Posted : 21 June 2010

Husband and wife combination, Violet Lim and Jaime Lee.

Love is hard to put a price on. Yet, one couple decided to take the plunge and bank on love.

Their baby, Lunch Actually, is now six years old.

Meanwhile, her husband Jamie Lee who had quit his job a year before as an IT Analyst in a European bank, was looking around for business ideas.

Mr Lee toyed with a variety of different ideas, but none attracted Ms Lim enough to join him.

It wasn't until love struck, or at least a concept related to cupid's work.

Settling Down

The company was named Lunch Actually as the concept of lunch "struck a cord" with Ms Lim. In her mind, "lunch firstly suggests short, sweet, simple, maybe even casual, but not in a bad way, and not pressurising."

Lunch Actually which has now become the market leader in the match-making industry, was borne from a desire to help people.

"One thing that I observed when I was at the bank was that a lot of my colleagues were not dating," said Ms Lim.

Curious about the phenomenon, she began to investigate. She found that "upon further scrutiny, a lot of my colleagues were just too busy working and are married to the bank," she said.

She then realised that there was no professional dating agency which catered to the typical busy white-collared professionals who are unable to find time to meet potential soul mates.

Seeing the gaps of then popular "speed dating" agencies as well traditional matchmaking agencies, Ms Lim then decided to enter the industry to provide a service just for white-collared professionals.

"This is an industry that I was very strongly attracted too, because this was not just a business, but a business of helping people," said Ms Lim who was always actively involved in community service.

She entered a course, provided by the New York-based Match Making Institute, to arm herself with the necessary knowledge of running a modern and professional match making agency.

The course equipped her with the ability to function as a full-fledged modern matchmaker, as well as procure valuable insights and a network of veteran match-makers.

It also enabled her to be the first Asian licensed educator of the Match-Making Institute, which meant she could impart her experience and knowledge to other members of the match-making industry in South East Asia.

Definitely not one to be called Shrinking Violet, she was all ready to soar when reality threw up the first hurdle.

Selling an Idea

"When I first told people I was going to do this business, they thought that I had lost my mind! My parents were quite shocked and they tried to dissuade me to go into it full-time," said Ms Lim.

Appealing to modern executives was to be even harder since the idea of match-making has long been associated with individuals who are unattractive and un-lovable in a variety of ways.

"They just couldn't understand what we were trying to do, there was no reference point. When they think of match-makers, they just think of it in the traditional way, and they just couldn't make the connection."

"But once they understood, they became our biggest supporters," she said.

Armed with a start up capital of S$150, 000 of personal savings and loans from family and friends, the couple began building up Lunch Actually.

A large of their funds was spent on trial-and-error market research and studying what marketing and advertising methods work, and what do not.

What definitely paid off was a marketing campaign that saw Lunch Actually help Hong Kong star, Ella Koon find a compatible match which ended up being a serious relationship.

Later, Miss Malaysia World finalist Kyan May also had Lunch Actually to thank for finding her dream guy through the "My Dream Date" contest.

From Mis-Match to Great Match

The misunderstanding of the match-making industry also caused numerous problems for Lunch Actually.

While trying to secure an office space in prime locations within the CBD, landlords who found out exactly what they wanted to do, turned their tenancy application down.

I also realised after building Lunch Actually, the crazier the idea, the more you should do it!

Several popular print media also turned down their request to advertise, which Ms Lim feels is due to the fear of being associated with a less than reputable service.

They finally managed to advertise their services through an associate in TODAY newspaper.

This marked a turning point, as more people got to know the brand through the advertisements.

Soon, representatives from the local print media began asking why Lunch Actually didn't advertise with them.
Another turning point in their image problems appeared in the form of a bus stop ad campaign.

"Someone pulled at the last minute, so the agency asked if we wanted to advertise at a very good rate, which we will probably never get again," said Ms Lim

Seizing the opportunity, they used a grand total of 20 posters placed at strategic locations, and that proved one of the most effective draws.

"That gave people an idea that it is something different, because people will think 'since they are willing to dump money into outdoor campaigns, they must be a reputable company'."

"I also realised after building Lunch Actually, the crazier the idea, the more you should do it," said Ms Lim.

Growing 'The Baby'

Violet Lim, co-founder of Lunch Actually.

As the business grew, Ms Lim and her husband decided to take Lunch Actually to another level for the white-collar executives.

"When we first started this business, we were very focused. We know that we want to be a solution for single busy professionals. But as the market moves, different things might appeal to the professionals."

That realisation led to Eteract and eSynchrony, to fill in the gaps left open by Lunch Actually.

Eteract is a service that offer individuals speed dating in the comfort of their own home, and at a minimum entry cost of S$18 a month compared to Lunch Actually's S$800 starter package.

The no-fuss option gave the company the flexibility to take on clients on a different budget.

Working off Mr Lee's IT knowledge, eSynchrony is a "hybrid of both Lunch Actually and Eteract" bringing the best of online and offline dating.

"Instead of chosing a profile, (clients) actually do a very in-depth personality test, which gives them a understanding of themselves, a match would then be chosen for them," explained Ms Lim.

If both parties are agreeable, a consultant would then arrange for an in-person meeting between the two.

Today, Lunch Actually boasts of approximately 4,000 members in Singapore, and 1,000 each in Malaysia and Hong Kong.

"An interesting thing to note is that Malaysians in general tend to go on more second dates, as compared to Singaporeans and Hong Kongers. Perhaps they are not as quick to judge," observed Ms Lim on the differences between the dating culture of Singapore and other countries.

Knowing the culture was the main reason why the company made its decision to expand into Malaysia and Hong Kong.

Having had more experience dealing with a culture that is mainly Chinese, Lunch Actually is also ready to settle down, this time with an expansion into Taiwan.

As for their early investment of S$150,000, let's just say love has definitely paid off for this couple.