Demand for personal protection services has skyrocketed as China's wealthy classes continue to grow
The massive surge in the number of rich Chinese has brought with it a boom in a new service sector: the personal protection business. After China launched its first officially certified VIP bodyguard service this April, a slew of personal protection companies have joined the market.
Catering to all needs, bodyguards can start from as little as 100 yuan ($16) per day for those who require only modest protection, to gold-plated packages costing upwards of 19,000 yuan ($3000) a day, which come complete with six guards and two vehicles.
Many of China's nouveau riche are paying top dollar for special protection from kidnappers, thieves, gangsters and even business partners. Yu Xiaomei, a 24 year-old female bodyguard from Beijing, who sold her services for 180,000 ($27,300) for one year, tells the story of how she had to shake off someone tailing her client after a rival company director had “schemed for something bad” to happen when a ownership dispute went sour.
Not all clients, however, have business-related requirements, remarks Zhou Jie of CCG Community, who now can add protecting a rich business man from an angry mistress to his already colourful resume.
According to successful entrepreneur Wen Cui, founder of Guodun personal security, female bodyguards are in a greater demand than ever and are regularly earning 20% more than their male counterparts. Ms Cui's company, which she founded after she was mugged twice on business trips, is not only training its 60 newest recruits in martial arts, first-aid and surveillance, but also in etiquette and the fine art of smiling. Cui claims “having a [female] bodyguard is like having a sister” and notes that they often become a confidant to their employers, as well as a guardian.