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Lili, a 33-year-old financial officer who never married, emigrated from Eastern Europe only three years ago, leaving family, friends, and her entire support structure behind.
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$">She says she began to search the Internet for hints on how to meet people because she really didn’t have any friends here. But she soon found out Internet searches can be an eye opener.
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$">“There are weird people there, and all kinds of ugly things promoted,” she says. “I’m not saying that I’m picky, but I’m looking for a decent person — no sex stories — and the chances of meeting someone decent on the Internet are very small.”
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$">Lili’s motivation is broader than just meeting Mr. Right.
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$">She also wants to meet other single people, so when she happened upon the cleverly-named Meet Market Adventures, and saw its varied list of ‘singles oriented’ activities, the idea appealed to her.
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$">“Of course I would like to meet someone, but it’s not the main reason. I mean, even single people need to have fun, so it was a good opportunity to meet friends here in Canada, and if I meet someone, its okay, and if not, its good as well.”
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$">Launched this March by 43-year-old Derek Dariusz Polcyn, Meet Market Adventures Montreal bills itself as “the premiere event and social club for singles,” and an “alternative to dating services.” It claims to provide an avenue for active single professionals to meet while enjoying a variety of events and adventures.
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$">Polcyn, a former investment analyst who worked in both Ottawa and Toronto, says he decided to open a franchise in Montreal after attending a Valentine’s Day party put on by the seven-year old company in Toronto.
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$">“I was really impressed with how organized it was and how much fun people were having. Then, on the business side, I thought ‘Wow, this is such a great enterprise.’”
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$">But on the personal side, Polcyn says he had other reasons for venturing into the business.
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$">“I was raised by a single mother and she was set up on different blind dates, but they never worked out. So when I found out about Meet Market Adventures, I thought ‘What a great way for people to meet.’”
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$">Polcyn, who is himself single, says his job is not to match people together, but to organize interesting events that attract a variety of singles.
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$">The only downside is that not all events attract the same ratio of men to women.
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$">“It’s a natural thing. When we do events like a chocolate tasting, you’d expect that there will be a lot more women. If we do Go-Karting, it will be a lot more men.”
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$">Similarly, people in the same age groups will gravitate towards the same events. “Younger people will go for rock climbing, whereas someone in their 40s or 50s would go for the hiking.”
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$">Mark, a 34-year-old Information Technology specialist, agrees.
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$">“I’ve been to events where I was the youngest by at least a decade,” he says.
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$">“I’ve made some friends, but I’ll keep trying to figure out which events are most likely to skew younger and skew female, and that will be my job.”
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$">Mark says he joined two months ago after finding the company’s site on the Web.
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$">“I’m a busy professional, so it’s not always easy to run into people in informal settings,” he says.
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$">But even with his busy schedule, he’s found the time to attend over a half dozen events already, and the group’s concept appealed to him.
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$">“It’s just the idea that you’re going to be in an environment with other single people, so right off the bat, if someone is there, it’s because they are available, and also looking, so you’re just narrowing down the population. You’re using it as a filter,” he says.
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$">With no membership or sign-up fees, Meet Market has a “pay as you play” philosophy, that requires members to pick from the list of planned events which include after-work parties, weekend and local day trips, vacations and cruises.
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$">Richard, who is in his late 50s, attended the first gala event and has remained a member ever since.
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$">“I found the quality of people there quite nice. They’re intelligent, not unwashed or tattooed,” he says with a laugh.
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$">A veteran of the singles scene, Richard joined his first club over 20 years ago, but stays away whenever he’s in a stable relationship.
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$">He’s also dabbled with online dating, using Lavalife and eHarmony, but never tried speed dating.
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$">“I’m not desperate to meet a woman to have in my life. I’m happy being single right now and if somebody comes along, that’s fine.”
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By Anthony Bonaparte, The Suburban
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