Jude was in his late fifties, slim with short gray hair. He rose to his feet, shaking my hand, and then we both sat at the table. He tapped his finger impatiently on the surface.
“Thank you for making the time to meet me,” I said.
“Of course. May I call you Griffin?”
“I prefer it, actually.” There were so many of us Sterlings that I was always confused when someone said “Mr. Sterling.”
“Griffin, I’m very surprised that you’re interested in my company.”
That caught me off guard. “Why? You’re in a growing market. You want to expand, and you need capital. I have that in spades.”
“Yes, but I was under the impression that your family operates in the financial services area.”
I waved my hand. “That’s how we started, correct. But I’ve personally invested in multiple other businesses, and I act as an adviser. Most of my investments are in the digital world. It’s what I know.”
“Right.” As he nodded, a waiter came to us with the drinks menu. I asked for a surprise aperitif. He did the same.
Once the waiter headed toward the bar, I went on with my pitch. “I have all the qualities you’re searching for in an investor.”
Jude frowned. Not good. I came on too strong.
“Why don’t we do this another way?” I suggested. “You tell me what you’re looking for.”
“Ideally, someone who knows my market. Someone who’s grown businesses before.”
“I check both boxes,” I replied with confidence.
He shook his head slightly. “I’m not so sure. I want someone whounderstandsmy market.”
“I read extensively about the industry before I contacted you. From what I’ve researched, it’s grown by leaps and bounds these past few years. Today, people generally spend less time in places where they could meet dating prospects. They tend to hang with the friends they already have. That’s why they turn to apps like yours to find partners. It’s quick and convenient. If a date doesn’t work out, you waste no time finding another one.”
He stared at me but didn’t say anything as the waiter returned with our drinks.
As soon as we were alone again, he scoffed. “Quick and convenient? Griffin, that tells me you don’t understand anythingaboutmybusiness. Frankly, it doesn’t surprise me. Not many investors do.”
I cleared my throat and fought to keep my tone polite. “What makes you say that?”
“I’m not in the business of facilitating hookups like other dating sites. Have you even read our mission statement?”
I blinked. “I did glance through it.” In my opinion, mission statements were just pretty words intended to make a company look good. They rarely had anything to do with the truth.
“But did you pay close attention to it?”
Man, this guy was tough.
“No,” I admitted. I thought it best not to say any more, as I could tell he was not thrilled with my answer.
“Right. Let me explain. Our goal is for people to find lifelong partners. We’re not looking for repeat customers. In fact, we consider it a personal victory if theydon’treturn to us and are happy with the partner they found.”
I took a sip of my drink because I couldn’t possibly keep a straight face.Hecan’t mean that. It’s complete hogwash.That was not how these sites made money.
“That’s an admirable goal,” I said. There, that sounded neutral.
“We survey our previous customers after the two-year mark and the five-year mark. Most of them are still with the partner they found through our platform. We rarely have repeat business.” He was obviously very proud of their accomplishments.
“And yet you keep growing.”
“That’s through customer acquisition and word of mouth. When a customer is happy with something, they share with others.” Jude sipped his drink, then nodded to me. “As you said, more and more people prefer to search for partners online. Our filters help them narrow down to people they have things in common with.”
