Marriage And Dating In Nyc Matching Complements

Some dating services seek to match likes to likes, e.g. South Asians, or Ivy League graduates. But there's also a market for the traditional complements: beautiful women and rich men. Here's a story about a party for just such talents, by Katherine Bindley in the NY Times: Banker Seeks Beauty.

"The invitation to the latest Fashion Meets Finance party - an affair that shamelessly includes only women who work in fashion and men from Wall Street - declared that the dark days are over - not just for the economy, but in the dating market. "We are here to announce the balance is restoring itself to the ecosystem of the New York dating community," the party organizers said on their cheeky Web site."

...

"From my experience, I've dated lawyers and doctors and they're nice; I just prefer finance," Ms. Yanush said, before applying a fresh gloss of candy-apple-red lipstick in the ladies room. "My girlfriends who are in long-term relationships with finance guys are very happy.

...

"The idea behind Fashion Meets Finance began in 2007 with Beth Newill, a merchandiser for Ann Taylor at the time, who found the garment district was a poor neighborhood in which to meet men. After speaking with a male friend who worked in finance and had expressed the same frustration about the absence of eligible women in the financial district, Ms. Newill organized regular happy hours for the two groups."

...

"The text with the latest invitation, the first party since January, was typical: "We fear that news of shrinking bonuses, banks closing and the Dow plummeting confused the gorgeous women of the city who understood that their shelf life is quick and fleeting like a senator's South American love affair. The uncertainty caused panic which caused irrational decisions - there's going to be a two-year blip in the system where a hot fashion girl might commit to a pharmaceutical salesman."

The women were encouraged to hold on because the recession is over, and it would only be a matter of time before a boyfriend in finance enabled them to quit their jobs to be "tennis moms."

Jeremy Abelson, 29, the founder of an online luxury newsletter called Pocket Change, who creates most of the Web site's copy, said, "It's offensive but it's very realistic.

The article closes by quoting someone who didn't meet the woman of his dreams: "Let's just say I'm not going to find my future ex-wife here," he said."