Thousands of representatives from the global mining industry will come to Toronto on Sunday for the biggest mining convention in the world, promising an economic boost to bars, restaurants and hotels.
Yet there’s another industry — somewhat further from the public eye — that also sees a surge in traffic: Toronto’s strip clubs.
The annual Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada convention (PDAC) brings together geoscientists, executives, investors, financial brokers and mining professionals of all kinds for deal-making, learning and letting loose.
Last year it drew 27,000 attendees from 135 countries and had an economic impact of about $63 million, according to PDAC spokesperson Scott Barber, based on research from Destination Toronto.
On Wednesday evening, managers, owners and staff at three of the city’s adult entertainment venues told TorontoToday they expect to see an increase in revenue from the event — and they’re looking forward to it.
“I just think of it as a massive bachelor party of dudes going crazy,” said a worker at Filmores Gentleman’s Club on Dundas Street East who asked to remain anonymous.
“These girls hustle their asses off, so I guarantee they’ll all be walking out with money,” she said.
‘They have money’
Spiro Koumoudoros, owner of The House of Lancaster, a strip club on Bloor Street near Lansdowne Avenue, told TorontoToday that during the week of PDAC he typically sees about a 30 per cent increase in business.
“These people, they come from all over the world … and they have money,” said Koumoudoros, who has owned and operated the adult entertainment club for decades.
While Toronto hosts lots of conferences, Koumoudoros said many of them are frequented by people who don’t have much cash to burn.
Last week for example, he said, Toronto hosted the Canadian International AutoShow. “A lot of people there, they don’t have money,” he said.
“[The mining] people, they have money,” Koumoudoros added. “When you have money, you spend.”
The worker at Filmores Gentleman’s Club confirmed this.
She said she’s been in the hospitality industry for more than a decade, and it’s well known the mining convention brings an increase in earnings at nearby restaurants, bars and strip clubs.
She said she’s also worked at Filmores when miners come from Sudbury to Toronto. They’re typically shy at first, she said, but once you get them talking, they drop a lot of cash.
On Wednesday night, another worker at Filmores who spoke with TorontoToday said she doesn’t normally work Sunday nights, but this weekend she’s gotten a babysitter so she can work while PDAC is in town.
The performer, who also asked to remain anonymous, said she’s worked at Filmores during the mining convention before. The guys who come from the event tend to be pretty chill, she said.
“There’s a few pricks, but mostly it’s good.”
The dancer said she expects most of her colleagues — about 35 or 40 performers — will be working during the evenings of the convention, knowing it will be lucrative.
Coming from around the world, looking to ‘relax’
Pedro Palacios, the manager of Club Zanzibar, a strip club on Bloor Street near Gerrard Street, said the convention is a welcome event at a time of year when the club is normally quieter.
He said many PDAC attendees come to the club looking to get away from stress.
“They work so hard and they come here to relax — to get away from that hard time,” he said.
In past years, Palacios said he’s met convention attendees who have come from Chile, Germany and other countries. He said the convention guys who frequent Club Zanzibar are “easygoing.”
As for how much they spend at the club, he said they don’t keep statistics, but that some men will have a few beers and others a few shots.
The Filmores worker said on the best nights performers can make several thousand dollars.
A ‘unique’ business
Citywide, many businesses are gearing up for the boost that PDAC brings.
On Wednesday, Beth Courtie, a supervisor at The Loose Moose, a watering hole near PDAC’s Metropolitan Convention Centre venue, told TorontoToday the event is one of the businesses’ “busiest times of the year.”
“We always see a massive push from it,” she said.
Asked about strip clubs' expected customer surge, a spokesperson for PDAC said its "convention and similar large-scale events bring thousands of visitors to the city, driving economic growth and benefiting local businesses."
Across Toronto, hotel occupancy will be about 93 per cent during the span of the convention, according to Sara Anghel, CEO Greater Toronto Hotel Association, citing Destination Toronto statistics.
Staff, managers and owners of the city’s strip clubs told TorontoToday they’re thrilled to get a share of that economic pie.
These days, it’s “very difficult” to find good entertainment, said Koumoudoros, so his establishment draws a crowd.
“You come after 10:30 or 11:00 and it’s fun,” he said. “We are in a unique business … It’s good entertainment.”
