In its most recent acquisition, online dating giant Cupidplc.com bought a website targeting a unique niche market: members and fans of the uniformed services. The Edinburgh-based company, whose diverse dating websites have signed up 54 million members in 58 nations, will initially pay £3.6 million for UniformDating.com, and could hand over up to another £3.4 million if the acquisition meets first-year financial goals.

1. Cupidplc.com Purchases Online Dating Site for Uniformed Personnel
In its most recent acquisition, online dating giant Cupidplc.com bought a website targeting a unique
niche market: members and fans of the uniformed services. The Edinburgh-based company, whose
diverse dating websites have signed up 54 million members in 58 nations, will initially pay £3.6 million
for UniformDating.com, and could hand over up to another £3.4 million if the acquisition meets first-
year financial goals. The company noted it will issue £3.6 million in new shares to help defray acquisition
costs. The newly-acquired website reported £2.5 million in 2011 revenues.
UniformedDating.com has about 500,000 members, primarily in the UK. Cupidplc.com has already rolled
out new versions of the site in the US, Canada and Australia. The sites are open not only for members of
the armed services, but also for police and firefighters, nurses and doctors, civilian flight crews, plus
those interested in dating them. The sites are intended, the company says, to provide a way for single
people whose duties mean shift work and long assignments away from home, to find others who
understand the challenges they face in maintaining relationships.
Now one of the five largest online dating operators worldwide, Cupidplc.com offers a broad range of
traditional, casual, and niche dating and social discovery sites. The company bills itself as Scotland’s
fastest-growing technology company. Founded in 2005, Cupid in June 2010 raised £10 million in
becoming listed on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM. By then, it had a substantial presence throughout
the UK and Australia. Three months after the AIM listing, Cupid made its first major acquisition, buying
the domain Cupid.com for its North American entry.
Further additions quickly followed. In 2011, it bought a 75% interest in the German online dating
company liebe, and entered the Brazilian market with another buy. The next year, it added Assistance
Genie Logiciel, the operator of major French online dating site amour.com. The move brought Cupid’s
Gallicized Cupidon trademark there, likely to expand into Belgium and the Netherlands. A website for
Indians is also gaining a half million members monthly.
The US uniform dating website will assist Cupidplc.com’s drive to expand its less than 1% share of the
overall North American online dating market, which also features LoveAgain.com, a new 40-plus niche
dating website.
Cupidplc.com history
While historically based in the UK, in Edinburgh, Scotland, Cupidplc.com is a fast-growing technology
company with global reach. A market leader with over six years of experience in the online dating
industry, the company is responsible for several innovations that make it easy for potential couples to
meet each other. Their FLEX platform, used in variations on each of their dating sites, includes mobile
apps, social networking capabilities, and a registration process and user interface that is easy to navigate
and simple to setup. Its focus is on allowing users to explore easily among other singles. Users are
encouraged to interact on each level and focus on communication as a measure of attraction to
determine compatibility.
The story behind Cupidplc.com’s philosophies and success really got started with LoveAgain.com, which
is a niche dating site targeted towards adults over 40 years of age. It quickly expanded, and
Cupidplc.com grew to hold as much as 18% of the UK dating site market. Its operations in Australia

2. started in 2009, and now dominate up to 20% of the singles population there. Additional expansions
include acquisitions in Germany and Brazil, and entry into the Spanish and Italian markets.
Cupidplc.com’s portfolio includes a wide selection of traditional, casual, and niche social sites aimed at
singles. From standard dating sites like Cupid.com to the more risqué Benaughty.com, there is
something for everyone. Its rapid growth since its inception in 2005 has resulted in over 54 million
members across 58 countries worldwide.
Current expansions are focused on a greater presence in the United States; rather than going after
behemoth sites such as Match.com directly, Cupidplc.com intends to focus on niche dating sites. One
example of a successful concept in that area is UniformDating.com, which is geared towards individuals
in the armed forces, air carrier employees, police, and firefighters.
The expansion of Cupidplc.com’s online presence is matched by its physical expansion as well. An
integrated team of managers and technicians is based out of Scotland, though there are also offices in
Germany and the Ukraine. New offices in France are in the works, and in the United States. These offices
will be leveraged to increase their market share with a sound strategy in place to grow that market
exponentially.
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