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SCHENECTADY – To swipe or not to swipe? Tired of the endless scrolling, mindless small talk, and overwhelming online dating pool, it’s no wonder so many singles are opting for the latter.
Some, like Becky Daniels and Gabby Fisher, are ditching dating firsts altogether and looking for more organic ways to find love.
“Many people, even those who have been attached to their cell phones for a long time, are finding that dating apps don’t give them what they want,” Daniels vows. Chasing Love First, swipe on apps like Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge.
In the year In 2021, frustrated by the lack of opportunities to meet potential partners, Daniel and Fisher launched Capital Heart Connections, an initiative designed to connect the active and inclusive single community in the Capital Region.
Now, the friends are taking the business to the next level by offering matchmaking services in a new office space at the Palate Community in downtown Schenectady in a corporate partnership with a female-focused co-working space. A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held at the office at 508 State St. on Feb. 2 at 4 p.m. to celebrate the expansion.
Now playing cupid, the friends-turned-business partners have changed their business name to Micropolitan Matchmakers and are taking on customers eager to ditch their dating app and find their love match with real-world experiences.
Inspired by the interest of other singles who have attended their events over the years, the couple enrolled in a matchmaking course this summer to become expert matchmakers. Thus, in June, a couple swipe-free dating service was born.
“We really want to bring joy and humanity back into friendship,” said Daniel, 36.
Their matchmaking services include intensive onboarding, a guaranteed number of dates based on the chosen membership package, structured and personalized feedback starting each day, and access to member-only group training and events. Packages start at $1,500.
Here’s how it works: If someone signs up for a five-day package, for example, the process starts with a two-hour in-person consultation. The goal of the first meeting is for Daniels and Fisher to gain an in-depth understanding of their client’s dating history, preferences, and needs in identifying a suitable match.
To do this, matchmakers browse through the business’s database of singles, which is free for people to sign up for. As a long-time resident of Electric City, they each use their local network for their daily work, as well as their personal connections in anticipation of an upcoming match.
After a few singles are selected, Daniels and Fisher conduct video interviews to confirm who the individual is and make sure it’s a good fit. Background checks are done to give clients the extra peace of mind they often lack from online dating (a round of applause for those who are no longer secretly married).
The two then decide on the top match they want to set their client up for, a process Daniels says has “a little bit of magic to it.” After proper screening, the business partners plan the first date completely, preventing the individuals from changing phone numbers or social media handles before meeting.
“With a dating app, you get to meet someone and text for three weeks before meeting them in person, and you build a story in your head about that person, for better or worse, and it’s rare that someone has. We wanted to live up to that expectation, so we tried to take all of that out and just focus on physical contact,” Daniels said.
With lockdowns and reduced social activity since the pandemic, many people are looking for face-to-face connections that don’t require a stable Wi-Fi connection. Micropolitan Matchmaking facilitates that – but leaves the more confusing parts of the marriage process, the inability to see each other again, to the organizers.
Later in the day, both parties fill out a feedback form and meet with the matchmakers to discuss how they want to move forward. If they decide to break up, the customer can try their luck again by going to their second day of the five-day package.
The benefit of the program is that the dates never end, so even if the client continues to meet their first match – or needs to take a break from the position entirely – they can return weeks, months or years later for their next match.
The singles database, accessible exclusively by Daniels & Fisher for matchmaking purposes, consists of nearly 200 people and continues to grow. Daniels is currently seeing slightly more women than men, but they are starting to fill up as they market more social events.
There is also a large demographic of people in their 50s and 60s, many of whom are recently divorced, who are using Daniel’s platform. “They don’t want to worry about having to navigate the dating app scene because there’s this whole culture and all these unwritten rules that I think are very confusing and stressful for people,” she explains.
While matchmaking is their current focus, Daniels and Fisher continue to host various events for singles to go out and meet. The business is planning a series of events the week before Valentine’s Day, including a performance with the Albany Symphony Orchestra at the Proctor Theater, an afternoon meeting at Graham’s Coffee Parlor, a “Ghost of the Past” comedy show and a social gathering. in Berlin in Troy.
A full schedule of events and more information about dating services can be found on the Micropolitan Matchcare website.
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