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NEWS: Maid Café in Canada Shuts Down


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Nebs



Joined: 19 Jul 2003
Posts: 384
Location: University of Illinois
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 3:36 pm Reply with quote
Might not want to link to the old iMaid Café website... Confused
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kokuryu



Joined: 07 Apr 2007
Posts: 915
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 4:21 pm Reply with quote
Aw thats too bad...
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Okina



Joined: 06 May 2003
Posts: 20
Location: Toronto
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 4:45 pm Reply with quote
In case you guys are curious, here's the cafe's website at the end. Sometime over the summer there was a management change and the place got a slight makeover...red became the colour of choice.

www.imccanada.com
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Dargonxtc



Joined: 13 Apr 2006
Posts: 4463
Location: Nc5xd7+ スターダストの海洋
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 5:07 pm Reply with quote
Okina wrote:


Hmm. Could the fact that it is a completely glass storefront and could see anyone inside have anything to do with it. If you want to show off your maids, do it on the street.


Emmm...Fresh Fruit & Ice Cream Waffle.
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NamaeX



Joined: 15 Apr 2005
Posts: 65
Location: The Internet
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 5:17 pm Reply with quote
My thoughts. Finally!
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CCSYueh



Joined: 03 Jul 2004
Posts: 2707
Location: San Diego, CA
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 5:43 pm Reply with quote
I'm sort of surprised it could last this long in the New World. Maids aren't the big thing they are in Japan or even Europe. In fact, aren't cocktail waitress outfits sort of our equivalent?
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Saint Juste



Joined: 20 Nov 2007
Posts: 23
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 5:52 pm Reply with quote
I don't actually think this is bad the thing that they closed.
In fact I don't like the concept of maid cafe at all D: its really a soft form of prostitution . Were women are just seen as objects. well thats what men wants but sadly WE are not objects D: I'm bi but I would never make an other woman or a man pose for me in that way since it's not respecting them at all. I'm not an extremist feminist cause if it was with men I would say the same thing Like I do complain with yaoi.
Sexism is not good with any gender in any form D:

I just hope they don't open an other =_=
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nebbo



Joined: 03 Nov 2007
Posts: 11
Location: Sweden
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 6:09 pm Reply with quote
Some things should stay in japan. Leaving the issue whether it's sexist or not aside, I think places like this will give people with little knowledge about japan a bad impression of japanese culture. That'd be a shame Confused
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Keonyn
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Joined: 25 May 2005
Posts: 5567
Location: Coon Rapids, MN
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 6:17 pm Reply with quote
Yeah, this isn't surprising. They were taking a trend from the other side of the world and trying to make it work in a location/culture that just doesn't have the same market for it. In effect by theming it as an asian place with the chinese music and all they were reducing their client base even more.

They'd have been better off doing a more westernized slant to the concept which would have made it more appealing to the average person in the culture they brought it over to.
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EngrishFan



Joined: 15 Jul 2006
Posts: 75
Location: Somewhere in chilly Canada
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 6:30 pm Reply with quote
It's probably worth mentioning that the cafe was located near the Pacific Mall in Markham (a town that's part of the Greater Toronto Area), which is the largest and most popular predominantly chinese and oriental mall in the city, so it's not *that* farfetched to give the place a more chinese slant. Granted, it wasn't close enough to the mall to really capitalize on its asian shoppers, but Markham has a large chinese population so it's not like the target audience was terribly small by any means.
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britannicamoore



Joined: 05 Dec 2005
Posts: 2618
Location: Out.
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 6:36 pm Reply with quote
Dear God that food looks delcious. I wish I had been on top of things- a few friends and I would have probably drove up there for a visit had I known.
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KyuuA4



Joined: 28 Sep 2006
Posts: 1361
Location: America, where anime and manga can be made
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 7:32 pm Reply with quote
The outfits weren't revealing enough to lure customers. That's where they went wrong. Yea. Twisted Evil
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Lucca_Ashtear



Joined: 07 Oct 2007
Posts: 68
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 8:30 pm Reply with quote
This maid cafe could have gone out of business for a variety of reasons, but I think the claim that people in the west won't eat at a place that's demoralizing to woman is a bit unfounded. If that were the case, I think the restaurant that this handbook belongs to would have been bankrupt a long time ago:
" 3. The Hooters concept is based on female sex appeal and the work environment is one in which joking and sexual innuendo based on female sex appeal is commonplace.
4. I do not find my job duties, uniform requirements, or work environment to be offensive, intimidating, hostile, or unwelcome."
This is quoted from a handbook given to "Hooters" employees according to this wikipedia article. And honestly, I think the cafe uniforms are undoubtedly more modest than the stuff the waitresses wear at that "Hooters" place.
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CatzCradle



Joined: 25 Apr 2007
Posts: 230
Location: Canada
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 9:16 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
I don't actually think this is bad the thing that they closed.
In fact I don't like the concept of maid cafe at all D: its really a soft form of prostitution . Were women are just seen as objects. well thats what men wants but sadly WE are not objects D: I'm bi but I would never make an other woman or a man pose for me in that way since it's not respecting them at all. I'm not an extremist feminist cause if it was with men I would say the same thing Like I do complain with yaoi.
Sexism is not good with any gender in any form D:

I just hope they don't open an other =_=


I don't know about that. I mean, I'm a straight female. And heck, I wouldn't mind working there wearing a very cute ($300!!!) dress. It seems that the restaurant also gets female customers too, who also don't really mind. As mentioned as below:

Quote:
"We come because of the costumes," said 18-year-old Rea Labata as her and her three friends finish their strawberry bubble tea.


But you're probably right about opening a second one seeing how the owner seems to have similar thoughts.

Quote:
"If you open up a second one it's a bad idea because it's not special any more."
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Keonyn
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Joined: 25 May 2005
Posts: 5567
Location: Coon Rapids, MN
PostPosted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 9:22 pm Reply with quote
Lucca_Ashtear wrote:
This maid cafe could have gone out of business for a variety of reasons, but I think the claim that people in the west won't eat at a place that's demoralizing to woman is a bit unfounded.


If you're referencing my claims that it doesn't fit in western culture then you didn't interpret my comments properly. I didn't say it would fail because it's demoralizing to women, we wouldn't have strip clubs if that were the case. I meant they wouldn't work here because we don't have the maid obsession that seems so prevalent in asian cultures these days. The market just isn't here for that, even if it was in an area that is predominantly chinese those are also chinese that have been living and possibly grown up in western culture, so even their patronage isn't a guarantee.
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