Single Men in China Are Paying $450 to Rent Fake Girlfriends in Time For Chinese New Year

January 28, 2016

Renting fake girlfriends is yet to catch up in the Western part of the world, but in China, it has become a thriving business in recent years.

The market for rentable girlfriends is especially in demand this season as the Chinese New Year is approaching. The Paper (via Shanghaiist) reports that most clients seek rentable mates to spend Spring Festival with them and to ease their relatives’ worries about their not getting hitched.

A Hunan TV reporter went undercover and investigated rental girlfriend services that operate under the guise of matchmaking services. He found that Chinese outfits offer a temporary girlfriend for 3,000-4,000 yuan ($456-$608) for six to seven days of service with the option to pay extra for additional days.

One “matchmaking” office assured him that they had several potential pretty girlfriends for him. They said he would find satisfaction as long as he paid a flat rate of $450 for one of the women. Another service even mentioned that they arranged fake marriages and offered him a selection of at least 20 to 30 women for hire.

An employee from one of those companies also explained there would be other “possibilities” once a customer availed their service.

“Think about it, if you bring a girlfriend home, you definitely would spend the night together,” he said.

The report also revealed that these arrangements do not provide any written contract, leaving no protection to clients. While this has caused many customers to be ripped off, it has not deterred single men from renting fake girlfriends due to heavy cultural pressure to have a significant other.

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