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http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,198026,00.html?
Beauty salons for men, by women, for sleaze
Some salons in cluster of Clementi shophouses offer 'special' services for men
By Special Correspondent
April 06, 2009
WORKING GIRLS: Dressed in tight clothes, these girls flirt with male passers-by, inviting them into the salons.
BEAUTY salons dominate these two blocks of shophouses on West Coast Drive in Clementi West.
They proudly advertise their services, ranging from hair styling to facials to massages, on signboards in the front, in bright inviting lights.
And this cluster of at least seven salons seem popular, from the number of customers making a beeline for them.
But, oddly, the clients aren't women looking for a perm or a beauty makeover.
They are men in slippers, faded shirts and shorts, hardly the sort to be seeking the services of beauticians or hair stylists.
Some of them don't even have much hair.
But if they go in looking weary, they often emerge with a bounce in their step.
So what service is offered in these places?
According to one long-time resident of the estate, who wanted to be known only as Mr Lee, it's 'not the legal type'.
'Real men go to barber shops, not beauty salons. They get their haircuts and leave,' he said.
'The older men who visit these beauty salons (in the estate) look the same when they come out. Nothing seems to have changed with their looks.'
Curiosity and suspicion made Mr Lee, who is self-employed, decide to find out for himself what goes on in these salons.
He could not understand why there were so many of them in the two blocks and why some remained open till as late as 11.30pm.
Three weeks ago, he learned the truth.
'Aside from beauty services, some of the salons provide massages. I just didn't expect the massages to include private parts,' he said.
Mr Lee said he entered one of the salons for a back massage and left feeling violated.
'When the massage therapist touched my groin, I asked her, 'What do you think you're doing?' When she realised I was offended, she continued massaging the other parts of my body,' he said.
Surprised
Mr Lee was surprised because he thought such illegal activities in the HDB heartland had stopped about three years ago.
In June 2006, the authorities imposed tougher laws on massage parlours to stop sleazy activities.
About 12 months later, the police nabbed 706 foreigners, mainly China women, for working illegally as masseuses. In addition, 439 unlicensed massage parlours were ordered to stop operating.
The women in these salons on West Coast Drive are also mostly from China.
Dressed in tight-fitting outfits, they smile and flirt with men who walk past the salons, said Mr Lee.
He proceeded to check out the other salons, and received an offer of sex at another salon.
Said Mr Lee: 'A masseuse told me that they had to resort to a name change for the shop to be discreet. Any shop with the word 'massage' would draw unwanted attention.'
But not all the salons are involved in the sex trade.
Some appear legitimate, advertising their beauty and traditional massage services on posters.
Massage chairs and beds and hair-perming equipment are in plain view at these shops.
Over the last four days, we went to four salons and asked if they provided 'special' services?
All four women managing the salons gave us disgusted looks, saying they did not do so because it was against the law.
At night, however, one of the salons we went to during the day seemed to have changed its tune.
We approached a customer after he stepped out of the beauty salon and he revealed that it did provide sex to customers, but only if you asked discreetly.
The shipyard worker, who wanted to be known only as MrChoon, 49, agreed to reveal what goes on inside the salon provided we did not fully identify him.
He said that after he suffered a back injury at work two years ago, his colleagues had recommended this hair and beauty salon to him.
Mr Choon said in Mandarin: 'All was good when the therapist was working on my aching back. When she flipped me over, I noticed that she was smiling and winking at me.
'I smiled back. Frustrated that I didn't get the message, she whispered into my ear.'
Hearing her mention a Mandarin slang term for a particular sex act, Mr Chong said: 'I nearly laughed aloud at the suggestion.'
Since then, he has always returned to his therapist, whom he knows as Linda, a China national in her 30s.
Behind the curtains of the 'massage room', communication is carried out in whispered conversations and hand signals.
Linda, who has been working there for three years, is paranoid that other customers and her boss, also a China woman, might hear their conversations, said MrChoon.
While she charges a standard $40 for the massage, 'extras' cost an additional $50, he said.
All payments are made behind the curtains.
On Thursday night, when Mr Choon last saw Linda, she asked him whether he had 'any gifts for her'.
Mr Choon said 'next time, next time' and left after getting a hug from her near the salon's sliding door.
Beauty salons for men, by women, for sleaze
Some salons in cluster of Clementi shophouses offer 'special' services for men
By Special Correspondent
April 06, 2009
WORKING GIRLS: Dressed in tight clothes, these girls flirt with male passers-by, inviting them into the salons.
BEAUTY salons dominate these two blocks of shophouses on West Coast Drive in Clementi West.
They proudly advertise their services, ranging from hair styling to facials to massages, on signboards in the front, in bright inviting lights.
And this cluster of at least seven salons seem popular, from the number of customers making a beeline for them.
But, oddly, the clients aren't women looking for a perm or a beauty makeover.
They are men in slippers, faded shirts and shorts, hardly the sort to be seeking the services of beauticians or hair stylists.
Some of them don't even have much hair.
But if they go in looking weary, they often emerge with a bounce in their step.
So what service is offered in these places?
According to one long-time resident of the estate, who wanted to be known only as Mr Lee, it's 'not the legal type'.
'Real men go to barber shops, not beauty salons. They get their haircuts and leave,' he said.
'The older men who visit these beauty salons (in the estate) look the same when they come out. Nothing seems to have changed with their looks.'
Curiosity and suspicion made Mr Lee, who is self-employed, decide to find out for himself what goes on in these salons.
He could not understand why there were so many of them in the two blocks and why some remained open till as late as 11.30pm.
Three weeks ago, he learned the truth.
'Aside from beauty services, some of the salons provide massages. I just didn't expect the massages to include private parts,' he said.
Mr Lee said he entered one of the salons for a back massage and left feeling violated.
'When the massage therapist touched my groin, I asked her, 'What do you think you're doing?' When she realised I was offended, she continued massaging the other parts of my body,' he said.
Surprised
Mr Lee was surprised because he thought such illegal activities in the HDB heartland had stopped about three years ago.
In June 2006, the authorities imposed tougher laws on massage parlours to stop sleazy activities.
About 12 months later, the police nabbed 706 foreigners, mainly China women, for working illegally as masseuses. In addition, 439 unlicensed massage parlours were ordered to stop operating.
The women in these salons on West Coast Drive are also mostly from China.
Dressed in tight-fitting outfits, they smile and flirt with men who walk past the salons, said Mr Lee.
He proceeded to check out the other salons, and received an offer of sex at another salon.
Said Mr Lee: 'A masseuse told me that they had to resort to a name change for the shop to be discreet. Any shop with the word 'massage' would draw unwanted attention.'
But not all the salons are involved in the sex trade.
Some appear legitimate, advertising their beauty and traditional massage services on posters.
Massage chairs and beds and hair-perming equipment are in plain view at these shops.
Over the last four days, we went to four salons and asked if they provided 'special' services?
All four women managing the salons gave us disgusted looks, saying they did not do so because it was against the law.
At night, however, one of the salons we went to during the day seemed to have changed its tune.
We approached a customer after he stepped out of the beauty salon and he revealed that it did provide sex to customers, but only if you asked discreetly.
The shipyard worker, who wanted to be known only as MrChoon, 49, agreed to reveal what goes on inside the salon provided we did not fully identify him.
He said that after he suffered a back injury at work two years ago, his colleagues had recommended this hair and beauty salon to him.
Mr Choon said in Mandarin: 'All was good when the therapist was working on my aching back. When she flipped me over, I noticed that she was smiling and winking at me.
'I smiled back. Frustrated that I didn't get the message, she whispered into my ear.'
Hearing her mention a Mandarin slang term for a particular sex act, Mr Chong said: 'I nearly laughed aloud at the suggestion.'
Since then, he has always returned to his therapist, whom he knows as Linda, a China national in her 30s.
Behind the curtains of the 'massage room', communication is carried out in whispered conversations and hand signals.
Linda, who has been working there for three years, is paranoid that other customers and her boss, also a China woman, might hear their conversations, said MrChoon.
While she charges a standard $40 for the massage, 'extras' cost an additional $50, he said.
All payments are made behind the curtains.
On Thursday night, when Mr Choon last saw Linda, she asked him whether he had 'any gifts for her'.
Mr Choon said 'next time, next time' and left after getting a hug from her near the salon's sliding door.
