So I am officially working privately in New Zealand now…
Of course, I’ve taken private clients before (while working a regular job or working for an agency/parlour) and even done “working” road trips, but this is the first time when I  do this exclusively (I don’t have a “normal” day job and I don’t work for any parlours or agencies), legitimately (prostitution was de-criminalised in NZ 7 years ago) and as a proper business (I have a website, blog, online ad and accountant).
This took some work: my web designer spent a couple of months designing the site, I’ve had professional photos done, I’ve established on-line profile on the popular Adult Forum here in NZ, I’ve written a lot of blog entries 🙂 and answered countless private messages… I even went to Auckland to meet with some people and gain their insights on the industry.
New Zealand is quite unique: it is a fairly small country with population of 4 million, so things are different in here: there is only one major advertising site for sexual services and one forum where such services discussed. There are a couple of others, but they are smaller and are frequented mostly by the same people (with some exceptions). That’s why it’s next to impossible for a working girl to “re-invent” herself under a different name: within days (sometimes hours) one  or more of the clients does the “research” and will post on the Forum his findings. Although the reasons for “re-invention” could be perfectly legitimate (stalker,ex-boyfriend,unwanted client,etc), it usually looks suspicious to clients. Unlike in the big countries, there is no way for the girl to get “lost” and re-appear as someone entirely different in another parlour/city/state and start with “clean slate”. So one has to be careful building up a profile and creating a “persona”.

So far I’ve noticed few things that were not obvious to me when I worked for agencies/parlours.

The main one: I am very happy with my decision to show my face in my ads. Granted, I am in a very unique situation: I have no partner, kids, day time job, my parents live far away, don’t speak English and don’t know how to use a computer, much less own one, all my friends and associates know exactly what I do for a living and support me (link to my blog is on my FB mast..hehehe..), my next “legitimate” job will be a Manager of the parlour, where all this experience is a huge PLUS, not a minus, so it doesn’t matter that people might look me up online and recognise me on the street (I certainly do NOT advocate showing of a face in the ads for average working girl who only does the job for a while as means to an end).
As a result of my face clearly visible on the photos, I only get calls from prospective clients who like what they see and are genuinely interested in a booking. They may not book for the day they’ve called, but they definitely will in the future. So I only get a few phone calls a day and all the conversations are pleasant.
Also, I no longer have to put up with endless questions that seem pointless. And I came to a stark realisation as to why: a lot of times, when the photos don’t show a face and most of the body is covered by a dress, guys call and ask questions in an attempt to figure out  girl’s true age and condition of the body (whether or not there are stretch marks, how toned,etc).
As my flatmate, who is a professional actress (she’s done a voice-over for one of the characters in Tintin,as a matter of fact) pointed out, a woman could make herself sound younger on the phone by bringing her voice an octave or two higher…
When I travel for work into small towns, newspaper is the best advertising media, but, as lots of girls lie in the ads about their age,size,etc, I am usually inundated by avalanche of phone calls. It gets annoying after a while, but now I understand  a lot better the reason for that..
As I didn’t have any photoshopping done on my images, when the client arrives, he gets exactly what he saw on the photos, which eliminates unpleasant conversations and awkwardness: the whole thing is going much smoother (the reason I say this is because when I worked in a parlour which specialised in “young,new” girls, my face was “blooped” on the photos. As I’ve never had kids and take good care of myself, my body is slim and tight and, depending on what sort of clothes I wear (say, a schoolgirl outfit), one might assume that I’m in my early twenties. Then they turn up and feel disappointed because they realise that I am older. However, having said that, I hardly ever lost a booking for that reason, as I usually quickly stripped and once they saw the boobies and the rest of it, the deal was in the bag…LOL..).
Another advantage of working for myself is the fact that I really do have more freedom. The last place I worked for was very accomodating and the owner let me be “on call”, but that place was also really busy and often she took booking for “now” or even had the client come in and THEN told him I was available, so I frequently found myself in the middle of my walk or shopping across town when the phone rang and she wanted me to be in the parlour within minutes. It was stressful,as I had to run (literally) not to make the client wait too long and then arrived out of breath and not looking my best (certainly not relaxed).
These days I explain to clients that in order for them to have truly relaxing, un-rushed experience, they need to plan a bit in advance: this way I will be waiting for them, dressed in sexy clothes, with candles lit, fresh make-up on and smelling good :).
Which brings another subject: accomodation. A lot of clients seem to confuse private set-up with parlour (or even agency) set-up.
Private girls make arrangements for “working” premises. Sometimes it’s a hotel. But recently another option emerged, which I find quite helpful and better in many ways.
These days “agencies” are quite popular: the owner rents an apartment (or several) and advertises on a website. Bookings are made by phone, for a particular girl at a particular time (girls photos and stats are displayed on the website). When a client arrives, the girl he booked (hopefully :)) awaits for him at the apartment.
As working girls could be unreliable at times, owners prefer to have them physically come in for a shift (they usually sit in one of the apartments, watching TV,reading,etc, all made-up,dressed and ready for work). Some owners let the girls go out for a meal or shopping during the shift, but they want them close by and not to be gone for long, thus making “now” bookings possible for clients.
As our business is never “non-stop” or every hour on the hour, often apartments are unused for stretches of time. Enterprising owners offer them at hourly rate to independent girls. It’s a win/win situation for both: girl gets nice fully furnished and equipped premises without having to spend a dime in advance (she only pays when her client has showed up and handed her the money) or sign the lease and the owner gets additional revenue out of expensive real estate that otherwise would sit idle. It also enables private girls to take early bookings,as hotels would normally not check you in until 1pm (usually 2pm), so to see a client at,say, 10 am, you need to pay for TWO nights (the night before, so you’re there at 10 am and the following night,as most hotels require 10 am check-out), which ends up being quite costly, while with agency apartment the going rate is $50/hr.
If a “private” girl has arrangements with several agencies, premises availability is prety much guaranteed at any time,as if one is not available, the others probably would be.
Really good agencies would have “working premises” that are just that: they are for bookings only, no one lives or stays there. I like that, as to me it looks very professional.
It is not a good idea,in my opinion, for a “private” girl to work from the place where she lives. A friend of mine who did that got raped. Granted, rape could’ve occurred under any circumstances, but I do believe her working from her flat was one of the contributing factors.
It also might betray personal info that most girls wouldn’t want client to know (photos of kids and family, accidentally  left out bills with her real name, etc).
It might invite potential stalkers (a guy can sit in the car and watch her comings and goings and figure out her routine as well as who her friends and family are-happenned to me) not to mention some clueless guys who don’t think twice about turning up at her doorstep un-announced wanting a booking.
So back to the misconception re. difference between “private” girls and brothels/agencies: as in those places girls come in for a certain shift and sit around waiting for a booking, it is quite possible for a guy to call and say he is coming “now” or just walk in.
The reason “private” girls choose to work privately is so they can have more flexibilty. They don’t, in fact, sit around all made-up and dressed to the ninth all day :). Instead, they go about their daily routine. When someone calls and wants a booking, they need to keep in mind that, at the very least, the girl needs time to get to location of “working” accomodation, not to mention a few minutes to get ready and set-up the room. So “now” would hardly ever work with “private” escort. The only time it would is if you happen to call just as she was finishing with her last booking, still on the premises.
Besides, in my opinion, the reason a client wants a “private” girl is for relaxed, un-rushed experience, often anticipated for days.
Personally, the reason I went “private” is because I’ve decided I only want to see one or two clients a day, on the average: I no longer wanted crazy,busy, “revolving door”, train-station atmosphere. I’ve worked hard all my life and was able to secure some financial independence, so I am doing this job to maintain my lifestyle.
I take plenty of time out for theater, shopping, eating out, spending time with friends and travelling.
As I have no debt and no bad habits (drugs,smoking,drinking) or partner/kids to support, I don’t require huge earnings. Besides, I’ve invested wisely and do have some passive income.
So when I see a client these days, I am rested, in a good mood, not in any hurry and it makes for much more pleasant encounter.
I am glad I’ve done all the “legwork” and laid the foundation, as it makes things a lot easier: NZ is small, clients do read posts,blogs,etc and a lot of people have a pretty good idea of what I’m all about, so when they book me, they make an informed choice. It also eliminates all the disappointing and unpleasant bookings (for both parties).
Working  privately is not for everyone: it requires certain degree of organisation, discipline and, yes, substancial amount of money to get going (or even to keep going when you happen to have a slow week). Some girls do better in a structured environment, where things are set up for them and someone “nudges” them along.
I am very happy with my decision and am grateful for support and advice of my friends and mentors who shared their experience and knowledge with me. You know who you are and I appreciate the generosity of your spirit- knowledge is power and in our industry it is sometimes more precious than gold!

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