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We’re obviously champions of ‘keeping it local’ at Kentishtowner, and that includes finding a partner. Nobody wants to commute to a date, no matter how dishy their new belle or beau.
Happn is a clever twist on mobile matchmaking, using your real-world actions to connect you with that pretty passer-by. Here are five ways – and places – it might work for you…
1. Keep it hyper local
Lots of dating apps are based around a user’s rough location, but Happn takes this to an accuracy of 250m, so you’re presented with people who are not only nearby, but have recently been to the very same places and done the same things. The app even reveals how many times you’ve cross paths with a particular person, making introductions to illegible neighbours you never knew you had.
Suggested hangout: Bull & Gate – this pub is so cavernous and varied, with areas for posh dining, late-night cocktails or a simple pre-Forum gig pint, that a huge variety of people pass through all day.
2. Spend time in the real world
Unlike the famously addictive and ultimately unsatisfying swiping of other apps, Happn takes your quest for a date firmly away from the screen and back into real life. By your choices of places to go, new matches are made – kinda like how it used to work in the days before the tech became more important than living in the moment.
Suggested hangout: The Fields Beneath café – Kentish Town West’s famous little coffee shop has gone 100% vegan, so if you’re looking for someone with ethical priorities (or to spark up a lively conversation topic), you know where to visit on the regular.
3. Identify like-minds
Much as your choice of local hangout can help Happn match potential partners who like the same kind of milk in their latte, the app has other tools to refine the search too, such as displaying useful (but not too personal) info straight from your Facebook profile, and allowing you to share taste in music via linking to your Spotify account.
Suggested hangout: Koko – as one of the area’s biggest music venues, there are thousands of people who love the same bands you do there on a given night. Drop by and share some tunes for a perfect ice-breaker.
4. See you there
Hit a button on the Happn app and let others know that you are up for doing something locally in the next few hours, like going for a movie, having a drink or taking a walk. If you find a match (known on the app as a crush) then a conversation can begin. Not only have you met someone nearby but they also have the same interest at the exact same time. Winning on so many levels.
Suggested hangout: Hampstead Heath – take a long stroll to the top of Parliament Hill and get to know someone without any of the formal pressure of a dinner date.
5. No regrets
Happn is on a mission to banish the old days of missed opportunities and ‘if onlys’. There’s no need to pluck up courage in an instant to pass someone your number, or fluff a promising conversation when you’re in a rush. And when venturing further afield than the neighbourhood, you’re still covered, as 28 million users in over 40 key cities globally have downloaded the app.
Suggested hangout: Zabludowicz Collection – where better than to make a moment’s flirty eye contact that over a work of art? Who knows what might Happn…
