Nominations close Sunday 8th November.
Thank you for being here. If you’ve been sent this page, it’s because I value your support and your opinion. Below is the longer version of what I’m building, what’s happened so far, and what a £10k grant would let me do.
What’s the cause?
Dating apps turned love into a game. Swipe, match, ghost, repeat. Many people I speak to have quietly given up on them, but they haven’t given up on wanting a relationship. Forbes Health survey found that 79% of Gen Z said they felt dating app burnout, and many of them are looking for ways to meet people in real life again. I discovered matchmaking by accident, and saw what it could do for singles who wanted discretion and a more personalised approach. Now I’m on a mission to make it affordable and accessible to ordinary people.
Graft is my answer. A real person gets to know you, understands what you’re looking for, and introduces you to someone who fits. My agency does not only find matches, we curate a blind date experience for when the introductions are made. Find out more about the service through our website.
What’s been done so far?
I started my matchmaking agency while working full-time as an auditor, keeping costs very low and doing most of the work myself. So far:
- 24 singles matched
- 15 clients waiting on dates
- Growing my database of relationship ready singles
- Trustpilot reviews from clients who’ve used the service
- My first two headhunters hired, who find relationship-ready singles in the real world, in places the apps never reach
- A growing social presence: honest content about modern love, drawn from my own experiences, encouraging people to ignore negative dating advice and put themselves out there in real life
Has it been smooth?
It has been amazing to already make a difference to people’s lives, and to give them hope that there’s an affordable route to hiring a matchmaker and finding love. But an early legal setback hit my sales just as I’d taken on my first two head hunters. Although I am grateful for the opportunity to learn from my mistakes and keep on going, so the business can be stronger.
What would I do with the £10k?
Three things, each aimed at making the business sustainable:
- Paying the headhunters. They are the engine of the business. Funding them means more singles found for the agency’s database, more matches made, and more clients served.
- Digitise the system. Much of Graft still runs on manual processes. With my mum, who is an AI enthusiast, I’d build smarter systems for intake, matching and client management, so Graft can scale without losing the personal touch.
- Grow the content. Filming help and a podcast equipment would let me diversify my content, reach more people, and build credibility for the brand.
Where is this going?
My goal is simple: shorten the wait between a client signing up and going on their first date with us.
Right now, Graft has more clients waiting than I have the right people to introduce them to. The limit isn’t demand. It’s finding enough relationship-ready singles for them, through having a large agency database.
With the right funding, my headhunters can meet more people in the real world, my systems can match and follow up faster, and every client gets introduced sooner. Over the next 12 months, I want to facilitate 100 introductions and grow my database to 1000 relationship ready singles.
How can you help?
It takes only a few minutes. Please nominate Nadia Aghios’ matchmaking agency before Sunday 8th November. If you know someone who might also nominate, or someone who’s tired of dating apps, please pass this page on.
Thank you for backing my vision.
Nadia