Think you have a hard time complying with government red tape? Then spare a thought for entrepreneur Peter Stringfellow.

The gentlemen’s club (or lap-dance club) owner is fighting government bureaucrats who are intent on upgrading the naughtiness label of his and other strip bars around the UK.   

Under current licencing rules Stringfellow’s and the like are treated in the same way as pubs and clubs; the fact that inside women are taking their clothes off makes no difference in legal terms.

But under proposals being thrashed out such bars would be upgraded to the same level as sex shops, forcing them to dish out for a ‘sexual encounter licence’ at a cost of £30,000 per venue per year.

That would set back Mr Stringfellow 60 big ones for his two London clubs which, incidentally, turnover £40m a year and employ 400 people. As you’d expect, his argument is that the extra cost would eat into profit margins and could impact on staff levels.

It’s weird to think of Peter Stringfellow as an entrepreneur (few people do), but of course he is. His personal branding is all about sending out ‘I’m not a business man’ vibes.

But the reality is he faces the same ups and downs as any other UK business owner, more so because of his high profile and risqué line of work. So spare a thought folks.

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By Dan Matthews  on   Nov 27,2008

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Keywords

entrepreneur    red tape    lap dancer    regulations    rules   

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