
Group dating site Grouper (YC W12) launches to 10 cities - lincolnq
http://techcrunch.com/2012/09/20/yc-alum-grouper-launches-in-10-cities-to-bring-you-a-better-way-to-meet-new-people/
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lincolnq
I've gone on several groupers in NYC and it's awesome. Much better way to meet
people than any other dating site I've tried.

~~~
j-v
Interesting—in what ways was it better?

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lincolnq
Way less awkwardness. You are in a relaxed environment with friends, and
there's much less scrambling for things to talk about, because pretty much
everyone can tell awesome stories about their friends.

However, there is an increased level of awkwardness if you like someone from
the other group -- you have to isolate them and try to get their number, which
isn't always the easiest thing in a group of 6.

~~~
Swizec
Sorry, but ... why?

Just ask them for their number.

You are not a lion and they are not a zebra. You do not need to isolate them.

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larrys
"you have to isolate them"

My guess is that by "isolate" the parent means it would be awkward to have
others at the table hear that you are doing that (edit: asking for a phone
number) or it might make someone who wasn't picked feel uncomfortable or even
the person you've picked might feel uncomfortable in front of others rejecting
(or even accepting) a phone number request.

~~~
Swizec
Maybe. But all of those are artificial problems that don't really exist with
people who have gone beyond the emotional/social maturity of 14 year olds.

It's also a sign of cowardice. Cowardice is unattractive in potential mates.

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barry-cotter
Your analysis of the situation is basically correct but your judgmental tone
and general sneering attitude to those with social problems are the mark of a
cock.

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jamgraham
Why give your employees a puppy? That means they'll have to take care of it
instead of working late.

<https://www.joingrouper.com/jobs>

~~~
philwelch
Lots of companies let you bring dogs to the office. Instead of taking care of
the puppy at home they can all bring their puppies to work. I'm not sure
whether that's adorable or just strange.

OTOH, I'm not sure giving away puppies as a job perk is really in the best
interest of the puppies....

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anateus
I finally remembered what Grouper reminds me of! It's the fairly established
practice of Gokon in Japan: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gokon#Japan>

~~~
eli_gottlieb
And so the demise of civilization continues.

Mind, you could just say that's my own cultural biases talking (I was
socialized in a manner you could call the "equal opposite" to Japanese
manners), but even when you ask the Japanese how much they like their modes of
socialization and living... they mostly don't.

Why do we continue to import customs from sufferers of depression at the level
of a _national illness_?

<http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/fl20120212rp.html>

EDIT: Very seriously, I'm _not_ trying to start a flag-waving my country is
better than yours contest, but I find it continually disturbing that happy
countries are, by and large, ignored or ridiculed, while unhappy countries
often export their mores, customs, and rules. For example, the very appearance
of "group dating" as described in the article and in this comment thread
pretty much demolishes the entire concept and point of dating: to get to know
one person to the point of being able to form an intimate and (semi-)permanent
emotional bond.

~~~
Apocryphon
"to get to know one person to the point of being able to form an intimate and
(semi-)permanent emotional bond"

One would expect that this service is a springboard that would lead to such
"traditional" dating.

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tryitnow
I might give this a try.

However, subtlety is a good thing in dating, so I don't know if I like the
expectation that "everyone is looking." I think this might work well for
younger people who might need a little more explicit guidance. More socially
experienced people can usually figure out if someone is looking or not.

I prefer grubwithus.com - it's just meeting people without any expectations.

However, I really like that people are screened on grouper.

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ahh
Didn't I see press last year that this site couldn't find enough women to
match with male clients, and just started hiring girls off Craigslist to show
up for free drinks? Or was that another similar service?

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quasistar
Both the app and the team made a strong impression on me. There is some real
heat here. 3x3 is soo much better than double dating. And the 'bathroom
intercourse' metrics are certainly a unique measure of 'penetration'.

Interested to hear what mechanics they are considering adopting to drive long
term engagement. After all, who wants to bear the mark of having the
reputation about town of being a 'serial grouperizer'.

Also, how do they plan to make money? Revenue share on the pre-paid date?

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chrislloyd
I've been on one in SF. It was awesome.

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drumdance
A TechStars company called Ignighter tried this a few years ago. ISTR they had
trouble getting it to "take" in the US but found that it took off in India.
They may even have relocated there.

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kumarm
I think they rebranded (or pivoted) and stepout is their new name and
completely India centric. <http://www.stepout.com/>

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smoyer
This is the first I've heard of the YC Grouper ... I wonder if they know that
there's already software published by the Internet2 consortium that is named
(and trademarked as) Grouper - <http://www.internet2.edu/grouper/about.html>

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president
Perhaps a name change would be advantageous, especially to avoid confusion
with Groupon.

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nlh
I'd be more worried about the associations with the fish than I would with
Groupon ;)

But seriously - I don't feel like this is an issue. There are several
companies out there with group-based names (Groupon, Grouper, GroupMe - to
name a few) and I don't think brand confusion is a huge issue -- yet.

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Apocryphon
So this is sort of like a Meetup with no specific shared interest/activity,
except a vaguely romantic objective?

~~~
j-s-f
"Drinking" is the shared interest / activity.

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mcdowall
Great idea, this would definitely work in the UK

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jawngee
I know people will be thinking I'm making a joke, cageface might even call me
a douche, but I totally read the name as Groper the first few times.

