Their sexy outfits and glossy makeup make it easy for "kyabajo" cabaret hostesses to entice flush male patrons into splurging fortunes on drinks.
Their flashy lifestyle is the fodder for magazines looking to tickle teenagers' curiosity. Surveys show hostessing ranks in the top-10 jobs high school girls aspire to.
But hostesses and their former ranks want young girls to realize there is no such thing as an easy meal ticket. On Dec. 22, former hostess Rin Sakurai established the Kyabakura (cabaret club) Union in an effort to improve the treatment of hostesses, who can face abuses ranging from harassment to unpaid wages to unlawful firing in an industry that faces little scrutiny.