Thursday Dating App Raises $3.5M - Weekly Dating

Thursday: A New Dating App Secures £2.5 Million Seed Funding

Thursday, a dating application designed to address issues stemming from excessive use of dating platforms, has successfully secured a £2.5 million (~$3.5M) seed investment. This funding round occurred shortly after the service’s launch in May, initially serving users in London and New York, and has already seen over 52,000 downloads.

Significant User Engagement

The company reported that on June 17th, a total of 110,000 likes were submitted, leading to 7,500 successful matches within a single day. Data regarding the number of actual dates resulting from these matches is currently unavailable.

Investment Details

The seed funding exceeded the company’s initial target by double, with contributions from Ascension Ventures, Best Nights VC (formerly M-Venture, the investment division of Jägermeister), and Connect Ventures. Early support also came from investors involved with CityMapper, TypeForm, and FIIT, facilitated through SeedLegals.

Notable Angel Investors

The dating platform has attracted investment from prominent angel investors, including Tom Blomfield, the founder of Monzo; Matt Robinson, founder of GoCardless and Nested; Ian Hogarth, founder of Songkick; Eldar Tuvey, founder of Wandera; and Henry de Zoute, founder of LookAfterMyBills.

The Unique Concept Behind Thursday

Thursday differentiates itself in the crowded dating app market with a distinctive approach – its availability is restricted to one day each week.

Limited-Time Access

The application becomes operational at 00:01 every Thursday morning, concentrating the swiping period into a few hours. All matches and ongoing conversations are automatically erased at midnight, encouraging users to act promptly and embrace spontaneity to arrange a date for that same evening.

Streamlined Profiles

User profiles are intentionally concise. Individuals can upload up to five photographs, sourced from social media platforms like Facebook or their device’s camera roll, alongside basic personal information.

Personality Insights

The app also includes prompts designed to reveal aspects of a user’s personality. A ‘Stories’ feature provides an additional avenue for self-expression, with content disappearing after 24 hours.

Location-Based Matching

Matches are determined by a “rough location,” enabling users to easily identify a convenient meeting point. The application assures users that their precise location remains confidential.

Encouraging Active Participation

Thursday encourages users to only log in if they are available for a date that evening, promoting a more intentional approach to dating.

Daily Match Limit

To prevent users from simply swiping on every profile, the number of daily matches is capped at ten.

Addressing Dating App Fatigue

By imposing these time constraints, Thursday aims to mitigate the issues of overuse and indecision that often plague dating apps, ultimately saving users time and frustration. The service seeks to reintroduce a sense of excitement into the digital dating experience, which can sometimes feel overly transactional.

Co-founder’s Statement

Co-founder George Rawlings stated: “We are delighted to have secured investment from a number of respected investors who share our vision for the app. We have ambitious plans and a clear mission: to transform the way people date. This is only the beginning, and we are committed to delivering on our promises.”

Strategic Expansion Plans

Having raised twice the amount of seed funding initially anticipated, Thursday’s team intends to accelerate its growth. Recognizing the difficulty of patenting this concept, the company plans to move swiftly to establish a strong market position.

Key Hires and Marketing Investment

The seed funding will be allocated towards hiring a Head of Growth and a Head of Marketing, alongside other senior positions and technical staff. A “six-figure marketing strategy” is also in development.

Geographic Expansion

The app’s availability is currently limited to London and New York, but expansion to other major cities is planned.

A Competitive Landscape

The dating app market is highly diverse, with numerous platforms catering to various preferences and employing innovative features to facilitate connections, such as restricting message initiation or concealing selfies to encourage deeper interactions.

The Impact of Scarcity

Introducing time limits is a novel approach, but the potential effects on dating dynamics and power imbalances remain to be seen. It is also noteworthy that the founding team consists solely of men.

Future Development

Co-founder Matt McNeill Love added: “This is the initial iteration of Thursday, and it is not yet perfect. We will use this time to refine the app, introduce new features, and enhance our matching algorithm to create the most efficient and intuitive system available. We are also developing a groundbreaking feature that will significantly improve the likelihood of matches leading to dates.”

Prioritizing User Safety

Given the accelerated timeframe and ephemeral messaging, user security is a paramount concern for Thursday.

Verification and Moderation

All users are required to verify their identity by uploading a passport or driver’s license. The app takes abusive messages seriously, prohibiting hate speech, racism, body shaming, and misogyny. Users engaging in such behavior will be blocked and permanently banned.

Premium Membership Options

While the core functionality is available to all users, Thursday offers a limited number of VIP memberships.

VIP Benefits

VIP members receive increased profile visibility (“x60 increased visibility”), unlimited likes, and access to the app on Saturdays, although Saturday usage is restricted to other VIP members.