It's not about the data
Why Chicagoans Choose In-Person Over Apps
We could talk about ghosting rates and burnout statistics, and we have, elsewhere. But the real reason our daters choose in-person has less to do with the apps themselves and more to do with how this city already teaches people to live.
01
Chicago already runs on face-to-face
This is a city built around the L, crowded bars during a Bears game, block parties, and a lakefront that turns into one giant shared backyard every summer. Chicagoans are used to striking up conversation with a stranger over a shared complaint about the weather or a shared opinion on Italian beef. Speed dating just gives that same instinct a little structure.
02
Our daters already know what a real connection feels like
People who've survived enough Chicago winters together, at a bar, on a crowded train, at a block party, already know the difference between a real conversation and a performed one. That same instinct carries over to dating. An app profile can't replicate the feeling of an actual laugh at an actual table.
03
They're not anti-technology, they're pro-outcome
Most of our daters still have an app installed. This isn't about rejecting anything. It's about noticing where the actual payoff is, and choosing to spend more of their time and energy there instead.
04
They want someone who fits how they actually live
A profile can say "loves this city." A speed dating conversation can tell you whether someone's actually stuck out a Chicago winter or just moved here last spring and hasn't been tested yet. Our daters tend to want the second kind of certainty before investing real time in someone.
The city already taught our daters how to connect in person. We just gave them a room to do it in.