King street is known as the premium spot for adult entertainment in Melbourne and it has carried the infamy that goes with the industry. Strip clubs have come and gone over the years, some pushed out by government in its bid to 'clean up' the city. However, the powers that be have since come to realise that the king Street Precinct with its strip clubs or gentlemen’s clubs have less to do with crime or the city becoming less clean than it could be. One club that has been in the precinct for more than a decade and had to move because of council, the police and the other powers that may be was the Showgirls Bar 20.
Showgirls Bar 20 is more than just one of the best strip clubs, its an institution that is part of the fabric that makes Melbourne what it is. It is the only strip club in Melbourne to be listed on the Stock Exchange. That would have given it some veneer of respectability and class but it also came to be known for the drunken violence that would erupt on a weekly basis. The first Showgirls Bar 20 was at 46 King Street. It was then bought and closed down as part of a gentrification plan. That could have been the end of Bar 20 but it just moved up along the street to 195 King Street. It is important for Bar 20 to stay on King Street because that's where the action is. Besides, the business didn't necessarily die, it folded under the pressure it was getting from local government and property developers.
Bar 20 has had its fair share of problems before it was shut down. Back in 2011, the club lost its liquor licence after police brought a dossier of violent crimes to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. The police weren't particularly pleased when one of their own got their teeth knocked out during a fight. There were also incidents involving bouncers and security personnel beating up patrons and other things. According to the police dossier, there was a time when over 100 patrons got into a brawl. It doesn't help also that The Chief Executive of Bar 10, John Trimble also happens to be the nephew of Australian mafia guy, Robert Trimbole; or maybe it does since he was able to get the liquor licence ban overturned on appeal to the Supreme Court.
Trimble has not had the best of luck when it comes to his businesses. He founded Planet Platinum which owned Elsternwick brothel Daily Planet which folded in 2015 when it came under investigation by the Securities and Investment Commission. In his defence, Trimble claimed he was a victim of corruption. Bar 20 itself was formed by Trimble's father and it became one of the first strip club in Melbourne having it disappear all together would have been bad for the future of the industry. Many are glad to see it returning to its "spiritual home" of King Street.