A Galway based company is gearing up to launch a dating app for unvaccinated individuals next month.
The app will provide a platform for those who hold similar views on a sensitive topic. The app’s arrival in Ireland follows other ventures around the world, including in Switzerland, Hawaii and the USA.
Unveed.com is the brainchild of an Irish-Canadian couple who have already established a successful social group in Toronto.
The couple and their two children are in the process of moving to the west of Ireland and held their first meet up for the unvaccinated in Galway this week.
“Unveed.com was started to bring those of us together that value and still cherish our individual medical choices and freedoms. We have developed a platform where we can communicate, meet and socialise. Let’s get stronger together,” the website states.
Co-founder Rick, who does not want his surname published, said social meet ups are just as important as the forthcoming app.
“The website is up and we are doing some testing on the app to get it to work how we want it to. In the meantime, because the dating app is sort of self sufficient, we still believe and encourage people to meet in person because personal contact is what we missed in the last two years,” he said.
“We encourage social gatherings, because sometimes you don’t get the feel of someone on a profile but going out and having a few drinks together as part of a group or over dinner, being in that environment, it’s easier to converse,” he said.
The size of the target audience is difficult to gauge as it’s not known how many people in Ireland are unvaccinated. The topic however, is definitely an issue, Rick says.
“We believe Ireland has one of the highest vaccination rates in all of Europe, at around 95%. That would translate to between 300,000 and 500,000 that aren’t vaccinated. My daughter is online dating and the biggest question she always has on a date is are you unvaccinated because there’s so many people out there that haven’t said anything. So we believe it’s actually higher than that,” he said.
The couple initially started social meet ups for the unvaccinated in their former home city of Toronto, Canada.
The group in Canada had more than one hundred members at it’s peak. Numbers began to fall back once restrictions began to lift.
“We now have a core group of around 70 and we stay in touch regularly. We will have a zoom conference with them next week. Here in Galway, we have only just started the group this month and currently we have 12 members,” Rick said.
The group had their first meet up during the week and plan to organise regular outings, such as hikes, gigs and dining out.
The age demographic currently is from mid twenties to mid fifties with a female to male ratio of three to one
“The social night is for making friends and for romance, it’s both. It’s all about making connections,” Rick said.
You can read more about a couple’s search for like-minded love on Louise Rosingrave’s substack.