a public relations manager at another club in the same building, said: "They tend to drink more than other women customers and they also tip better.
"And they usually just want companionship with no strings attached."
That's because sex is not on the agenda, said seven mamasans and hostesses interviewed by The New Paper on Sunday.
Visits to seven male-host clubs across the island in two weeks found that only clubs with hosts from China, Taiwan and Malaysia are popular.
This is because the hostesses are mainly from China and prefer to converse with men who are closer to home.
None of them said so, but perhaps they had had enough of local men from their work.
A mamasan who goes by the name of Miss Wei-wei, 24, thinks nothing of paying $6,000 - for liquor, sashes and tips - for a night of revelry for herself and her girls.
The Shanghainese manages a group of 10 girls at a KTV club on Havelock Road.
Miss Wei-wei said: "I don't really think it's a lot of money for three, four hours of fun and companionship."
At male-host clubs, a bottle of hard liquor costs between $148 and $168 during happy hours. Flower garlands and sashes are usually priced from $50 up.
It's her way of "rewarding" her girls, Miss Wei-wei said.
"They get to relax in an environment they are comfortable in and enjoy the company of men who can understand their feelings.
"Really, do you think anyone can understand what we're going through?
"No one, not unless they are in the same line. It's really a case of ?tong bing xiang lian' (fellow sufferers in Mandarin)."
