Based on the facts, what minimum annual income is recommended for male members at Universe so that both men and women can enjoy themselves?

I’m Saito, a column writer♪ First of all, you can’t judge someone based on their annual income alone. Even if they earn ¥50 million a year… If it comes from FX, their take-home pay might be ¥40 million. If it comes from a company, it might be ¥25 million. The figures aren’t exact, but the difference is huge. And if they have a family, they probably have around ¥500,000 a month in spending money, right? Of course, I doubt all of that would be used for papa-katsu (compensated dating in Japan). Even among single men earning ¥10 million a year through FX—running everything through expenses and operating a company small enough not to attract the tax office—there are quite a few who swagger around and take their frustrations out on everyone else. I can understand the questioner’s feeling that “the going rate is way too high.” It’s common for women to ask for amounts comparable to what TV announcers at major networks or entertainers receive. Certainly, truly top-tier beauties command high prices. But beautiful women in the top tier are usually quite humble. The beautiful women in the second tier often have enormous pride. If you happen to meet someone in between, I think you can maintain a wonderful relationship. P.S. Some of the most demanding second-tier women have even appeared in adult videos for ¥50,000.

Maezawa answers: > Based on the facts, what annual income would you recommend for a male member of Universe so that both men and women can enjoy themselves? I had vaguely thought that an annual income of at least ¥8 million would allow someone to enjoy it reasonably well. There are various factors involved, such as whether the man is single or married, whether he has children and is currently facing major child-related expenses, and so on. So even men with the same annual income may have very different amounts they can actually spend. Also, regarding the questioner’s living expenses of ¥350,000 per month: that seems reasonable given their annual income. However, for someone with a lower income—around the average annual salary—that amount may be close to their entire monthly income. They might wonder, “How can your entire income be the same as your living expenses?” Thinking about it that way, if spending time with women is something he truly enjoys, perhaps he could lower his living expenses further—say, to ¥200,000 or less per month. That makes me wonder whether he might actually have room to give the woman another ¥150,000 per month. Perhaps it isn’t that the amount is beyond his means; maybe he simply considers the amount he wants to pay the woman to be the current allowance. Of course, it’s perfectly natural to spend more on the things you personally value. However, I feel that’s somewhat different from saying that this amount is impossible on his annual income. Otherwise, someone earning ¥50 million a year could say, “My living expenses are ¥3 million a month, so I can’t enjoy a dating club at all.” But in reality, that isn’t the case. > The terms have been agreed upon with the women, and they haven’t changed. If the terms have been mutually agreed upon and neither side is dissatisfied, then that’s a good thing. The issue would be if the women were unhappy. If you’re both having an enjoyable time, then I don’t see a problem. Especially if you’re taking them to reasonably nice restaurants every time, that may be a positive factor on your side as well. (When someone takes women to family restaurants, for example, they tend to receive negative feedback.) If the questioner himself is a stylish, attractive man who is popular with women, it’s also possible that the women feel, “I’m fine with this allowance for someone like him.” (In other words, they aren’t dissatisfied.) Since this involves people dealing with one another, how you’re evaluated in ways other than the allowance is also important. I think the overall combination of these factors determines whether a woman becomes dissatisfied. If the relationships continue for a long time, I’d assume the women aren’t unhappy with the arrangement. On the other hand, if the relationships often end after a few months, it’s reasonable to conclude that the women may have been dissatisfied. The allowance is important, but it isn’t everything. I’m glad when someone can make up for that in other ways and genuinely considers the woman’s feelings. That said, it would be even better to show some consideration by checking from time to time whether she has any complaints.