A New York City woman who works as an escort and stripper said she brings in more than $30,000 a week during the holidays.
Mia Lee, 35, left the banking industry five years ago, trading the hustle and bustle of the corporate world for the more daring and adventurous lifestyle, which has also proven significantly lucrative.
The self-described “professional girlfriend” — who only started showing her face on social media in the past month — raked in nearly $70,000 in the first two weeks of December, according to Business insiderwho verified earnings through payments to her Zelle, PayPal and Venmo accounts.
“I think it's a combination of the cold weather and the holidays bringing in more customers,” Lee speculated about the increase in her revenue. “And a fair number of them don't really like spending time with their families, so they look for a way out.”
Mia Lee, 35, earned nearly $70,000 in the first half of December working as an escort and stripper for wealthy clients in New York City
Business Insider recorded Mia's schedule for the second week of December, starting on Sunday, December 10.
She explained that she gave herself Sundays off, the only day of the week she kept to herself.
On her day off, she decides to use a gift certificate a client gave her at a “tech-forward wellness spa,” where she tries out the facilities' infrared sauna and hyperbaric chamber.
“You should do this more often,” she reflected on the self-care excursion.
On Monday December 11th it happened again. First of all, 'all the administrative tasks I have', Mia said.
After making herself breakfast, she continued to tally her earnings for the past week, checking with a client about the $3,300 he owes her for adding “a few extra hours” to their previous session.
She also received billing for her role as CFO of the erotic arts and culture magazine Petit Mort.
Then her assistant told her that a client wanted her for two hours at dinner that evening.
“I think it's a combination of the cold weather and the holidays bringing in more customers,” Lee told Business Insider about the increase in her revenue.
“A fair number of them don't really like spending time with their families, so they look for a way out,” she added.
Through her assistant, Mia informed the man that she “didn't book sessions shorter than three hours on nights when I'm stripping at busy times.” And that is now.'
Instead, the man booked her for a two-hour lunch the following week.
Although Mia prioritizes escort clients over hours at the strip club for most of the year, she explained that it was “busy at the moment.”
“Many of my strip club regulars from out of town have returned to town for pre-Christmas business meetings and corporate parties,” she added.
“The club's private rooms are in high demand at the moment, so I can count on them paying for at least four hours alone with me, which will set them back at least $1,760,” she continued.
She also explained that as a stripper, she is technically a “private contractor” at the club where she works, so she can “come and go as I please.”
That evening, Mia left her apartment at 8:40 PM on her way to the strip club where she works – a breezy 10-minute walk from her apartment – and was on the floor at 9 PM sharp to “inspect the clientele.”
Six hours later she called it quits and I'm happy to see she made $1,500 in tips sent through money apps on her phone.
On Tuesday, December 12, Mia was up around noon, making edits for her YouTube channel, where she had just launched a financial advice series. Money conversations with Mia.
Later that afternoon, at 5:30 p.m., the strip club called her and asked her to be there within fifteen minutes.
“That request may seem impossible, but I have designed my life and my body to make it work. After all, time is money. “I'll be there,” I tell the host before hanging up to get ready.”
She explained that she has invested tens of thousands of dollars in various beauty procedures, including $10,000 for head-to-toe body hair removal; and $3,900 for a sweat elimination procedure “so I can shower less often than normal” — all so she can be ready to go to work at a moment's notice.
Mia has invested tens of thousands of dollars in beauty treatments so she can be ready to go to work at a moment's notice
Mia only started showing her full face on social media in the past month
“Before I go to the club or spend time with escort clients, all I have to do is take a quick shower, brush my teeth and put on an outfit,” she emphasized.
The VIP at the strip club who requested Mia then spent the next five hours leaving her $100 in tips, netting her a total of $3,260 at the end of their session.
Around midnight, feeling “burnt out,” she decided to go home.
On Wednesday 13 December, Mia had a quieter day, getting up at 1pm and taking stock of her upcoming 'escort' bookings.
“Just as I expected and hoped, I will be working virtually non-stop until January,” she told Business Insider.
She also explained that she had an assistant who logged appointment requests into her calendar. She added that she only accepts bookings through her website “because I don't give them unpaid attention, such as texting or calling.”
Her housekeeper also came by on Wednesday for her weekly cleaning.
“I hired her three years ago and it has been life-changing. She comes over once a week at the same time, whether I'm home or not, to clean my apartment,” Mia said.
On Wednesday evening she was at the club at 9 p.m
'Five minutes later I'm sitting in a private room with one of my regular guests. I ask another girl to join me, and we spend six hours entertaining him with a few breaks in between. He gives us a $2,300 cash tip, and we split the loot,” Mia said.
At half past four she was back in bed.
On Thursday, December 14, shortly after getting up and getting ready, she met with a client for a two-hour session at a hotel in downtown Manhattan.
When she took home the Uber he called for her, she is happy to see that he left her a $1,000 tip.
After a short nap, at 10 p.m., she is back at her club.
Not long after, she accompanied another member of the club's staff to persuade a 'group of regulars' to a bar down the street – which they successfully did after a brief interlude.
Back at the club, she “immediately hit it off with one of the guys.” She took him to a private room for half an hour and he tipped her $1,000.
At the end of the evening, she received an email from a “regular customer” who had rented a cabin for two nights at the last minute and wanted Mia to join him.
“I agree, but tell him that I have to leave him for a while because I have a photo shoot the next afternoon, but that I will be back in time to have dinner with him that evening,” Mia said.
“He says that's fine with him, so I book it at the club, quickly grab an overnight bag and then hop in an Uber to the cabin.”
In the meantime, she and her assistant looked for another woman to 'entertain' the client, while Mia left for the photo shoot in the city on Friday afternoon.
Mia said that even though her job is 'exhausting, I really love it'
“Within an hour, my assistant will confirm that we have someone who can help,” Mia said.
Very late Thursday evening she arrived at the hut and shared a 'feast' with the client' at a restaurant near the hut – nothing on the menu is off limits. Back in the cabin we smoke cigars and sip single malt whisky.'
On Friday, December 15, she woke up in the cabin at 10 a.m. before heading to the photo shoot. She also told her client that the “other escort was on her way.”
Later that evening, she is back at the cabin so she and the client can “spend another night together.”
On Saturday, December 16, she and her client will have lunch in a 'cosy, luxurious restaurant near the hut'.
“I'll get in an Uber he paid for and head back to town. “I'm exhausted from the marathon that turned into Thursday and Friday, so I tell myself I'll focus on rest today,” she said.
Saturday night is another marathon night at the strip club, so she'll be there from 6pm to midnight.
Speaking about her professional lifestyle, Mia told Business Insider: 'Even though my job is tiring, I really love it. I get to take charge of my planning and come up with strategies to make even more money every month and every year.
'That independence is invaluable.'