Anuradha Gupta, Founder and CEO of Vows for Eternity, has matched hundreds of successful couples around India and the world and takes her role as matchmaker very seriously.
The search for the right life partner is never an easy one to undertake. Whether one seeks love or hands the reigns to family members to make the choice, the entire process can be quite nerve-wracking. Fortunately, there are experts to make this journey smooth and simple. Anuradha Gupta, Founder and CEO of Vows for Eternity, has matched hundreds of successful couples around India and the world and takes her role as matchmaker very seriously. She joins Sunday Guardian for a chat about her business. Excerpts from an edited interview:
Q. How did you make a foray into this industry?
A. I launched Vows for Eternity, a global matchmaking service, 10 years ago. After graduating with majors in Psychology and Economics, I did my MBA from Melbourne Business School. My career has led me across the world in a variety of leadership roles including being a key person in the strategy team at Arsenal Football Club. Over the last 20 years, I have lived in Melbourne, London, Los Angeles, New York, and New Delhi, which has given me a global perspective. My work follows my personality – an innate ability to connect with people and infuse my positive approach to living life. My diverse background uniquely equips me in understanding different personalities – a skill that is critical in finding the right partner. I also feel very strongly about wanting to make a difference and giving back to society. I am an angel investor in a few companies including The Woman’s Company, a venture that produces biodegradable sanitary products for the eco-conscious consumer who wants to leave a better planet for generations to come. I am also the Chairperson and Main Trustee of the Armaan Gauri Foundation which has impacted many lives of under-privileged children in India.
Around 10 years ago, when I was looking for a partner, families sent me the resumes or biodatas of their sons with job profiles and cultural beliefs, and I could not identify with any of it. These sheets of paper told me nothing about the person being suggested for me, and what made them who they were. I wanted someone to be able to tell me I would at least share similar values with the person, that their backgrounds were similar to mine, that we had similar educational qualifications, that our ambitions would complement each other’s. None of that happened. And that’s how Vows for Eternity was born. Today, the service attracts progressive, well-educated individuals looking for a life partner. We expand the network for them, globally, so they can find trust, compatibility, and true love.
We have global presence, and my team is available to meet potential clients in New York, Toronto, London, Mumbai, and New Delhi. We continue to travel to cities in the Middle East and through India, hand-holding members as required through what is a very personalised matchmaking process.
Q. What sets you apart from others in this field?
A. I like to think of our brand as a boutique search firm. It is a confidential and bespoke service which brings a global network of progressive, well-educated, driven individuals who are ready to share their lives with the one. They are looking for their match not because they are incomplete but because life is so much more beautiful when shared with the right person.
Our getting to know you process is very interactive, starting with multiple direct conversations. Our team is global and one that our clients find very easy to relate to and confide in. And of course, integrity is the foundation on which our service rests and perhaps that is one of the reasons for our members recommending us even in instances when they might not have found their life partner through us.
Q. What are young men and women looking for in a life partner these days?
A. To begin with, the mental space one is in while dating and when looking to get married are very different and therefore, what one is looking for can be very different too. A lot of times, people are dating but not ready for marriage and once they are ready for that commitment then their search is really driven by a multitude of things. Thats when it gets complex as its about the coming together of the head and the heart. Both play a role when one is choosing a life partner: there is a practicality that it entails but the magic happens when it’s interwoven with love.
Q. How does your service work?
A. We have a strong eligibility criterion for membership which includes a host of tangibles and intangibles like education, family background and mindset. Our team is global and very relatable to our members. We have three tiers of membership, and I am actively involved in the top tier where I am the personal matchmaker and hand hold the member through their search. This tier of membership generally includes people from business families, and celebrities.
My extremely competent and personable team works very closely with the members in our other two tiers of membership. Each tier of membership starts with a face-to-face meeting or a video call which can last a few hours, with a focus on understanding the journey of our members and their backgrounds and then connecting them with other members.
Marriage should be a bond between equals and respect, love, integrity, and friendship need to be the glue that not only bring people together but keep two people together. That said, marriage may not be for everyone, I firmly believe that. It does not define you or make you who you are, but for those that want it, it can be very special. Vows for Eternity is for those that want this special person in their lives and need help finding them. It is one of the most gratifying feelings when I can help or facilitate making this journey possible or easier for my members.
Q. How did the pandemic affect your business?
A. Covid has touched almost every facet of one’s life. As a company we have had to pivot, and it has brought the most significant transformation ever since we launched a decade ago. At the moment, we are working on expanding our global reach both in terms of new markets, particularly in the UK, and deeper reach in our existing markets, essentially India and the US. We are also going to be reaching out to non-Indians as they are seeing the progressive nature of our search and how that is so organically interwoven with connecting two like-minded individuals on things that matter the most.
The interviewer pens lifestyle articles for various publications and her blog www.nooranandchawla.com. She can be reached on nooranand@gmail.com.