{"id":65423,"date":"2026-02-14T19:10:45","date_gmt":"2026-02-14T19:10:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/he-wanted-a-meet-cute-story-but-met-a-matchmaker-instead-the-rest-of-gen-z-might-not-be-far-behind\/"},"modified":"2026-02-14T19:10:45","modified_gmt":"2026-02-14T19:10:45","slug":"he-wanted-a-meet-cute-story-but-met-a-matchmaker-instead-the-rest-of-gen-z-might-not-be-far-behind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/he-wanted-a-meet-cute-story-but-met-a-matchmaker-instead-the-rest-of-gen-z-might-not-be-far-behind\/","title":{"rendered":"He wanted a &#8220;meet-cute&#8221; story but met a matchmaker instead. The rest of Gen Z might not be far behind."},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p>New Yorker Shardil Ahmad always imagined meeting his future girlfriend at a coffee shop: he&#8217;d spot her thumbing through a book, curiously approach and they&#8217;d fall into easy conversation.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I very much describe myself as a romantic guy\u2014 I&#8217;m big into &#8216;meet-cutes&#8217; and stuff like that,&#8221; said Ahmad, 28, recalling a time he met a woman on the subway.<\/p>\n<p>So when his mom suggested a matchmaker,\u00a0 the first-year medical resident was skeptical.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I wanted to be the one to discover this person,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>But after a few months, Ahmad, with little time to spare outside the hospital after working six-day weeks, decided to sign up. \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He joins a growing number of Gen Z singles seeking alternatives to algorithms amid <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/health\/dating\/dating-app-fatigue\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">reports<\/a> of widespread dating app fatigue and declining user numbers. For some young people looking to foster connection in real life (IRL), matchmakers make sense.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;m just letting someone take the wheel,&#8221; Ahmad said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"embed embed--type-image is-image embed--float-none embed--size-medium\">\n<p>      <span class=\"img embed__content\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/02\/13\/67386ee8-caab-4dd2-90ed-ca3db2fb19c6\/thumbnail\/620x772\/44b076ebce779841a27423e7eeb62889\/img-3196.jpg#\" alt=\"img-3196.jpg \" height=\"772\" width=\"620\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/02\/13\/67386ee8-caab-4dd2-90ed-ca3db2fb19c6\/thumbnail\/620x772\/44b076ebce779841a27423e7eeb62889\/img-3196.jpg 1x, https:\/\/assets3.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/02\/13\/67386ee8-caab-4dd2-90ed-ca3db2fb19c6\/thumbnail\/1240x1544\/1915014a3f31e4668266c52842a1ba53\/img-3196.jpg 2x\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/span><figcaption class=\"embed__caption-container\">\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__caption\">New Yorker Shardil Ahmad turned to a matchmaker to look for love.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__credit\"><\/p>\n<p>                CBS News<\/p>\n<p>                          <\/span><br \/>\n              <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>After the swipe surge, interest in dating apps drops\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>During the COVID-19 pandemic, dating apps saw record highs; Tinder recorded 3 billion swipes in a single day.\u00a0 Match Group, the parent company of dating apps like Tinder and Hinge, reported a surge in subscribers from the previous year.<\/p>\n<p>Six years later, some disenchanted daters are <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/singles-run-clubs-ditching-dating-apps\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">logging off<\/a><\/span>. Match Group recently reported a 5% decline in paying subscribers from the same period last year, as Gen Z embraces in-person opportunities they missed out on during the pandemic.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p><strong><em>The Free Press<\/em><\/strong><em>:\u00a0<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thefp.com\/p\/tough-love-do-i-like-being-single\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Tough Love: Do I Like Being Single Too Much to Fall in Love?<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p>Maria Avgitidis, the founder of matchmaking agency Agape Match and a fourth-generation matchmaker, says she&#8217;s seen a rise in outreach from young singles. Matchmakers from across the country told CBS News they&#8217;re seeing an uptick in younger clients craving in-person connection and moving away from dating apps.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Many of them graduated high school or college via Zoom, so they really do want that intentionality of in real-life experiences,&#8221; Avgitidis said.<\/p>\n<p>Even though Gen Z is delaying marriage and parenthood, the majority eventually want those things, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pewresearch.org\/short-reads\/2024\/02\/15\/among-young-adults-without-children-men-are-more-likely-than-women-to-say-they-want-to-be-parents-someday\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">latest available data <\/a>from the Pew Research Center. Nearly 70% of adults ages 18 to 34, who have never been married, say they want to get married one day, with men and women equally likely to say they&#8217;d like to get married.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;If you&#8217;re not dating for marriage, what are you dating for?&#8221; Ahmad said.<\/p>\n<p>Over the last decade or so, Avgitidis said she&#8217;s seen people burned out by online dating and seeking things a profile alone can&#8217;t reveal.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The language dramatically shifted about why someone was using us,&#8221; she said, noting that things like values and politics don&#8217;t always come across in a dating app profile. She noted that Gen Zers especially tend to consider things like lifestyle, hobbies and having a life plan.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;They really appreciate and value authenticity,&#8221; she said. &#8220;It&#8217;s not so much about fitting into a certain aesthetic.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2>Matchmaking is trending\u2014 but love isn&#8217;t cheap<\/h2>\n<p>A rising interest in matchmaking has been reflected in popular culture, from reality shows such as &#8220;Indian Matchmaking,&#8221; which has since expanded into &#8220;Jewish Matchmaking&#8221; and &#8220;Muslim Matchmaker,&#8221; to movies such as &#8220;Materialists&#8221; starring actress Dakota Johnson as a jaded Manhattan matchmaker, Lucy.<\/p>\n<p>Matchmaking services can cost anywhere from a few thousand to a hundred thousand dollars, depending on what&#8217;s included. Some high-end matchmaking firms charge $15,000 to $25,000 for curated matches. Avgitidis said that at Agape, services can range from $30,000 to $100,000.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Working with a matchmaker is a multi-step process, usually involving an in-depth initial survey, a screening interview, and a consultation before a match is made, experts said. Matchmakers create detailed profiles of their clients and prospective matches, including information about their dealbreakers and preferences and religious and political ideologies.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>For Ahmad, the financial aspect contributed to his initial hesitation about seeking out matchmaking services.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;How am I gonna spend this much on love?&#8221; he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But vetted matches and intentional dates ultimately felt like a time saver for Ahmad, who said he recognizes that the services may be inaccessible for some people his age.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I would recommend anyone to do this if they had the time and financial capabilities to do so,&#8221; he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Members of Gen Z seeking the matchmaking experience, but feeling daunted by the price, still have options within the matchmaking world. Some matchmaking agencies have free databases, where you can submit a profile to be considered as a potential match for a paying client. Agencies also offer packages which can include individual coaching sessions, dating app profile feedback and dating support communities.<\/p>\n<p>When in doubt, Avgitidis reminds daters that good old-fashioned meddling from family and friends is always an option. After all, dating used to be a collective experience, Avgitidis said, with friends and family members involved.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;One day, we all just started swiping alone on the couch,&#8221; Avgitidis said.<strong> <\/strong>&#8220;We are not meant to date alone.&#8221;<\/p>\n<section class=\"content__body--footer\">\n<\/section>\n<p>  <!-- data-recirc-source=\"queryly\" --><\/p>\n<aside class=\"component list recirculation component--type-recirculation  \">\n<p><h3 class=\"component__title\">More from CBS News<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"component__item-recirc-block\">\n<p><h3 class=\"component__title\">Go deeper with The Free Press<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<section class=\"content__body--footer\">\n      <!-- tags --><\/p>\n<section class=\"content__tags\">\n<p class=\"content__tags__label\">In:<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/section><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/matchmakers-genz-young-love-valentines-day\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>New Yorker Shardil Ahmad always imagined meeting his future girlfriend at a coffee shop: he&#8217;d spot her thumbing through a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":65424,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[8659],"class_list":["post-65423","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-top-stories","tag-valentine039s-day"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>He wanted a &quot;meet-cute&quot; story but met a matchmaker instead. 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