10 Years Of Dating Apps: How One Couple Found Their Happily Ever After
Wanna feel old? Dating apps have been around for a decade now.
Yep. 10 years of swiping left, right, superliking, giving out roses, looking for banter, discussing pineapple on pizza, praying to God people look like their photos, and everything in between.
We’ve now gotten used to the notion that if you’re single, you’re probably going to use an app at some stage – speaking as a single person, as much as it’s nice to fantasise that I’ll meet some organically, dating apps have ultimately changed the way we date and interact with people.
Throw in a global pandemic as well, and the apps found their place as a way of fostering human connection during times of social isolation. From walking dates to video calls, once again the nature of online dating shifted and we adapted to it.
With all these shifts and the prospect of finding ‘The One’ feeling harder than ever, it’s easier to get caught up in the horror stories of dating apps, from bad banter to questionable first dates. But sometimes it’s just as nice to celebrate the wholesome stories that may just make us believe in love again. Because, yes, these stories exist!
Bumble first launched in 2014, marketed as a dating app with a difference: women had to make the first move in standard heterosexual encounters. Over the years it’s also added different elements: Bumble BFF, allowing people to connect and use the app to find new friendships, and Bumble Bizz, a career networking version of the app. As of 2020, Bumble had over 100 million users worldwide.
“Now that we are in what truly does feel like the ‘post pandemic’ times, people are still open to finding love on Bumble – and the good news is that they are more open minded than ever, with more and more people saying they are open to dating outside their type, and that the experience of the last few years has made them reassess their idea of the perfect partner,” Bumble’s APAC Communications Director Lucille McCart told us.
“In terms of deeper connections, our most recent research found that three in five (57 percent) of Bumble users are now prioritising emotional availability and a quarter (24 percent) care less about a partner’s physical appearance.”
“In terms of how our mission from 2014 remains relevant today, I think a lot of women still have that fantasy of a knight in shining armour or a ‘meet cute’ like a scene from a romantic comedy,” Lucille added. “There is nothing wrong with those traditional desires, except for the fact that I am yet to fall in love with someone while waiting for my coffee in the morning! It’s natural to want to make a connection with someone in the real world – but why not hedge your bets by using Bumble as well? Who doesn’t love the idea of being able to potentially meet ‘The One’ from the comfort of your couch?”
And who doesn’t love an actual wholesome dating app story? We interviewed one couple who met on the app and have since become the kind of success story most singles would dream of.
Kyle and Renee met on Bumble in 2018, and here’s their story…
On Renee’s first move:
“To be honest, I don’t remember this bit much (maybe because I don’t want to). I can’t imagine it was very creative probably just a ‘hey there’… cringe!! I had a bit of app fatigue. I do remember there being a lot of bants. Someone with a good sense of humour was high on both of our checklists so it was a cracking start.”
On what they thought of each other’s profiles:
“Well l thought that Kyle looked normal, no red flags like posing with a tiger in Thailand or one of those ones where you can’t tell if he’s posing with his sister or an ex. Oh and l thought his friends were hot, so if it didn’t work out then I’d might at least find a new pool to paddle in (he’s going to kill me for saying that).
Kyle on the other hand thought I was a ‘decent sort’ (what a charmer). While he doesn’t remember exactly what my profile said by way of a description, but it made him laugh! So was pleasantly surprised when l engaged in our first chat, hence the reason why he wanted to lock in a date ASAP.”
On their first date:
“Kyle was a keen bean and asked for a date during our first conversation. An experienced app user knows you got to go for it if you’re interested. Grab the bull by the horns or whatever they say.
We went to Royal Saxon in Richmond. I was 45 minutes late and drove, so you can imagine how hopeful l was (let’s blame the app fatigue). Luckily it went so well that the car had a sleepover (at the pub, get your mind out of the gutter) and we pub-hopped until close. It even ended with a not entirely awkward kiss.”
On how quickly their relationship progressed and when they had ~ the ~ chat about deleting the apps:
“Like every good love story, there’s always a few obstacles at the beginning. Our second date, Kyle came straight from a mate’s baby gender reveal party so he was drunk for the first half and then hungover for the second. He actually fell asleep at the table while I was in the bathroom. Lucky for him, I liked him enough to give him another shot and the dates were nothing but spectacular after that.
The exclusive chat on the other hand was a bit of a disaster. Kyle had accepted the invitation to the country for my brother’s 21st, the hunger games of family first meetings you could say. Prior to this my friends convinced me that it was a good idea to text him to ask if we were exclusive prior to leaving, you know to avoid any awkwardness with family introductions. His response, ‘I’m pretty happy with how things are now, no need to put a label on it,’ which obviously wasn’t the ideal outcome. Lucky for all involved, he reconsidered and survived the trip. Hot tip: don’t text to ask if you’re exclusive.
Now to the closure of the apps. Neither of us can confirm or deny when/if this happened. We may well still have dormant profiles! Sometimes you just can’t give up the security blanket.”
On the milestones they’ve hit in four years together:
“We may have only been together for four years but we have certainly crammed a lot of achievements in, which is a testament to how strong the relationship is. We moved in together in late 2019, and fell pregnant with our first son early 2020 during the first lockdown (the fun one as we call it).
We then relocated to the country and purchased our first house together in late-2020 before Freddie was born early 2021. This year was equally as busy for us: we found out we were pregnant again with another boy mid-year and got engaged in September. Our son Lou was born in April this year (14 months apart with Freddie) and we are getting married in November 2022. We also got a dog, Wilson the Frenchie, somewhere in the middle there!”
And on their dating advice for singles:
“We love dating! Currently we’re living through my sister Erin who is navigating the dating pool at the moment via the apps. You’ve just got to enjoy the ride, take every opportunity as it comes and not put too much pressure on it. Sometimes it just works, and if it doesn’t well at least you’ve got a good story to tell.”