Matchmaking service provider Tawkify today announced that it has acquired S’More, an “anti-shallow” dating app that experimented with blurry profile pictures and even blurry video chats, in a bid to bring people to know yourself without focusing on the physical. appearance.
With the acquisition, S’More is ending its app and founder Adam Cohen Aslatei will instead join the Tawkify team to lead the launch of its first-ever mobile product. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but S’More had raised $3.2 million in seed funding, according to Crunchbase.
Scheduled to launch in mid-2023, Tawkify’s new app will offer users access to its matchmaking service, new relationship wellness services, as well as “multimedia features, shareable content and exclusive,” Cohen Aslatei told TechCrunch.
Not much else was shared about the upcoming app except that the new exclusive content would feature matchmakers, romance coaches, dating experts, and even celebrities. Tawkify is also launching an in-house content studio to produce the content, which will be available on its website and social media platforms.
Tawkify says it plans to partner with media companies and organizations to give users access to exclusive perks, special promotional offers, and events.
While S’More will be no more, some of its features will appear in the new Tawkify app, we understand. The main feature of S’More was the blurring of profile pictures and video chats. The user’s photo or video would reveal itself whenever the conversation with the potential match continued.
“From a philosophical point of view, [Tawkify and S’More] are very aligned,” Kellie Ammerman, CEO of Tawkify, told TechCrunch. “We actually do blind matchmaking, so we don’t show photos, which is pretty rare in the industry – but it worked for us. We appreciate that. [S’More] has the same non-superficial aspect as dating.
S’More first launched in select cities in 2019. In 2021, the company launched a celebrity dating and relationship show on Instagram, “S’More Live”, which the company says counts over 285 episodes and 10 million views. At the time of the acquisition, S’More claimed to have over 450,000 users.
According to Tawkify, there has been a lot of demand for a mobile app, noting that the term “Tawkify” sees an average of over 350,000 organic searches in the App Store each month.
“The mobile app will allow us to extend the concept of matchmaking to a wider audience and demystify it for many Americans. The current mindset of matchmaking in America is based on a limited set of references, primarily fun TV shows, but through the app, millions of people will be able to experience what matchmaking is and have the chance to try it out,” Cohen added. Aslatei.
Cohen Aslatei noted that as a former Bumble executive, he’s seen how dating apps have fallen “out of favor for quite some time” and believes matchmaking is a more effective alternative.
While dating apps will no doubt remain popular, some users are frustrated with online dating and have turned to matchmaking services to find love. According to the Financial Times, Tinder downloads fell 5% in 2021.
Tawkify was founded around the same time as Tinder and Hinge. In 2012, Kenneth Shaw was done with online dating, so he launched a human matchmaking service that doesn’t rely on algorithms and technology. Today, Tawkify has over 245 employees and over 200,000 matches. The company claims to have an 80% success rate – clients find a successful relationship within their first 12 matches.
Users can either sign up as a Matchmaker member for $99 per year or as a Matchmaker customer, which offers three different packages. For example, customers can pay $4,500 to be matched for three games, $7,900 for six games, or $14,400 for 12 games. A Matchmaker member means your profile will be visible to Tawkify customers, but you won’t have your own matchmaker.
It claims to be the most affordable matchmaking alternative, with a mission to democratize matchmaking and make it more accessible to everyone.
