Going bust?

Six Florida businessmen came up with the idea for Hooters in 1983 – buxom waitresses wearing tight tops. The owners wondered if their concept would catch on – hence their decision to incorporate the business on April Fools’ Day. Hooters now has 455 locations but in China a Hunan businessman has decided to add his own twist. His giant restaurant – which seats 300 – requires its waitresses to wear bikinis. And in a novel twist, any female guest who turns up in a bikini dines for free.

The People’s Daily notes that some locals in the city of Changsha think the restaurant is “immoral”, although when it visited it found that most diners were young office workers and female students (donning bikinis happily to eat free).

The restaurant’s manager said she initially struggled with the concept but has now become accustomed to it: “If you have a good figure, it’s no big deal.” The entrepreneur behind the Jinxiangbao restaurant told People’s Daily that the bikini offer is a marketing tool. “The restaurant is based on seafood. If the waitresses put on a bikini, combined with the decor of sun, sand, coast and heat waves, the diners will feel like eating while sitting on a beach,” he claimed.

© ChinTell Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sponsored by HSBC.

The Week in China website and the weekly magazine publications are owned and maintained by ChinTell Limited, Hong Kong. Neither HSBC nor any member of the HSBC group of companies ("HSBC") endorses the contents and/or is involved in selecting, creating or editing the contents of the Week in China website or the Week in China magazine. The views expressed in these publications are solely the views of ChinTell Limited and do not necessarily reflect the views or investment ideas of HSBC. No responsibility will therefore be assumed by HSBC for the contents of these publications or for the errors or omissions therein.