Do people who work as Geisha or at geisha houses rich?
For most of them, most of the money they make goes right back into maintaining the things needed for their profession: their kimono, their hair ornaments (particularly expensive for maiko), their wigs (if they are geisha) or getting their hair re-styled every week or so, their shoes and other accessories, their lessons (which they keep up throughout their career), and the like. Some do earn enough to become independent, meaning they can live on their own and support themselves rather than being dependent on a geisha house, but it’s quite rare. In the past, one of the roles of the danna (patron or sponsor) was to provide for the geisha and allow her to be independent. If a maiko or geisha wants to get married, she must leave the profession. Geisha and housewife are seen as complimentary but mutually exclusive positions in life, and you can’t be both at the same time. Not too sure about the specifics of their benefits. They don’t get much time off each year. However, all Japanese workers
