A professional matchmaker who claims to have set up more than 800 relationships has opened up about her work. Sarah Louise Ryan, from Prestwich, decided to become a modern-day cupid after moving to London 12 years ago.
She had been working for a marketing company when she spotted an advert for a matchmaking job online – prompting her quickly to apply for the role.
Being a “chatter box northerner”, Sarah landed the job at a dating agency in Mayfair and began matching professional singles – and she hasn’t looked back since.
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Fast-forward to her 30s, Sarah is now an international matchmaker and and couples' therapist, helping those who want to rekindle their relationships, as well as bringing strangers together.
Sarah has now revealed some of the most memorable love stories from her career – and how long it usually takes to find ‘the one’.
“I match singles far and wide,” she said. “A few years ago, I took on a client who wanted a bespoke contract due to preferences around building a family, religion, values, life goals and overall compatibility.
“He was a global traveller due to the success of his career and businesses in multiple cities and countries. He travelled all over for the dates I created for him - New York, LA, London, France, Switzerland, Germany.
“I think he met over 30 potentials before he found his forever love but when he knew, he knew. His last match - having had dates with female clients in his criteria all over the world - was just an hour away from him.
“They are now married with children, and I went to both their engagement, wedding and receive updates from them. I love how much they love each other; they are the best fit.”
Another couple, one from Manchester and another from Cambridge, knew they were perfect for each other from the very first date.
A month later, they booked holidays away with their families, tying the knot not long after. “It’s important to consider how you measure success,” She added. “I don’t measure it in marriages, I measure it in committing to a monogamous relationship for the long run, because not everyone wants marriage.
"I’ve had around 800 success stories and testimonials over the years," she said. "We’ve had eight couples since we came back from the Christmas break in the UK in Manchester, Birmingham, London and Surrey.
“I also help couples whose marriage has broken down to reconnect – they are a success story too, but I didn’t match them and would count them separately but nevertheless, a success.”
To find a client their perfect match, Sarah first holds an interview so she can find out more about their values, personality traits and compatibility. She then sets up a list of potential matches for them, with the process taking between four to six weeks.
Considerations include worldly outlook, views on relationships, level of personal development, value systems, sexual desires, lifestyle, thoughts on how a relationship should be built, location and logistics, wants around having a family and education.
Sarah and her team also look at religious similarities and levels of observance and economic circumstances.
“We tailor our searches to the person and their wants, needs and desires as no two people or their searches are ever exactly the same,” Sarah added. “
All of our work is human led, there is no algorithm. It’s a lot of matchmaking meetings, coffees and zooms with our matchmaking clients and gathering information in the consultation phase, suitability profiling... as well as gaining a deeper understanding of each individual along the way.”
Clients are connected with a potential match every six weeks. On average, clients find a partner between months seven and eight of their membership, Sarah says.
“In that time we are also creating a profile and compatibility synopsis behind the scenes," she continued.
“They are welcome to have a coaching session, photoshoot or go to an event or educational workshop in those weeks to prep them for a positive dating journey.
“We connect our clients one at a time and on average its one introduction every six weeks as the singles in our community are always connecting with more than one date and seeing how the chemistry and connection unfolds.
“Also, on average, we find our clients a partner between months seven and eight of their membership as we also rely on their feedback from conversations, connections and dates to get to know them better.
“That being said, many find connection much sooner.”
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