Are bath houses profitable?

[Deadlift1]

I wonder how well a gay bath house would do in Atlantic City. Outdoor pool and little cabanas for rent.

[+ Pensant]

Interesting question. Atlantic City doesn’t strike me as a gay destination.

[adriano46]

Interesting question. Atlantic City doesn’t strike me as a gay destination.

Always found it a nice venue, and wondered the same (e.g. when I win a lottery, I would invest in that sort of a venue near the Boardwalk), but never really found Atlantic gay-friendly, unless I brought the escort with me for the trip, though the room prices and sizes and amenities are worth it)

[Rudynate]

As far as I know, there are only two bathhouses in the Bay Area- Steamworks in Berkeley and Water Garden in San Jose. Both have been there for decades, both are big, nice, well-run places, and both are busy 24/7. Can't believe they aren't profitable.

 

 

Part of the reason that those places are so busy is that bathhouses are not permitted in San Francisco, so if you live in SF, you have to go to Berkeley or San Jose if you want to go to a bathhouse.

 

The barriers to entry for new players must be formidable because there haven't been any new entrants in the Bay Area.

 

Part of that would be that space is so expensive here.

[Chuckball]

I haven't been to a bath house in a long while. Since hook ups on CL and RM lead to a mutually desirable meet, I have not tried bath houses. Mostly bath houses for me at least are synonymous with rejection especially now that I am no longer 20 something. Guys that I find appealing are looking for something else and guys interested in me are seldom what I am looking for. In my youth I liked meetings at bars but the downside was that rarely did I or the partner have a place to go that was private. Bath houses eliminate that problem. I hope there is a business case to be made for continued economic survival of bath houses. Whether or not one has sex at the place, they are great ways just to see a lot of eye candy.

[thickornotatall]

I grew up in Manhattan in the late 60's early 1970's..from the Continental Baths to Man's Country..St Marks..The Barracks..East Side Sauna..Mt Morris in Harlem I liked seeing all sorts of men..Sometimes we went in groups of friends..sometimes late at night or early morning...I stopped going during the first wave of AIDS cases were linked to sex...Now in Florida there are a few open,,but at my age I have lost interest in wearing a towel and hoping it stays up...If a bathouse catering to sight impaired men open..count me in...BTW I like big fluffy towels

[+ Charlie]

Atlantic City was considered a destination for gays from Philly in the 1960s. There was a large strip of beach in front of one of the major hotels that was known as a gay beach, there were bars and gay guest houses. The last time I went there was in 1965, and I assume things are different now.

Always found it a nice venue, and wondered the same (e.g. when I win a lottery, I would invest in that sort of a venue near the Boardwalk), but never really found Atlantic gay-friendly, unless I brought the escort with me for the trip, though the room prices and sizes and amenities are worth it)

I wonder how well a gay bath house would do in Atlantic City. Outdoor pool and little cabanas for rent.

[Deadlift1]

I think AC could be a major gay destination. Housing is affordable and they have venues large enough to handle any gay event.

[Rudynate]

I think AC could be a major gay destination. Housing is affordable and they have venues large enough to handle any gay event.

 

Just skimmed an article from the New Yorker on AC's predicament. Not pretty. Detroit in miniature.

[+ azdr0710]

don't know if this is the article Rudy refers to, but a good read:

 

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/07/the-death-and-life-of-atlantic-city

 

http://video.newyorker.com/watch/the-new-yorker-presents-the-death-and-life-of-atlantic-city

[Deadlift1]

Things are better. The Trump Taj Mahal has been gutted and reopening as the Hard Rock Casino Hotel. Revel is reopening as Ocean Resort Casino. And yes AC was a hopping gay scene until the the casinos went in. Then AC cracked down on the clubs and drugs and kicked the gays out.

[Rudynate]

don't know if this is the article Rudy refers to, but a good read:

 

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/07/the-death-and-life-of-atlantic-city

 

http://video.newyorker.com/watch/the-new-yorker-presents-the-death-and-life-of-atlantic-city

 

That's the one.

[+ Pensant]

As a child, I remember it as kind of a dump. We used to stay in Stone Harbor as kids and some friends and I would drive up to AC to get served beers! The Philly kids called it ‘Glantic City, or something similar. I love that Philly accent.

[thickornotatall]

Things are better. The Trump Taj Mahal has been gutted and reopening as the Hard Rock Casino Hotel. Revel is reopening as Ocean Resort Casino. And yes AC was a hopping gay scene until the the casinos went in. Then AC cracked down on the clubs and drugs and kicked the gays out.

No Gays?...No Money....Examples..Fire Island...Palm Springs...P-Town...Saugatuck....One thing for certain...Gay summer places will always have money..good housing..food...shops...

[Deadlift1]

What the hell are you talking about? We are discussing the viability of AC for a bath house or alternative gay destination.

[+ azdr0710]

What the hell are you talking about? We are discussing the viability of AC for a bath house or alternative gay destination.

 

easy there, deadlift!....(have I said that to you before??).....

 

I think thick is suggesting AC has no gays and no money to support a venture like this

[Rudynate]

easy there, deadlift!....(have I said that to you before??).....

 

I think thick is suggesting AC has no gays and no money to support a venture like this

 

Actually, according to the New Yorker article, the mayor of AC is openly gay. He and his partner apparently did pretty well in nightclubs that served the casino trade in better times. They are now trying to promote AC as a gay destination.

[+ tassojunior]

So strange the way AC de-gayed. Generally there's a gay bath for about every dozen gay bars. (OK, I made that up).

 

I've never heard of a gay bathhouse on a beach. They're usually on the edge of downtown in a modest grimy area.

 

Since they usually don't serve alcohol where's the money?

[Rudynate]

So strange the way AC de-gayed. Generally there's a gay bath for about every dozen gay bars. (OK, I made that up).

 

I've never heard of a gay bathhouse on a beach. They're usually on the edge of downtown in a modest grimy area.

 

Since they usually don't serve alcohol where's the money?

 

I think overhead is low. The buildings are usually warehouse or light industrial space. Building out to make into a bathhouse involves creating a bunch of little cubes from drywall and plywood. Put in a steam room and a spa and you're there. Some have gyms that are pretty nice. I went to the Steamworks in Berkeley a couple of years ago and I was impressed with their workout facility.

[+ tassojunior]

I think overhead is low. The buildings are usually warehouse or light industrial space. Building out to make into a bathhouse involves creating a bunch of little cubes from drywall and plywood. Put in a steam room and a spa and you're there. Some have gyms that are pretty nice. I went to the Steamworks in Berkeley a couple of years ago and I was impressed with their workout facility.

 

But for what gross income? A couple dozen guys a day paying $10 or even $20?

 

I'm always amazed at the Crew Club in DC being there on prime real estate.

[Rudynate]

But for what gross income? A couple dozen guys a day paying $10 or even $20?

 

I'm always amazed at the Crew Club in DC being there on prime real estate.

 

I don't understand how the small ones make any money. I don't have a feel for how many private rooms a big place like the Steamworks has, but I imagine it is at least 100 and there is probably twice that number of lockers. As I said, the place is just chock full of men 24/7 and the rooms turn over constantly.

[Deadlift1]

Actually, according to the New Yorker article, the mayor of AC is openly gay. He and his partner apparently did pretty well in nightclubs that served the casino trade in better times. They are now trying to promote AC as a gay destination.

He got voted out. He now manages a beach town north of there. One mistake he made was trying to integrate the straights and the gays.

[+ FreshFluff]

Tthere would need to be other businesses there that would draw gay tourists during the hours they aren't in the bathhouse. One could open a full-service hotel, with a bathhouse and multiple restaurants and bars, but it's hard to draw enough gay tourists to support such a large operation. Look at what happened to the Out Hotel--and that's in NYC!

[Rudynate]

The whole notion of "gay" businesses is kind of last century. There was actually, for a time, an "anything goes" bathhouse here in San Francisco, called the Sutra Bathhouse, on Valencia in the Mission- men, women, gay, bi, straight. I never went. I heard the clientele was mostly straight women looking to fuck gay guys.

[Walker1]

He got voted out. He now manages a beach town north of there. One mistake he made was trying to integrate the straights and the gays.

What does that mean-integrate straights and gays?