How some adult nightclubs’ day shift are proving more lucrative than previously thought.
(NOTE: This story appears in the May 2025 issue of ED Magazine.)
Every movie portrays a strip club visit with the same clichés: a neon-lit venue in the dead of night, packed with a rowdy crowd in a distinct neighborhood. While some of those details—mainly the neon lights—are accurate, others, like the assumption that it’s strictly a nighttime scene, are far from true. While most adult nightclubs operate exclusively in the evening to early morning, some clubs that open their doors in the early hours of the day are more successful, sometimes generating more revenue from their daytime clientele.
The Red Room, located in New Port Richie, FL, is known to have one of the best day shifts in the Bay area, in fact the daytime crowd turns better business than the nighttime market in the overly-saturated Pasco County market. “While there is no guarantee of a crowd during the day shift, it is typically known to hold on to its loyal customers,” says Buehrig.
Buehrig acquired The Red Room, formerly known as Desire, in 2022. Since then it has undergone multiple renovations that have helped attract new customers, but no makeover has been as effective as his current daytime general manager, Bernie.
“The gentleman who deserves 95 percent of the shift’s success is my day manager, Bernie,” says Buehrig. “He’s been in the New Port Richie area for a good bit, and has an amazing following, so many people come simply to see him.” According to Beuhrig, Bernie has over 15 years of experience in the adult entertainment industry and has worked in multiple clubs in the area.
While there is no guarantee of a crowd during the day shift, it is typically known to hold on to its loyal customers.
— Jeremy Buehrig, owner of The Red Room
Buehrig is not the only one who attributes his success to his staff, Justice, a former daytime general manager at Leopard’s Lounge in Ontario, Canada, also ran a popular day shift.
“I personally loved managing that shift. I had girls from hours away who came just to work with me, although I gave incentives,” Justice remarks.
Justice, who also happens to be a former ED Entertainer Of The Year and one the most decorated feature performers in ED history, states, “When it happened to be slow I gave free pole dance and floor dance lessons.” In addition to these incentives, she waived the house fee for dancers working the day shift, encouraging them to return regularly. While the shift was not always well-attended, many staff felt it provided a more stable and sustainable shift.
“Having a day shift is distinctly different from the night shift, there is no guarantee of a crowd,” she says. “I built the day shift from scratch, which presented unique challenges compared to managing at night, but understanding my target market was crucial.” To incentivize patrons she implemented cheaper beer before 6 pm and eliminated entry fees.
One thing that club owners, managers, staff and dancers agree on is the calm ambiance of the daytime. “There are no high-pressure sales,” says Buehrig. “Everyone’s just in there to hang out and have some drinks, and there just happens to be dancers doing their thing at the same time.”
On a day-to-day basis, 15-20 dancers are staffed during every day shift at The Red Room. Typically, customers coming in during those times are on the older side, ranging from 50s to 70s, a common theme among all adult nightclubs
Day shift was like a version of Forrest Gump’s famous line for chocolates, ‘you never know whatcha gonna get!’ — Justice, Feature Entertainer
“Primarily during the day, it’s the older guys, your construction type, plumbers and electricians,” Buehrig says, explaining his club’s demographic. “During the night shift, they get a little bit younger, with a mixed bag of some older folks in there too.”
For entertainer Spencer, the daytime is the only time she works, unless she is performing in the evening. “I have worked the night shift before, people are more into drinking and showing off by buying bottles or making it rain dollars,” she says. “Day shift, people are more laid back, they are often very nice businessmen who don’t like to get too intoxicated.”
According to Spencer, it often feels more sustainable and less dangerous to work during the day as opposed to the night.
“Day shift at my club is like a big family, we all look out for each other and make sure that
no one deals with any bs,” she says. “Most of the same girls come in 3-5 days a week and treat it like a normal 8-hour job.”
Spencer, who dances at Buck’s Cabaret in Forth Worth, TX and who is also a budding feature entertainer (she came in 2nd Place in the Starlets Division at this year’s EDI East), has worked the day shift for over 10 years. Her club typically offers lunch and drink specials during the week attracting most of their regular crowd.
Similar to her, Stacey Daniels is an entertainer out of Florida who also prefers the day crowd. “It is much more laid back and less chaotic, a lot of customers will come in on their lunch break to get dances and not waste your time. The night time is filled with a lot of people only wanting to get drunk and party.”
While it is widely known that the nighttime is primetime for adult nightclubs and in most cases where most of the money comes in, some dancers still prefer the reasonable hours of the day, stating that one builds more connections and consistent regulars.
“Overall, I would recommend the day shift to anyone because it’s a good way to make connections, make money consistently, still have a social life and sleep, which we all need,” Daniels says. Some clubs do not operate during the day since they do not generate enough income to justify staying open for those hours.
Kelly Johnson is the current GM at The Pony in Starkville, but is also a former entertainer. She’s seen both sides of the day shift dilemma.
“It was big money, but slim pickings,” says Johnson of her experience with day shift as an entertainer at the Pony Club in Memphis. “I’m the General Manager at The Pony in Starkville, Mississippi now, and we don’t have a day shift. This is a small town and the area isn’t big enough to support it. But it’s a great club!”
However, some clubs that maintain daytime hours see mounting success. “Some days we had people waiting to get in at 11:30 am,” says Stephen Peak who worked security before becoming general manager of Club Cabare’t in Creve Coeur, IL. “I’ve worked day shifts that we were packed from 11:30 am to 7 pm. Of course, we had the restaurant so the attraction was the food and the dancers were the desserts.”
According to Peak, patrons would order lunch and have a dance while they waited. His club also offered services that patrons could take advantage of like car washes and shoeshines and even had a barbershop on premise.
While the night shift will always have its glamour, the unexpected traction of the day shift is proving that clubs are no longer bound by the cover of nightfall. With clever incentives, tailored entertainment and a growing number of loyal daytime patrons, clubs are redefining the industry’s peak hours. As the lines between day and night begin to fuse, one thing is for certain: when it comes to attracting a crowd, the staff you have on the front lines is key for success.
“Day shift was like a version of Forrest Gump’s famous line for chocolates,” exclaims Justice. “You never know whatcha gonna get’!”
