About negotiating the terms of an adult relationship (intimate): You mentioned that you were offered 20,000 or 30,000 yen, and that the staff told you this was the going rate. Since you said it was your first time offering to meet a woman, have rates gone down recently? (I was happy to receive the invitation, but unfortunately had to decline.)

Yokoyama from the staff here as well. I believe that was something they told you as part of the negotiation. The club never discloses going rates or per-meeting amounts to either male or female members. For any offers going forward, please don’t take claims like that at face value—make sure to negotiate carefully.

He was just using the staff’s name as justification for offering 20,000–30,000 yen. Since he seems to be new to dating clubs, please go easy on him. Once he realizes that 20,000–30,000 yen won’t be accepted and that staff are known not to quote the going rate, he’ll naturally have to adjust his approach. Marika

Maezawa from the President’s Office here. > You said you were offered 20,000 or 30,000 yen, and that the staff told you this was the going rate. I think that man is lying. Staff aren’t allowed to tell anyone what the going rate for an allowance is. (It’s an internal rule.) If he says something like that, why not tell him that the staff told you the going rate was 100,000 yen? It’s a bit like a battle of wits between a fox and a raccoon dog... Although I can imagine the man calling the club, bright red with anger, to complain to the staff. Since the staff don’t give either men or women any information about allowances, they can just stay completely calm. That said, the woman should send feedback to the club shortly afterward. Otherwise, the staff may think she was asking for an unusually high allowance. Something along these lines would be good: “He told me that the staff said 20,000–30,000 yen was the going rate, so he offered me that amount. To counter him, I ended up saying that the staff had told me the going rate was 100,000 yen. I normally wouldn’t say something like that, but I was surprised that he was trying to undervalue me. I’m sorry.” > Has the going rate gone down recently? I don’t think it has gone down in particular, but it does seem that some men have less money to spare these days. Those men may be more likely to lower the allowance they offer. Because of COVID, fewer women may be going out and meeting people. Normally, when the number of women decreases, the amounts offered tend to go up. Aren’t women receiving more offers per person lately? We used to be told that half of all women didn’t receive any offers, but recently, the figure has become 40%. If they looked into it properly, it may have fallen below 30%. Since the number of men is increasing, I think the gender balance is gradually shifting in favor of women.

I’m Ayase Nana, a female member. That person was incredibly rude—sorry for being so blunt. What were you wearing for the date? Was your hair clean? Did you shower beforehand? You probably just didn’t make an impression on him. I’m sure you’ll be fine next time, and a good person will make you an offer. Until then, keep working on yourself and wait patiently.

I’m Kazu, a male member. You don’t know whether what that man said is true.