Happy Valentine’s Day Dot Complicaters! To add to today’s festivities we’ll be discussing the oh-so complicated business of love. So whether you’re single and looking, happily married, or unattached and loving it, the Valentine’s Day market affects everything from online shopping to online dating. In 2016, Microsoft said the Top 10 most searched businesses relating to Valentine’s Day were Etsy, Olive Garden, Victoria’s Secret, Eddie Bauer, Kay Jewelers and Edible Arrangements.
Just over 50% of US adults celebrated Valentine’s Day last year with 28% of shopping happening online. People spent a staggering $19.7 billion last year on Valentine’s Day—a record high. On average, men spend twice as much as women and the average unmarried American spent $1600 on their dating life.
As for online dating, dating sites and apps were most popular among younger internet users with 30% of U.S. internet users aged 18 to 29. One third of marriages start online. 70% of gay relationships start online and the increase of interracial marriages increased when online dating became more popular in 2004. And as for good old fashioned yenta-ism, a whopping 90% of Millennials say they would find enjoyment in acting as matchmaker for their friends.
Today I sat down to discuss the business of finding love is Elie Seidman, CEO of Tinder and elite matchmaker Sameera Sullivan of Lasting Connections.
Sameera Sullivan
Elie Seidman
Subscribe to the Dot Complicated newsletter and receive a monthly update containing our latest blog posts, events, and more so you can stay informed on digital solutions and tech trends without getting overwhelmed. 