LONGVIEW, Texas -- Longview, Texas, businessman Don Talley said his latest marketing ideaDon's Darlingsfeatures nothing a person would not see at a public swimming pool. In the competitive world of pumping gasoline and operating convenience stores, Talley said he is always on the lookout for ideas to make his businesses stand out, grow and survive. His enterprises include Don's Food Stores, a liquor store and a drive-through beer barn.
One of his latest ideas is the placement of a large hot tub staffed by bikini-clad young women, dubbed "Don's Darlings," [image-nocss] between the drive-through bays at the rear of one of his stores.
"There are about 25 stores in this area that have closed, gone bankrupt," Talley told The News-Journal. "You've got to be on the cutting edge to survive."
"One of the problems we had was that when three or four cars got backed up waiting in line, the last one would get impatient and sometimes drive away," Talley told the newspaper. "The idea is to keep them in line and keep them coming backwe're just trying to break the monotony of waiting in line."
Although the occupied tub only went into operation earlier this week, Talley said it is already turning heads and drawing customers. He said he has had no trouble finding women to staff the tub for eight hours a day. "Most of them are young, single mothers who need a job, and they have been excited about the prospects of getting paid to sit out in the sun, flirt with the guys and get a tan while being friendly," he said.
Talley plans for Wednesdays to be Ladies Day with young men "with six-pack abs" in the tub.
Susan Hasty was one of the women on duty in the tub on Thursday, wearing a tank top, shorts and straw cowboy hat. "It's just a good clean job, and it's fun," she told the paper. "There's no more flesh revealed here than at a swimming pool. If you want that, go to a strip club."
Talley said he does not see his latest marketing ploy as being hypocritical or contradicting his recent public stand against extending beer and wine sales in dry areas of Longview. One of the comments he made in the campaign against Proposition 7 on the city ballot earlier this month was that expanding the sale of beer and wine into the city's north side could serve to increase crime and possibly lead the way for more sexually oriented businesses. "There are certain things we are prohibited from doing and we will not do, according to state law," he said. "There's not going to be any nudity or exposed breasts. The laws are very explicit."
Talley said the tub occupied by women has drawn a handful of negative comments from customers. "Overall, it's been very positive," he told the paper.
The idea is not a new one. Click here to view a CSP Daily News story from last August on a similar concept.
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