RAVE SUCCESS SPAWNS PARTY FASHION STORE

If the phat ultra-flared pants, psychedelic tops, neon-coloured platform shoes and plastic glow sticks of various shades and sizes lining the shelves and racks of Richmond's Plastic Robot rave store aren't a dead giveaway, raves have become a big business.

The once underground partying phenomenon that has its own music and lingo, also has a definite fashion standard that is attracting ravers to the Alexandra Road store since it opened in May.

"It's (raves) no longer about breaking into a warehouse and throwing a party. It's big business for the promoters," said store manager Warren Wong-Chor. "Some of them have now gone on to produce corporate events. And now that the cities are involved with the regulation of raves the whole industry has become like a cash cow."

Getting in on some of that action, Wong-Chor jumped at the opportunity to set up the shop locally and now divides his time between a more up-market version he still runs in downtown Vancouver and the new Richmond shop.

"Richmond has become a great place for raves, and this seemed to be the ideal place to open a store," he said. "I've had customers come from pretty much all over the place to get tickets and stuff. I didn't realize Richmond was so close to everywhere else."

The common denominator amid the clothes, vinyl records, back packs and other rave paraphernalia, is the emphasis on fun and funky fashions.

"Raves are mainly for kids who are 19 to 22 years old, in their prime partying time. They live at home and have a lot of disposable income and like to go out and have a good time."

But what about the negatives associated with the parties that last until the wee hours of the morning?

"It's just that today the media seems to sensationalize everything and raves have been blown out of proportion."

He added that he had a concerned mother approach him in the store recently, telling him that she was frightened about what could happen to her 16-year-old daughter who enjoyed going to raves.

"I asked her what she was doing when she was 16, and she told me that she used to live in Barcelona. Now, you can't tell me that there weren't any worse place to be than Barcelona when you're a 16-year-old girl."

According to the RCMP's Drug Awareness section, Richmond is actually one of the better places in the Lower Mainland to stage legal raves.

There is a high degree of co-operation between police, rave operators and the security firms they hire during the events to help screen and prevent drug dealing from taking place, said RCMP Cpl. Scott Rintoul.

Still, drugs-namely Ecstasy-have become popular at raves, becoming increasingly prevalent outside the scene and are being generically referred to as "Club drugs."

"Ecstasy seems to be just about everywhere. It's virtually become the drug of choice," Rintoul said.

Its popularity has even put a dent in the cocaine dealing business.

Also coming into vogue is a veterinary anesthetic drug called Ketamine.

Recently, police apprehended a youth in Richmond carrying two tenths of a gram of Ketamine, equal to two doses. Rintoul said the suspect claimed the drugs were just for personal consumption and not intended for the purposes of trafficking.

While not down-playing the harmful affects of drug use, Wong-Chor said recreational drug use has long been a part of society and cannot be blamed on raves.

"I look at it this way. In the 1960s kids were doing much worse things than they are now. And the '70s and '80s were all about death and the bomb, and now we don't have to worry about that anymore. It's time for people to go out and experience life and have a good time."