Ethical Dating Agency: A Sustainable Small Business Opportunity

From time to time, friends and acquaintances are kind enough to let me know of sustainable business opportunities. If you’re on the lookout for the chance to become self-employed, doing something ethical and authentic to what you believe in, then here’s a great little  business venture that’s become available.

Natural- Friends, the original, ethical dating agency, is for sale. James and Barbara Bradshaw, the founders, wish to retire because James has been unlucky enough to have some severe health challenges. I have known this lovely, while, since meeting my partner, Steve, on their website 4 years ago. Their ideals are apparent in their business and, when you consider that they began Natural -Friends as long ago as 1985, we can consider them pioneers in modern day sustainable, small business in the UK. They definitely walk their talk!

I thought it might be interesting to interview them for the blog, to offer you an insight into the background of entrepreneur couples such as James and Barbara. So, I was cheeky enough to ask them a few personal questions about their relationship and their business. With their usual good humour, here are their replies:

When and how did you meet each other?

We met in 1972. In that year an independent girls’ school in Bury St Edmunds was amalgamated with the boys’ school located a few miles north of the town. Barbara held the post of head of biology at the newly formed school and James had been successful in being selected as her assistant in the department.

James had arranged to visit his new school in the early summer of 1972 in order to familiarize himself with the staff and, especially, to meet his new head of department, Barbara. His first words are forever etched in his memory.

“Hello.  You must be Barbara!”. Hardly the stuff of great literature, but James’ cheerful greeting quickly put Barbara at ease.

Later in the summer, before the autumn term began, we underwent a baptism of fire as we organized equipment, cleared out decades of accumulated rubbish and devised workplans.

Working so closely together when the school term started, it soon became apparent that this was more than a professional relationship.  Shared half days and weekends were occupied with explorations of the local countryside, brass rubbing in medieval churches, hesitant horse riding and theatre-going.  Parents were introduced and, by Christmas, it was clear to us both that we had fallen in love.

As soon as the summer term had ended, just a year after our first encounter, we were married – what would now be called an eco-wedding, in the beautiful grounds of the school.  Thirty-seven years on, the two are still as one.

Barbara, what is James’ most endearing quality, in your opinion?

These sorts of questions are always very difficult to answer.  James has so many qualities.  Perhaps top of the list is his abiding good sense of humour.  It’s not non-stop slapstick kind of humour; more an ability to see the funny side of life.  It’s astonishing, really, bearing in mind the fact that, for the last seven years, his life has been blighted by loss of sight and a cascade of medical problems that all stem from a brain tumour in 2003.  How he manages to stay cheerful in adversity I will never know.

James, what is Barbara’s most endearing quality, in your opinion?

Again, Barbara has so many qualities that it is really tough to isolate one in particular.  Loyalty and genuine kindness stand out.  All couples have their ups and downs.  It can be so easy to simply walk away when problems arise.  Whatever life has thrown at us, I know that Barbara can be relied on to help in their resolution.

What was it that prompted you to form a dating agency?

In 1976 our first daughter was born, closely followed in 1977 by our second daughter.  Barbara had stopped teaching a few months before daughter number one was born and, frankly, decided to become a full time Mum after number two arrived on the scene.  James became the bread winner, remaining as a biology teacher until 1994.  In the early 1980s the BBC Microcomputer was launched and James eagerly acquired one.  Two things then conspired to change the course of history.

Life as a stay-at-home mother was beginning to lose its appeal somewhat.  Barbara began to think of ways of both keeping her mind active and of also earning money to help the family budget.  We think that you can blame a television programme for generating the idea of starting a dating agency.  But, not just any old dating agency!  The ideas of the green movement were just becoming more widely known.  So, we launched Natural-Friends.  It was probably the very first agency of its type.  Members soon joined in their hundreds, making contacts by using the bimonthly magazine that contained descriptive profiles. We had struck ‘green gold’.  Twenty five years on, we are still here, albeit in an online form.

What have been the greatest benefits to you, personally, from running Natural-Friends?

Over the years we have dealt with tens of thousands of members.  It is a proclaimed truth that we cannot guarantee the perfect match for everyone.  However, we continue to receive messages from those who have found the love of their lives with help from Natural-Friends.  This is definitely one of the best reasons for operating a dating agency.  There are many millions of single folk who seek the services of agencies.  The fact that Natural-Friends focuses its attention on those sharing our principles and range of interests means that it can be an easier route to happiness. Even if the ideal partners may not be found, Natural-Friends is a marvellous way of making friends of either sex.  For those with low self-esteem, this can prove to be a route to personal happiness and heightened confidence.  Very satisfying.

What is the most important piece of relationship advice you would like to pass on to your clients, past and present?

We always recommend that members make contact with as many like-minded fellow members as possible, within reason.  Making friends first and foremost is very important.  From such friendships it might be possible to identify those with whom you would like to formulate a closer, special relationship.  This all takes time and patience.  Be prepared for disappointments.  Not everyone is precisely how they might have described themselves.

Safety is a factor that we do emphasise.  However, with the application of care and common sense, it really is possible to find kindred spirits.

James and Barbara very much hope that Natural-Friends is bought by someone who will perpetuate the ethos and principles of the service.

If you think you might be interested, you may view the basic details of the sale by clicking the following link:

http://uk.businessesforsale.com/uk/Online-Ethical-Dating-Agency-10-Plus-Years-History-For-Sale.aspx

And you may request a detailed business plan by contacting their broker, Chris Wilson, via that web link.  Alternatively, you may get in touch with James and Barbara at info@natural-friends.co.uk  adding ‘Business For Sale’ in the subject line. The website is at:

http://www.natural-friends.com