Category: It’sJustLunch

$1900 For 14 Dates

Posted on June 26, 2008

Itsjustlunch_logo POST BULLETIN — June 25 — It's Just Lunch is a dating service for busy professionals, founded in 1991 by a Chicago woman whose engagement was called off. Her tedious search to meet "normal," well-educated professionals inspired her to help others. An annual membership fee of $1,900 ensures at least 14 dates. It's Just Lunch works with select restaurants, and arranges lunch, happy hour or dinner reservations for each couple. Clients reveal only their first names and are seated together by the restaurant host. Each person pays for their own bill. The Rochester branch opened in January, although the company has been working with Rochester clients for the past 10 years.

The full article was originally published at Post Bulletin, but is no longer available.

Mark Brooks: One wonders, is the internet dating industry leaving money on the table?

See all posts on It's Just Lunch

It’s Just Lunch Singapore Goes To Bangkok

Posted on March 19, 2008

Itsjustlunch_logo
PR WEB — Mar 19 —  The dating agency, It’s Just
Lunch!,
is adding another global branch. This time in Bangkok, Thailand. Now
the clients have an opportunity to date a bigger pool of singles from
not just one city but two: Singapore and Bangkok. FULL ARTICLE @ PR WEB

Matchmakers, And Virtual Dates With Omnidate

Posted on February 15, 2008

Omnidate_logo CBC — Feb 15 — Andrew Lekas is a busy man looking for love and tired of the bar scene. So he's hired a matchmaker to do all the leg work. Ruth Fox, an It's Just Lunch Matchmaker: "What we basically do is set up fun first dates, easy first dates." It's Just Lunch hand picks a blind date and no need to worry about choosing a restaurant, its all taken care of. Now let's say you want to meet people in a bar but not leave home. Omnnidate is a virtual date where singles can interact in a simulated dating environment online from the comfort of their own home. SEE THE VIDEO HERE

Finding Time For Love

Posted on September 28, 2007

Tableforsix_logo_2ENTREPRENEUR — Sep 26 — Many entrepreneurs run successful businesses, but can't manage successful dating lives. Packed schedules lead to little personal time. More so than others, entrepreneurs need to identify goals, tradeoffs, and budgets. And should utilize the dating sites created just for them, including TableForSix, ItsJustLunch, EntrepreneurDating, and BusinessSingles. FULL ARTICLE @ ENTREPRENEUR

Dating Options In Tucson

Posted on August 3, 2007

Tucson_fun_logoARIZONA DAILY STAR — Aug 02 — In a sprawling, college town like Tucson, it can be hard for more mature singles to find true love. Luckily, services like online dating, speed dating, and It's Just Lunch exist. One of the more unique options, Tucson Fun & Adventures, isn't even a dating service. Founded in 1997, the group is definitely more of an activities club, but singles looking for a little rock climbing or wine tasting adventure might find something more. FULL ARTICLE @ AZ NIGHT BUZZ

$2m Awarded to Lonely Heart Who Lost $125,000 to Dating Agency

Posted on June 1, 2006

THE GUARDIAN — June 1 — Orly the Matchmaker is a "high-end matchmaking service catering to celebrities, royalties, famous people and all wonderful single men and women out there." Anne Majerik, a 60-year-old widowed social worker saw an ad in an in-flight magazine but the search for romance ended in disillusion and finally court. This week a jury in Los Angeles awarded Ms Majerik $2.1m (£1.1m) in damages. Majerik's lawyer said, "She's developed a niche out there to prey on women who are lonely or divorced." The size of the jury's award is unprecedented. "I hear of high-end matchmaking firms charging tens of thousands of dollars a year," said Mark Brooks, the editor of onlinepersonalswatch.com. "But to pay $100,000-plus, that's just not wise."  Ms Hadida plans to appeal. FULL ARTICLE @ THE GUARDIAN

Mark Brooks: Orly is giving reputable matchmakers a bad name. I can understand $10's of thousands for high-end service, but $100k+. Obscene. Buyer beware. Great Expectations, It's Just Lunch, The Right One/Together Dating, and Table for Six are examples of exemplary, well established, real world services. $2500, ok. $25k, hmm?  $125k, crazy! 

Love on the Web

Posted on February 6, 2006

LoveonthewebBBC NEWS — Feb 2 — There are 12 million unattached people in Britain. Since the 1960s, the number of people with no-one to go home to has quadrupled. Two thirds of single people looking for love have signed up to dating agencies. Nate Elliot, an analyst with JupiterResearch explains "the sites give people an opportunity to see a lot of other singles in an environment that's very comfortable for them. "There's not a lot of risk and there's not a lot of stress involved in browsing profiles from home." Upmarket conventional agencies are riding high too. Far from being wiped out by the web the internet's actually brought dating into people's homes and it's taken away a lot of the taboo.  Offline agencies cater to a much more select clientele.  FULL ARTICLE @ BBC NEWS

Mark Brooks: Great Expectations, Together Dating/The Right One and It's Just Lunch are the biggest national matchmaking organizations in Great Britain.

Patent Threat Looms

Posted on September 1, 2005

Epic_realmVNUNET — Aug 31 — Former web acceleration company EpicRealm has filed lawsuits against 13 companies, including eHarmony, It's Just Lunch and FriendFinder, for allegedly infringing on two patents that cover the way in which many dynamic web pages are constructed and served.  The Texas-based company filed the first lawsuit If the patents are upheld in court, they could apply to "most modern e-commerce sites involved in dynamic web page generation and caching", according to Ira Rothken, representing FriendFinder.  Rothken claimed the patents are invalid because somebody else invented the technologies covered in the patents before EpicRealm. 

The full article was originally published at Vnunet, but is no longer available.

Willing to Buy a Little Help in Finding Love

Posted on February 20, 2005

TORONTO STAR — Feb 19 — It’s Just Lunch is a growing operation with annual revenue of more than $30 million, 70-odd franchises, and plans to expand all over the world.  Websites like match.com and lavalife are reportedly runaway successes and business darlings.  Tory Howat started Equal Chemistry in 2004 after deciding to turn her knack of knowing who would love whom into a business. The focus of her business is fitness: those people who are serious about sport and training (therefore have something in common right away).  FULL ARTICLE @ THE STAR

Mark Brooks: Many predicted the demis of traditional dating services with the rise of online personals.  Both seem to be faring well. 

Old-school dating service for the cyber-averse

Posted on February 19, 2005

MIAMI HERALD — Feb 14 — It’s Just Lunch has stuck in there, and today claims a presence in 75 cities.  $1,500 annual membership for 14 lunch dates. An hourlong face-to-face interview follows.  Discretion is built into the system. Pannucci works with about 50 restaurants, where she has an understanding with the maitre d’: No one is to utter, ‘It’s Just Lunch.’  After the date, Pannucci’s staff calls clients to get feedback about whether it was a good setup. ”That’s what separates us from all the other services out there: the personal touch,” she said.  She advertises in the Miami New Times and seven airline magazines, and is listed in the Yellow Pages. Members who enroll a friend get an extra first date. She currently has a total of 1,000 members, she said.

Mark Brooks: $1500 a year to meet singles who are screened and really serious about not being single…and can afford $1500.