This week I spoke with Adele Testani who co-founded HurryDate.com in partnership with her childhood friend Ken Deckinger. Having found fun and enjoyable ways to earn money on the side in 2001 Adele and Ken were typical weekend entrepreneurs. Adele told me that in the early days it was typical for her and Ken to meet before work at breakfast diners and then again after work or on the weekends.

Adele and Ken’s business involved planning and hosting speed dating events. Speed dating, according to the latest Wikipedia article is when couples “are rotated to meet each other over a series of short ‘dates.'” And where “at the end of the event participants submit to the organizers a list of who they would like to provide their contact information to. If there is a match, contact information is forwarded to both parties.”

AN: Where did you start Hurry Date?
AT: In New York City. My business partner and I were both living in Manhattan and we were both single at the time. We started hosting parties here and when we realized it was a viable business we started in other cities. Now we’re in over forty cities. New York is still our best market by far. Since New Yorkers are so busy with their social and professional lives it makes sense to date efficiently. We find that the bigger the city the more successful we are there. Los Angeles is the next biggest market.

AN: What was your inspiration?
AT: Speed Dating was an idea that we wanted to try after we had been working with Sheckys.com, a nightlife guide. Speed dating, as a concept, preexisted Hurry Date. It was Ken’s idea apply speed dating to our weekend work.

AN: What were your day jobs in the beginning?
AT: Ken is a born entrepreneur and I came from a marketing background.

AN: What was it like for you in making the transition from weekend entrepreneurs to full-time entrepreneurs?
AT: We worked with Sheckys.com to help get the initial word out about HurryDate.com. It took a year of part-time work before we each let go of our full-time jobs. I remember going full-time with Hurry Date was very risky. My job had a 401k and a steady salary.

AN: Based on your experiences do you have any advice for other Weekend Entrepreneurs?
AT: If I had stayed with my initial career I would have missed out on several meaningful opportunities. Being young and single helped because the number of personal ties and responsibilities were fewer. Getting to know our daters has been rewarding. We have made a positive difference in the lives of others. There are hundreds of couples who have engaged and married after they met through us.

AN: So for you it was worthwhile?
AT: Yes.

AN: Some of my readers are weekend entrepreneurs themselves. Does hurry date present an opportunity for others to become successful weekend entrepreneurs?
AT: Yes. We are looking for fun, outgoing, confident, rock star hosts to run our events. On our website we say it’s a chance to “blow our whistle.” We use a whistle to indicate that it is time to rotate to the next hurry dater.

AN: What makes a good host?
AT: We look for someone who is great with people. They’re people who can stay calm, cool, and collected under pressure. People who can create an atmosphere that is fun and relaxed make a good host.

AN: Do your hosts consider themselves weekend entrepreneurs?
AT: Some of our hosts consider themselves weekend entrepreneurs. They add hurry date to the long list of things they do in order to make money. For others it is a hobby and an opportunity to have some fun after work.

AN: Do you provide training?
AT: We have a great training program. We guide hosts through the process. We encourage hosts to instill their own flare. Our online system links our hosts and keeps everyone on the same page.

AN: What is on the horizon for HurryDate.com?
AT: HurryDate.com was recently acquired by Spark Networks. We are currently expanding our event offerings to their niche websites such as JDate.com and BlackSingles.com.

AN: Thanks for sharing your story with me.

Any Queercents readers who want to share about their weekend entrepreneurial experiences? Any hobbyists turned capitalists? Regardless of your motivations, I am interested in the different strategies career-minded folks use to earn extra spending cash on the side. Also, I am interested in hearing about stories of weekend hobbies turned to full-time enterprises.