Preferred Match Offers Luxury Matchmaking For Elite Singles in Toronto and Beyond

The Short Version: Preferred Match is a luxury matchmaking service based in Toronto that serves clients across North America. Christina Jay founded the hybrid coaching and matchmaking service to provide affluent, accomplished, and single business executives, CEOs, and high-level professionals with stellar introductions. Keeping true to its status as a matchmaking service for the elite, Preferred Match keeps a client network of only the most elite, and commitment-minded singles.

It’s surprising CEOs have time to do anything at all, according to a Harvard Business School study that tracked the daily routines of 27 CEOs. The study followed chief executives participating in the New CEO Workshop at Harvard Business School. The CEOs were the leaders of large companies, and they all agreed on one thing – time management was no easy task.

The study was first published in 2018 and represents data and insights from over 60,000 hours of the daily routines of surveyed CEOs. The average workday for CEOs in the study was 9.7 hours during the week, and CEOs reported working an average of 3.9 hours on the weekend. On average, CEOs spent 62.5 hours a week working. And there’s only 168 hours in a week.

CEOs and other executives lead busy lives that require them to outsource many of their personal needs. Whether it’s childcare, grocery shopping, or laundry, successful business executives and professionals leave many aspects of their daily lives to others. In a life as busy as a CEO’s, it can be hard to find time to date in a meaningful way.

That’s where matchmakers come in. Busy high-net-worth professionals, entrepreneurs, and CEOs need a matchmaker who understands their busy lifestyle and what they’re looking for in a match. Out of all the different kinds of professionals busy executives hire to help them manage their busy lives, matchmakers are among the most important. After all, they are in charge of finding the love of their life.

Preferred Match is a bespoke International matchmaking service that’s ideal for accomplished singles who have decided to try matchmaking. Christina Jay is the founder and matchmaker at Preferred Match, and she talked to us about her matchmaking practice, the typical Preferred Match client, and why matchmaking is a great option for singles tired of online dating.

“Each year since I’ve started, Preferred Match has grown exponentially,” Christina said. “I’m boutique, which means I don’t work with just anybody. I think that’s what differentiates me from the rest because a lot of companies will take on any client who’s willing to pay them. But I’m particular because my clientele are particular.”

Before Christina was matching North America’s most eligible singles, she was their life coach. “Prior to matchmaking, I was coaching executives, CEOs, and whatnot. I found that their biggest issue was not so much business, but personal. Personal relationships were what they really needed in their lives. They didn’t have anyone to rely on– they were lonely.”

Research has shown that loneliness is bad for overall health, and it can even be deadly. A meta-analysis of 90 studies that examined the link between loneliness and early death among more than 2 million adults reported that people who experience social isolation had a 32% higher risk of dying early. Christina said many of her coaching clients were flourishing in all areas of their lives but romance.

“They’re at the top of their game, but they’re surprisingly single and just don’t know where to look,” Christina said. “Most of them didn’t want to go on apps for a variety of professional reasons, and after coaching so many of these CEOs, a light bulb went off. I decided to expand to matchmaking.”

Christina founded Preferred Match in 2017 to offer affluent clients personalized coaching and matchmaking services they could trust. “Everybody’s always looking for something different because everyone’s unique,” Christina said. “My clients are perfectionists; they’re venture capitalists, hedge fund managers, super type-A personalities who are serious about their careers.”

Much like the average CEO in Harvard’s study, the typical Preferred Match client doesn’t have much time outside of their jobs. “The time my clients do allocate to personal things, they don’t want to waste it looking for and arranging a date,” Christina said. “Every individual is different, but most of my clients are high achievers who love to travel and are looking for something serious and long-term.”

Preferred Match accepts both men and women as clients, but Christina said the key to maintaining consistent great introductions is to have a balanced client base. “I have so many women in my database because the introductions database is mostly women, so I can’t take on too many women as clients,” Christina said. “I am very particular with who I take on as women.”

Besides being crunched for time, busy executives choose a matchmaking service like Preferred Match because of the confidentiality it offers them. People with high-profile careers in public-oriented positions often avoid sharing private information online and don’t want their photos, names, and details floating around dating apps.

“People turn to matchmaking when online dating isn’t an option,” Christina said. “They have a public career, and they don’t want to run into their clients and have their profiles out there for everybody to see. Matchmaking is a far more private option.”

Christina said she takes a hands-on approach with each of her clients and tailors her tactics according to their needs and desires. Not only can she work with busy schedules and detail-oriented personalities – that’s what she’s best at. Clients choose Preferred Match for Christina’s experience, and success, with people just like them.

“It’s just me doing the matchmaking, and it’s such a personal business,” Christina said. “That’s part of the reason I’m so particular with who I take on as clients. I collaborate with other matchmakers, which is great, but I get to know each of my clients in great detail so I can make them amazing matches.”

“While matchmaking does take up most of my time, I offer my clients coaching services when needed,” Christina said. “I offer coaching mainly to those who are struggling with feeling like they aren’t getting what they want out of dating or aren’t sure about some aspect of their personal lives. They just need someone to talk to and give them trustworthy, tangible advice.”

Christina urged singles interested in matchmaking to research different matchmakers before making a decision. “When you look at companies, see if there’s high turnover with the matchmakers,” Christina advised. “You want a person who’s going to get to know you and stay for the long haul. Do the research to figure out if a company is a good fit for you.”

With so many matchmaking services out there, Christina said the bottom line for choosing a great matchmaker is finding someone who has your best interests in mind. “Look for a matchmaker that’s hands-on and passionate about what they’re doing. They should be doing it for awhile as it takes years to build a solid database.”

Once a client is accepted by Preferred Match, Christina becomes their resource for everything romance. “I’m with the client every step of the way, such as the intake session and the actual matchmaking process. A lot of other matchmaking companies just shuffle your profile around from employee to employee that don’t really get to know you, you don’t get a personalized experience as there is a high turn over rate with most matchmaking companies. They don’t have skin in the game as they aren’t an owner. Whereas this is my baby, it’s my business so I care. When I say bespoke and hands-on, I mean it.”