Changing how young people date… from the other side of the world

The aficionados of dating websites among you may or may not have heard of Ignighter.com, but here's an example of serendipity. Or more precisely, of unintended success.  Started in 2008 by three young men in New York, the website targeted young people in their 20's and enabled members to set up group dates, e.g. a movie or a picnic, in order to make typical dates less awkward by involving a larger group of people. The focus was on the US, but before long there was a surge of traffic from Asia, in particular India.  By early 2010, Ignighter.com reportedly started signing up more users in India in a week than in the US in a year.

Daniel Etter for The New York Times

Ignighter.com is now considered the dating Website with the fastest growth in India, and in the words of Adam Sachs, one of the founders: "In January 2010, we made the decision that we are an Indian dating site.” Sachs also commented that "Here we are, a few Jewish guys sitting in Union Square, and we might have accidentally revolutionized the dating scene in India.” Not to mention attracting millions of dollars in financing, much of it from Indian investors.

And the amazing thing is, the three founders have never been to India (though that will change shortly). What a world we live in.

Source article:

• Jilted in the U.S., a Site Finds Love in India (New York Times)