There’s a professional matchmaker living in Santa Fe, New Mexico?
Yep, legendary, world-class personal matchmaker Julie Ferman proudly calls Santa Fe her home. She launched her Los Angeles Matchmaking agency in 2001 with a ground-breaking service model, providing personal introductions, singles events, dating classes, and experiential dating workshops to professional, growth-oriented single men and single women. She and her husband, Gil Ferman, purchased a home in Las Campanas in 2016, where she hangs her hat and offices full-time. From her Santa Fe desk, Julie hosts the Cupid’s Coach Podcast and leads her 30-Day Virtual Boot Camp courses. The location for Julie’s annual end-of-summer dating retreat for Boot Camp graduates is also Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Santa Fe Dating – what’s that like?
“Dating in Santa Fe is surprisingly delightful,” says Julie Ferman. “At first, I was silly enough to believe the word on the street. You’ve heard the rumor – that Santa Fe is a lousy place for dating. Not true, I’ve discovered. I find that kind of disinformation is often being spread by whiners and complainers – by the type of negative, unappealing folks that no one WANTS to date. The false narrative is spread by the single men and single women who have given up on themselves, who’ve abandoned dating, or who are unaware of or too discouraged with dating (or too lazy) to take advantage of the beautiful dating resources we have for local single professionals right here in New Mexico’s thoroughly unique, magical state capitol city.
Dating in Albuquerque
what’s happening for single men and women in ABQ and Rio Rancho? What about dating in Bernalillo, or maybe you’re single in Placitas, NM? Julie’s database of eligible, relationship-oriented singles extends throughout New Mexico. Albuquerque is New Mexico’s largest city, and according to CensusReporter.org, only 41% of Albuquerque’s population is married. A whopper 59% of Albuquerque’s adult population is Divorced, Widowed, or Never Married. “Our first singles event in Albuquerque was held just before Valentine’s Day, 2020. It was one of our legendary FlirtFest parties hosted at Marble Heights Brewery, and Julie Ferman’s Keynote Address at the EXHIB-IT Business and Consumer Expo in 2022 was greeted with standing-room-only attendance. The topic? The Art of Social Magnetism, Ferman’s specialty.
Dating in Los Alamos? What if I’m single in Taos? Julie serves relationship-oriented single professionals throughout New Mexico.
Free Singles Events in Santa Fe?
Yep, Julie Ferman typically hosts dating workshops and seminars for single men and women at no charge, and she always provides a professional photographer to offer free dating photos, for use anywhere. WHY does Julie Ferman give SO much away for free? “Having found my husband through a proactive love search of my own, it’s a natural payback for me to serve men and women who are single today and who’d much rather be in love. Building a community through producing events makes dating more dignified, more fruitful, and a whole lot more fun. When love sparks at one of my dating events, and neither one had to hire me? Fine with me – their referrals are gold. It’s my joy and honor to provide personal introduction opportunities through professional matchmaking and high-quality, experiential dating events. It’s my life’s overarching purpose.”
How is Santa Fe Matchmaking different from other matchmakers and dating agencies?
“Honestly, I have a love-hate relationship with the ‘dating industry’ – mostly disdain these days, as it’s crystal clear to anyone who does even a teeny bit of research into matchmaking that it’s … all about … the money. It makes me nuts. As a woman who WAS the single girl, sincerely seeking life-long love, bewildered and frustrated with the dating process, I know exactly what it feels like to be single, sometimes painfully lonely, and looking for help. Matchmakers and dating agencies are preying on high-net-worth men specifically. They no longer take on female clients, as they find us to be too difficult to please, and when it doesn’t go well, we girls are more likely to be the matchmaker’s nightmare client. We’re more likely than a man is to write a nasty review or gasp – demand a refund. So, through these 34 years in the matchmaker’s chair, I’ve watched matchmaker after matchmaker close their doors to female clients altogether. They’re predatory, hiring recruiters to scour dating websites, singles events, business mixers and bars at high-end restaurants and hotels to target and lure in youthful, highly attractive women, to meet their wealthy male clients. To me, it’s disgusting, and it’s sad. My response is to bounce out of bed super early every morning to do my part to bring more love to our chaotic, overly commercialized world. I guess I’ve become the Robin Hood of the dating industry. The light’s just right for this kind of magic-making, right here in Santa Fe, New Mexico.”
“There are plenty of dating agencies, corporate owned, typically blind-date matchmaking companies. The client is set up on a series of blind dates, with no say in who’s next on their dance card. It’s a crap shoot, most of the time. Demographics are always a troublesome issue for a dating agency, as who’s in demand? Attractive younger women and professional men, especially older men with financial resources – Being so seriously in demand, there’s no reason for these two groups to seek out the assistance of a matchmaker; they have plenty of options, so the agency has a serious imbalance in both the younger and the older demographics. But dating agencies sell memberships anyway, as they have rent to pay for their fancy offices. What are the clients paying for? Marketing, telemarketing and sales people. All those slick ads you see online and in airline magazines. Ads that are expertly designed to attract more high-net-worth men and to keep the guys’ dance cards flush. These high priced dating agencies recruit and enroll attractive women for free or at a much lower price point. It’s as bad as you fear it is. Seriously, it’s sinister. So I go beyond the call of duty to serve single men and women of all ages. I advocate for the consumer, the would-be clients, who are the unsuspecting, vulnerable single people in the dating arena.”
What are Mitzvah Matches?
“Over half of the introductions I orchestrate through Santa Fe Matchmaking are free. I don’t want personal matchmaking services to be provided only to high-net-worth single professionals who purchase overpriced dating service memberships. I’m dedicated especially to people who are growth-oriented, curious enough, and courageous enough to look for and find their blind spots. While not under contract, and without making promises, I love providing personal introductions for those who meet with me for a one-on-one Zoom Consultation and for graduates of my virtual Boot Camps. They’ve not hired me to be their personal matchmaker, and yet I love providing personal introductions for them whenever I see an opportunity. First, I get His Yes for the introduction, and then I get Her Yes, and then… I put them in contact with each other so they can be in touch directly to set that all-important first date. It works like magic.”
Who are Julie Ferman’s Matchmaking Clients?
Never more than ten at a time, typically balanced between men and women, in both of her hubs, Los Angeles and Santa Fe. She’ll agree to take on a client only after doing a $295 Zoom Consultation together, during which she takes the prospective client on a tour behind her matchmaker’s curtain to preview potential candidates. If the client is delightfully impressed with the quality and quantity of the “inventory” and if Julie feels like she’s a good match for the client, then she’ll extend an invitation to become her personal matchmaking client, which is a $10,000 investment, strictly by invitation. Hiring the matchmaker has to be a manageable financial investment for the client; otherwise, Ferman won’t encourage taking that step. She knows too much. She can’t promise a relationship or marriage, and she’s upfront, honest and fully transparent about the risk that it is to sign on with a matchmaker. After all, It takes two to tango … and we can’t manufacture mutual attraction, chemistry, and compatibility.
Still, as challenging as it is to do Cupid’s work, Julie Ferman loves being a dating coach and a matchmaker. Who tends to succeed? “People who are growers,” Ferman says. “Year after year, I see that the men and women who waltz off into the sunset together are the type who are courageous enough to look for and to find their blind spots. Those who have success in matchmaking are happy already. They tend to see the good in others and are positive by nature vs. negative and critical. They see more green flags than red flags in others. When they have the chance to meet someone new who’s been referred as a candidate for dating, they are appreciative and optimistic, rather than suspicious and critical; they look for what’s right, and they tend to see the donut, not the hole. These are My People.”
Are there other dating agencies in Santa Fe?
Nope. There are agencies that claim to serve Santa Fe, but Julie Ferman is Santa Fe’s only real, live, locally-based personal matchmaker. Who makes the matches? Who’s the actual matchmaker? Not an off-site stranger who’s never met either party – Julie personally selects the candidates, as she knows each of them. Anyone who misbehaves? They’re OUT. Ghosting, flaking, and discourteous behavior are not tolerated. Julie’s got a big boot and uses it when she needs to, ensuring that her dating community is the oasis in the desert that dating is in our complex culture. “Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Los Alamos, Taos – single people in each of these locales have welcomed me with open arms and appreciation. While today’s big-city professional matchmakers and dating agencies focus entirely on wealthy single men and highly attractive single women, Julie Ferman’s front doors are open. Whether you spend money with her or not, if you’re growth-oriented and sincerely seeking a loving, lasting relationship, Julie Ferman wants to know you and include you in her dating community. Single men and single women are invited to register with Julie privately, for free, to be eligible for personal matchmaking referrals and invitations to her singles events, dating classes, and online/virtual dating workshops. “I can’t match you if I can’t find you,” says the founder of Santa Fe Matchmaking.
New Mexico is fortunate to have a real, live, local matchmaker serving men and women who are single today and who would much rather be in love. A frequent guest on KRQE in Albuquerque, Julie Ferman is a trusted resource for dating advice, as she’s in the trenches with New Mexico daters.
