One of St Petersburg's nightspots has come up with a first -- and it's a bit of a gamble.
For the first time ever in St Petersburg, a group of strippers from England are being flown in for a boys' night out at the restaurant/nightclub on Nevsky Prospect.
I went along to find out why they went to the trouble and expense of bringing in English women rather than hiring Russian strippers, and also to discover why the women chose to come to Russia in the first place.
Kathryn, 23; Dawn, 26; Salena, 23; and Emma, 22, say they jumped at the chance to come because "mysterious" Russia seemed like a real challenge.
Up until now the strippers have mostly performed on a circuit of popular British nightspots from Cornwall to Scotland, with the odd tour in Spain and Germany, but they say they never dreamed they would one day be invited to St Petersburg -- an invitation simply unthinkable a few years ago.
"Do your boyfriends and families mind the kind of work you do?" asked several bemused Russian women. "Not a bit; it's a job and girls tend to be more independent in England," said former model Kathryn.
The act, called Sex on Legs, is managed by Danny Barney and was formed three years ago. At the time the women were performing but had ordinary run-of-the-mill jobs such as banking and secretarial work. One was trained as a beautician.
"This is far more fun and earns us more money although we generally work every night in one club or another. We love our work because it's not just about taking our clothes off. We dance and have an act," said Kathryn.
The women say the act is tasteful and generally does not seek to offend. They will perform topless and show their long legs but that's as far as it goes. And they strictly don't allow the men to touch.
"Are you ever ashamed of your work?" asks the group of Russian women. Not a bit. In fact when they are up on stage, looking good, feeling good and getting all that male attention, their self-esteem goes through the roof, say the women.
"To do this you need to look good and have personality. It's a very glamorous life, it's sexy without being crude and it's good, clean fun," said Emma.
And on Wednesday March 8 and Thursday March 9 it'll be the ladies' turn when a group of male strippers called Dreamboys will be flown out from England.
The club's management believes that Russian women will enjoy this type of entertainment, although is something totally new in what is still a male-dominated culture where what the husband says often goes.