CES Booth Babes: Look But Don't Touch

Greg Tito

PR for Dungeons & Dragons
Sep 29, 2005
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CES Booth Babes: Look But Don't Touch



A few of the booth babes at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas speak out about how they're treated by some men.

The term "booth babe" refers to a woman, usually pretty and/or scantily dressed, who is paid to stand outside a company's booth at trade shows to lure men in so that they look at the products. These women are either hired through a model or event agency or have some kind of background in public relations. Despite the attention, or maybe because of it, the job of a booth babe isn't all that great. How'd you like to stand for 10 hours with a smile plastered on your face and men staring at your body? The worst part are the men who think that just because a woman is paid to be pretty that they are an object that is fit to be manhandled. A few women from the Consumer Electronics Show tell their stories.

"It's only had it one time when they tried to grab you," said one woman. "Men say 'Are those real?' 'No, they're really paid for though.' I kind of just do those comebacks. The worst is when they try to grab or [say] 'Can I touch them?'"

Sometimes, the men are just ricetarded [http://brog.engrish.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/ricetard.JPG]. "One guy came up to me and asked me if I knew where metal detectors were made. I said China," one woman said. "Then he asked me if I knew where the 'real' metal detectors were made. I said no. He told me they were made in Russia. In addition, he told me that I could scratch his watch with a knife and that it wouldn't scratch."

"One guy told me pretty much his life story. How he imported a model from Spain, how she ended up not being the woman of his dreams, but he had already married her," another woman said. "Then asked what I was doing later tonight."

A woman from the Boxee booth said that she was trying to explain a videogame she was playing, Puzzle Quest, to another convention attendee. During her demonstration, the man kept holding her hand. "He was very nice but I was like, 'Hey you know, when you do that, I can't play my game, it makes it really difficult.' And he said, 'Yeah but this just makes me so horny.'"

Source: Gizmodo [http://gizmodo.com/5444132/booth-babe-confessions?skyline=true&s=x]

(Image [http://www.flickr.com/photos/ndevil/4264613002/])

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Tzekelkan

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Dec 27, 2009
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My guess is it isn't specific to booth babes. Some dudes do that kind of shit all the time, though the few clothes these girls are wearing only act as encouragement.

Anyway, I'd feel annoyed too were I in their shoes, though they did accept the job in the first place. I do hope they're well paid.
 
Feb 13, 2008
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...

Am I the only one (Yeah, I know I'm not but...) that thinks that this sort of stuff is normal for anyone who works with the public. I know all the people I work with, including myself, have been "chatted up" by someone who screams "Wash me!".

Then there's the people who want to kill you for no reason.

Then there's the people who order you around like a slave.

Then...Hell, just read the rest. [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.70218?page=1]

Sorry girls, what you get to do is pretty cushty compared to that.
 

ShadowsofHope

Outsider
Nov 1, 2009
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I can understand where their comming from, though.. would this not be exactly the same as women hounding over a popular actor or male model trying to simply just wander around, or advertise something in the flesh?

Though of course, many men are succumbed to being simple perverts and dicks when in these situations as well. Strong hormonal response seems to override casual cognitive function fairly often.

Edit: Dammit, ninja'd!
 

scnj

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Nov 10, 2008
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Kind of disgusting, but the odd weirdo is to be expected when they're standing around like that.
 

Low Key

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May 7, 2009
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It's a freakin' video game convention! Seriously, what do they expect? I'd venture to guess there are plenty of guys who attend those sort of things and have had limited exposure to the opposite sex, let alone girls that are very attractive.

Plus, the bad experiences always outshine the good ones. I don't know how many people attend CES or other conventions, but I can only assume there were at least several hundred (possibly thousand?) guys who respected the ladies' privacy, job, body, etc. and didn't bother them beyond a picture, compared to the few who do what the article describes.
 

Frankydee

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Mar 25, 2009
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I'll think I'll take what's behind her instead.

[small]That's a GTR right? kindah hard to tell from that angle.[/small]
 

Simalacrum

Resident Juggler
Apr 17, 2008
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Yikes, men can be real idiots sometimes =\

Then again, if I ever saw a booth babe I'd probably ask if I could have a hug... (they wouldn't know I do that with EVERYONE I talk to, not just hot scantily clad ladies :p)
 

mattman106

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Aug 19, 2009
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Ah boo hoo. You knew the job when you took it. Good money to stand around looking pretty and occasionally having someone grope you? Seems a good deal, plenty of worse jobs in the world. Send one of these lasses on a bomb disposal course and they'd be begging to work at CES and be groped :/
 

Dogstile

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Jan 17, 2009
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Do they not expect this? The booth babes i've talked to have all seemed to expect it and tend to seem surprised at the fact that the group of guys i hang out with haven't actually mentioned anything sexual (hell, we even got that said to us once)

Of course, we were just saving it for later, you see :p
 

Canadamus Prime

Robot in Disguise
Jun 17, 2009
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Well on the one hand I'm inclined to say that this kinda stuff should pretty much be an occupational hazard, but on the other hand it blows my mind that guys would actually say shit like that at a public convention. Whatever happened to class?
 

quiet_samurai

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Apr 24, 2009
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Making an advance at a woman isn't so bad, but if it's unwanted and you persist, then it is. Alot of girls do play hard to get, but there is a diffenance between that and a straight up "NO". Also, I don't see how they can be so suprised at being hit on by guys when they dress like that, it kind of comes with the territory.
 

Snowalker

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Nov 8, 2008
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The last part made me giggle.

Yeah, they need to set forth rules for people when dealing with booth babes.
 

Jared

The British Paladin
Jul 14, 2009
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SadisticDarkling said:
haha oh how desperate some can be xD
Definetly. Although they do lure in the people to look at the project or whatever it is they are helping to advertise. I cannot help but feel a little sorry for themn...having to stand all day and listen to idiots like that
 

MercenaryCanary

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Mar 24, 2008
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AAAAAaaaaaaaand this is why people are stupid.
Oh booth babes/strippers, now I know why you feel dead inside!
 

ffxfriek

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Apr 3, 2008
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Tzekelkan said:
My guess is it isn't specific to booth babes. Some dudes do that kind of shit all the time, though the few clothes these girls are wearing only act as encouragement.

Anyway, I'd feel annoyed too were I in their shoes, though they did accept the job in the first place. I do hope they're well paid.
same and i hope they get to mace them arses
 

damselgaming

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Feb 3, 2009
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These type of guys will turn up wherever you work.
I work in Game and we get a lot of... characters in.
Sometimes it still shocks me, the things that come out of peoples mouths are ridiculous.