Wilkes Barre, Pa [Times Leader]- Near the Wachovia Arena on Mundy Street, there is a seemingly aesthetic white building that thousands of cars pass every day.
It could be an office building, or it could be just another doctor’s office. It looks unassuming.
Perhaps passersby don’t know that just inside that building’s tinted doors are flashing lights, throbbing music and entranced men surround dancers who can do acrobatic moves on the pole that can rival any gymnast.
Welcome to the world of Gentleman’s Club 10. A BYOB world where chocolate sauce becomes a kinky interactive prop and the shower stage doesn’t douse any heat, it just turns it up. A world where at 2 a.m., the alcohol leaves the building but the dancers – and patrons – remain. A world that scaled a mountain of red tape to get to this point – its first anniversary.
Compared to the veteran strip clubs in our area – Pleasure Dome, The Diamond Club, Planet Pocono, Cabaret, Carousel Club, Girl Play, The Grand View and Mustang Sally’s to name a few – GClub 10 is still the new kid on the block, but it was that very public, very long battle to open its doors that makes this anniversary all the more sweeter to the club’s affable owner, Sal Scalzo.
Scalzo took an idea that he had seven years ago and made it into a business that, despite all the naysaying, has become a local hot spot.
The Weekender recently talked to him about the fight to make Gentlemen’s Club 10 a reality, the changes it has made in his life and what’s next. Here’s a hint – it’s a secret.
It took so much to get the club opened – how does it feel to have your 1st anniversary behind you? What was the biggest struggle to get to this point?
I still have to pinch myself [laughs] I don’t believe it’s actually one year we’re open. The biggest struggle was keeping the mindset that I would eventually open; no matter how much they fought me. I kept telling myself constantly to hang in there.
When the club first opened, “Mr. Family” was a huge opposer. Is he still a burden?
I wish I was smart enough to think of “Mr. Family” myself because the free publicity I got from him – he saved me a ton of money this first year. Anytime someone tries to stop someone who’s doing something that’s legally allowed, they don’t stand a chance of succeeding.
How has owning the club affected your personal life?
Financially, I took a major risk. I basically closed my custom cabinet shop to build this place and open it. As far as the stress put on me personally, I always try to keep the club stress separate from family life. The most it affected me is when they took my [soccer] coaching job away from me at Wyoming Area. That was the personal side where it hurt me. But then again, it gave me more time to watch my kids versus coaching them …
After-hours is a big part of GClub 10. What is it that keeps people there past 2 a.m. when the liquor has to be removed from the building? How has it been dealing with the LCB?
After-hours, they’re coming for the girls, for the atmosphere, for the fun. It’s clean, the restrooms are clean, the place is nicely lit like a true nightclub. It’s not your daddy’s strip club where it’s a dark hole. It’s more friendly, clean adult fun. From what I gather, the LCB’s been in a few times to check it out. Before we even opened, I contacted them myself to make sure I was going by the regulations. I didn’t come this far to break the law, there’s no need for that.
Did you model GClub 10 after any other strip clubs?
When I conceived this plan, it had to be about seven years ago. Once I started putting it into motion, I went to about 100 strip clubs in Pennsylvania, Jersey, New York, a couple in Vegas. I tried to pick the best of every club the way it was laid out. Then I came back and did my own little sketch and drawings, gave it to an architect to certify it and draw it up for the state, then I built it. And basically, the key was flow. I have a nice big wide-open area where people won’t feel crowded – you could put 400 people there, you’ll still feel comfortable. Other clubs, you get 150 and you feel like you’re jammed in like sardines.
About how many people do you think have passed through those glass doors?
(Laughs) Oh boy. I could go by cups – I’ve gone through about 30,000 to 40,000. It’s a chunk and we’re 20 percent above what was projected. There were some nights I sat in here when I was fighting in court looking around this place thinking, ‘God, is it ever going to open’ and that’s the truth.
How many dancers does GClub 10 have total?
On our roster, we have somewhere around 40 dancers. But at any given time, it varies who’s here and working. Throughout the year, I’ve probably had close to 100, but they’ve weeded themselves out.
Any plans to have more big name dancers or porn stars hitting the stage?
Actually [this week], we have Sunset Thomas. Some other ones, we are debating on what to do with them. I want to do a few features a year, we were doing one a month and it got to be very bland. Sometimes you put too much out there repetitively, people get tired of it. I’ve been approached about bringing Jenna Jameson in, we have more than the capacity to do it, but I don’t know if it’s worth shelling the $18,000 to bring her in [chuckles]. Whenever you bring a porn star in, you have to raise the prices to cover the costs …
So what’s the best thing about owning GClub 10 for you personally?
Overall, the best thing of the whole year is people coming up to tell me how much they enjoy it here, that they’re coming back, that they don’t feel uncomfortable bringing their wives or girlfriends here, how clean we are. Those are the things that make a business successful. Eventually, I hope for some financial rewards [laughs], I mean it is a business. The greatest reward is making sure my family is financially secure. In the same token, everyone who works for me and my dancers, I want them to make money. If they don’t and don’t enjoy themselves, it’s not worth it. I don’t want to make a profit off someone being hurt. My main goal is to make sure its run right and its clean and respectable for what it is.
And finally, what is next for Gentlemen’s Club 10?
I can’t really tell you (yet) … but there is something really big coming that’s going to be a major addition for Club 10 and that’s all I can say [laughs].