A massage therapist is considering closing her business in Luton as more than three quarters of the calls she receives are from perverts looking for ‘extra services’.
Eileen McIntyre, 56, opened up the e:den therapy room in Grosvenor House, Alma Street, a year ago but is looking to call time on her stay in the town after growing tired of persistent callers looking for escort services.
Ms McIntyre is flooded with calls and text messages of an explicit nature and on one occasion had to eject a man after he stripped naked in her therapy room without warning.
The problem arose shortly after the therapy room was set up in Grosvenor House and has worsened over the last six months.
Ms McIntyre has admitted she “never gave the problem a thought” before setting up shop, as she previously worked in London without dealing with pervert callers.
She said: “It is a problem with Luton as there are a lot of massage parlours offering that sort of thing. Men here seem to be used to that service.
“Eight of ten calls are of that kind and it is very disheartening. Men seem to be willing to pay anything, I’ve had them on the phone trying to negotiate with me even after I have told them I do not offer what they are looking for.”
The recurring problem has also led to concerns over Ms McIntyre’s safety, who has had to take extra precautions.
She admitted: “I have to be on my guard all the time. It has got to the point where I only take appointments with men when other businesses are still in the building. This is seriously affecting the business and has been a constant stress for me.”
“I get some really explicit text messages and once I had a voice message from someone at 2am on a Saturday morning telling me I had ten minutes to get to his place.”
The worst instance saw a man travel to the therapy room and strip naked before Ms McIntyre had the chance to confirm what treatment he wanted.
She said: “He was naked before I could consult him and I had to tell him to put his clothes back on and leave. I’m now sussing men out on the phone if they ask about ‘extra services’ or ask which girls are on duty.”
“I’m not sure how long I can keep going on like this. As soon as you mention massage people just put it up there with the sex industry, it is not fair for people like me.”