From online to offline: the new dating with Breeze

Apps like Tinder and Happn ensure that you spend a long time searching for a potential date. On average, you spend around 38 hours on conventional apps before you find someone, says Breeze founder Marco van der Woude. “With us you get to see fewer profiles, but with more information. When you have a match, you immediately go on a date that is organised by Breeze. You don't chat.”

Breeze currently focuses primarily on students. The name "Breeze" comes from the idea that dating does not have to be difficult. "Just keep it breezy", as Marco puts it. Together with four others, Marco came up with the idea to develop the app. "The problem with other dating apps is that you often end up in an endless circle of superficial conversations. Someone must always first come up with a good opening and then that person has to wait a few days for the other's reaction. Eventually. the conversation ends like that and you will never meet that person. "

Profile
Anyone looking for a date via Breeze creates a profile and the algorithm then determines which profiles could be a potential match based on your like and dislike behaviour. Users are shown two profiles of other users on Tuesday and Friday. You can view the profiles and choose someone to go on a date with. Breeze already has more than 100 student registrations in Utrecht. Recently, the dates have also been taking place in Utrecht and Rotterdam. Previously, users had to travel to Delft, where the creators live. "We continue to look for nice partners in these new cities."

The platform currently has around nine hundred users. Matti (21) is studying in Utrecht, lives in Amstelveen and has recently been on a date in Delft through Breeze. “I was in the train for forty-five minutes, which was a bit longer than I expected. The date was quite nice, but unfortunately there was no real connection.” Normally, Matti is willing to travel a little further for a date, but everything has a limit. "If I have to do this more often, then I will get tired of it after a while," he says. "I think I'd rather go on a date in a small city like Delft than to a big city like Rotterdam, but I can't deny that it would be better for me if the dates were in Utrecht or Amstelveen."

In addition to Breeze, Matti has been active on Tinder. After a while, he started to get annoyed that you never really meet up. “I encountered Breeze during the UIT week and had a chat with them. When I heard that you immediately go on a date through them, I became interested. On Tinder you keep chatting endlessly and it never leads to a date.” Matti only has had one date through Breeze as of yet and despite the travelling distance he would recommend the platform.

Traveling
Iris (27) was also on a date thanks to Breeze. Just like Matti, she finds it a plus that you can't chat with each other in advance. “It is very nice that you immediately go on date. I prefer to get to know someone face-to-face. I have also used other apps such as Tinder and Happn, but that was actually more of a pastime. Or to see how you rate in the dating market.” According to Iris, Delft was a nice place to go on a date, but she would also like to meet in Utrecht soon. "It is nice to travel a bit further some time, but if you go on a date during the week, it is not very practical."

Matti and Iris belong to more than 120 users who have already been sent on a date via the platform. Whether they were successful dates is different for everyone. "We ask for feedback from our matches so that we can optimise," explains Marco. “The feedback is generally good. The dates are fun and about half prove to be a good match. Some users unsubscribe to us after a date because they have planned a follow-up date with their match. That could be a definition of success."

For the time being the platform is still aimed at students, but soon Breeze wants to expand its target audience to "young professionals". Those are people who are just starting a career, such as yuppies, says Marco. "We think that this target audience is in need of less superficial online conversations and would prefer to go on a date right away, because they have limited time and do not want to waste it on chatting." That way they want to expand their platform.