The opportunity is after the introduction.
My thesis: discovery is abundant. Turning a shared interest into a familiar face is the harder workflow—and the one Circles is built around.
Not another event feed.
A path to belonging.
The initial focus is adults in NYC who want more everyday connection: a new chapter, a weekday crew, or people to share an existing interest with.
Events are a context. Communities are places to belong. Circles are the people who become familiar. The product connects these rather than treating each encounter as a fresh start.
My strategic interpretation of product approaches, not a measured competitor ranking. Circles’ position is an ambition—not proven superiority.
Take the workflow off-screen.
The separate Delhi experience applied the product idea to a hosted event: applications, confirmed guests, table assignments, commonalities, question rounds and mutual reconnect.
A paid experience can test the willingness to join a curated group and the operational work needed to deliver it.
NYC app retention, repeat purchase, scalable acquisition, network effects or product–market fit.
The reconciled totals — 89 applications, 25 paying guests — are shown in the commercial proof above; attendance isn't counted separately. Image is illustrative.
Start locally
One neighborhood or repeatable format. Community and venue partnerships are a distribution hypothesis—not a claimed acquisition engine.
Earn the ticket
Paid curated experiences test willingness to pay. Pricing must cover acquisition, hosting and the experience itself.
Earn the return
Repeat formats or membership are future hypotheses. Test a second purchase before claiming recurring revenue.
The success metric I would prioritizeActual repeat connection—not more swipes, longer sessions, or a crowded event.
Proposed measurement direction