Would you attach a price tag to true love? Dubai’s ‘Billionaire Matchmaker’, Christiana Maxion, says yes in a heartbeat. In fact, the tech founder believes “the largest investment in your portfolio shouldn’t be a home, car, or plane. It should be in your ideal partner because your partner is either going to elevate you or depress you.” Dubai is a melting pot of cultures and opportunity—two essential proponents in a millionaire’s quest for everlasting love.
Dubai becomes the global headquarters for love
The UAE’s City of Gold is home to nearly 73,000 millionaires, posing as an abundantly fertile breeding ground for a new kind of luxury: true love. As a native New Yorker, Christiana Maxion has called Dubai home for the past eight years. As another expat in the land of expats, Maxion acknowledges the hardships and anxieties associated with forming meaningful connections in a new city. “There’s lots of wasted time and effort in what I like to call ‘proximity settling’, where we settle for relationships—romantic, friendship, or business—with people that are within our proximity. This could be people we work with or live in our neighborhood, rather than those who we’re truly compatible with,” Maxion revealed.
When nearly 85% of Dubai’s population is a diverse collection of expatriates from across the globe, it is safe to assume that the majority of these residents are bound by a transient state of mind. But this migratory state of mind is steadily changing, as recent real estate trends highlight the growing propensity of expats to put down roots in the UAE. The sudden influx of entrepreneurs and businesses in the City of Gold due to favorable tax measures has also prompted more residents to buy rather than rent.
Dubai boasts avant-garde architecture, bespoke luxuries, and the world’s finest demographic. On first glance, these attractions position it as the ideal backdrop for a fairytale romance. But in the light of day, Dubai’s elite are looking for more than just an impressive net worth in a partner. Finding “the one” for Dubai’s millionaires is as hard and tedious as it is for the common man. But, according to Maxion, the world can be your oyster (with a guaranteed pearl within) at a premium price. Christiana offers her elite clientele two services under the broad USP of premium matchmaking. The first is Christiana Maxion Solutions, an offline matchmaking agency that caters to ultra-high-net-worth men globally seeking a curated VIP service when seeking a partner. The second is MAXION: The Matchmaking App, through which Christiana leverages her services as a matchmaker to a wider dating pool of accomplished professionals and successful individuals.
The UAE is home to approximately 200,000 millionaires, making it the hub for HNWI and UNHNWI in the region. These accomplished individuals serve as Maxion’s ideal target demographic for a “curated experience led by experts.”
The Maxion experience of finding love
In my extensive email thread with Christiana, a core practice among the world’s elite emerged: outsourcing. Seven figures in the bank can buy you a sports car, a Roman holiday, and most importantly, the ability to afford the experts that guarantee results. Maxion taps into this millionaire way of life by guaranteeing the rarest of all luxuries, true love.
“We take care of everything! We interview, verify, vet, present potential matches, plan, book, confirm dates, and manage communication and feedback for our clients in order to expedite the entire dating experience to find them success in their love life,” said Maxion confidently.
Maxion’s global database consists of eligible candidates looking to find love from every corner of the world. According to her website, it costs nothing to join the “Elite Global Database.” Women between the ages of 22 and 75, from any ethnicity and religion are encouraged to apply. These profiles form Maxion’s diverse database, from which female candidates are hand-picked by experts for paying male clients. Male clients who turn to Maxion’s premium service are “singles seeking a very unique hard-to-find match, the introverts in need of a confidence boost in dating, or individuals who are exhausted with online dating.”
Maxion follows a subscription model on its app that segregates these bespoke services into price brackets. But to work exclusively with the ‘Billionaire Matchmaker’ clients, you must invest more than $100,000. Christiana has a reputation that precedes her. “You would be shocked to know who some of our clients are! Celebrities, sports stars, politicians, royals. It’s amazing to have the opportunity to find them their perfect match,” she proclaimed proudly.
But beyond the glitz of fame and fortune, Maxion also aims to be a trusted partner for elites navigating the overwhelming experience of falling in love. When asked about her eclectic clientele, Christiana gushed at being the force that brings two soulmates together. Her favorite success story spotlights the hurdles of finding love when living with a terminal condition like autism. This client was a wealthy lawyer and anxious introvert who “never thought he would be the right partner to his autism diagnosis.” But this is where Maxion’s curation and perseverance shine. “With lots of coaching, encouragement, and confidence-boosting, I [Christiana] was able to match him with his partner only on his sixth introduction. He is now planning their engagement,” said Maxion excitedly.
According to Maxion, almost 77% of online daters never go on in-person dates. Though many singles hop onto dating apps in the hopes of finding “someone,” nearly 71% of them indulge in some degree of catfishing. Maxion aims to combat these systemic roadblocks using its highly customizable UI, tailored to suit each client’s lifestyle.
Christiana Maxion is aware of the eye rolls and gasps most people flaunt when they come across her calling. Truth be told, even I was skeptic when I came across the success story of a tech founder who profits from the deeply personal experience of falling in love. But then I wondered, if profits lie in scarcity, and if true love that lasts is a struggle to come by in this day and age, why should we frown upon those that can afford to beat these odds?