{{multiple issues|cleanup=October 2009|notability=October 2009|primarysources=October 2009}} CitySocialising.com (also called Citysocialising) is an online subscription-based social networking portal that focuses on members meeting up offline to share interests and socialise together with likeminded people in the real world.
CitySocialising organises social events such as after-work drinks, meals at a local restaurant, nights out clubbing, days at the park, walk tours, book clubs, trips[1] or afternoons playing sports. These events take place in nineteen cities across the UK: Basingstoke, Bath, Birmingham,Brighton,Bristol, Cardiff, Coventry, Derby, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Oxford, Reading, Sheffield.
CitySocialising members are primarily young professionals, graduates, business travellers and others visiting from Europe seeking help online to organize their social lives offline.
History
editCitySocialising was founded in 2007 by its actual CEO, Sanchita Saha[2].
Sanchita Saha’s career began at BBC Radio 1, where she helped set up digital black music station 1Xtra. Later on, in 2004, she had seen how difficult it could be to move to London for work or with a partner without knowing anyone and wanted to make meeting friends in London easy for her peers and other like minded professionals.
In 2005, with help from the Prince's Trust, Sanchita[3] set up a trial website and began developing this idea. Her ambition was to create a trusted online and offline London social club for sociable, laid-back professionals through which they could connect with new local friends with shared interests in the real world.
CitySocialising officially launched the London networking site in 2007[4]. Because of the successful response to CitySocialising's approach to making friends in London, in October 2007 CitySocialising launched nationwide in seven other UK cities and today the network has extended to nineteen cities across the UK.
On July 4, 2008, Sanchita Saha was named on Management Today's list of '35 Women Under 35'.
In October, 2008, Sanchita Saha won the People's Choice title at the Girls Make Your Mark awards (in association with handbag.com).
On July 17, 2009, CitySocialising reached 50,000 members[5], becoming the UK's leading city-based events and friends network for professionals.
“To have reached 50,000 members through viral means alone is a great achievement for the network. We made a conscious decision to grow organically in our first two years and, having spent nothing on marketing to date, we’ve been able to develop an incredibly loyal user base who have been out there spreading the word about us on our behalf. Now that we’ve developed a solid core of members, we’ve launched our new platform and are now ready to start actively promoting the network.”[6]
In Feb, 2009, in the midst of the gloomy economic climate, the social network raised £260k of early stage investment from a syndicate of investors and management lead by the London Business Angels Network to complete the development of the new web platform, recruit further expertise to the management team and to initiate marketing efforts.
“The long term value of the CitySocialising proposition was underscored by the fact that we have raised this investment despite the global economic crisis. Somewhat uniquely for an internet business, we’ve been generating revenues from almost the beginning and have therefore been able to expand quickly into additional cities through organic growth. CitySocialising has proven to be an extremely valuable and relevant service to our members, which has resulted in us enjoying very high retention rates. This is firstly because of our real world, local and community focus. Secondly, we’ve identified a growing desire amongst professionals living and working in fast-paced cities with transient populations to meet others from similar socio-economic backgrounds, who share their interests and their desire to meet new people to socialise with.” [7]
In the the future, Citysocialising.com is "looking into international expansion into two countries in Europe and two outside." [8]
See also
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References
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