Kristýna Mertlová spent 12 years building Czech Republic's first premium matchmaking agency on WordPress and LearnDash. If you're running a membership site or two-sided marketplace, her journey offers uncomfortable truths about critical mass, pricing architecture, and survival.
Twelwe years ago, Kristýna Mertlová recognized a gap in the Czech dating market.
As a member of Parliament at the time, she had access to networks most entrepreneurs don't. But when it came to finding a serious relationship, the options available weren't designed for people looking for long-term partnerships.
That frustration became the foundation for Date2K, now the premier matchmaking agency in Czech Republic serving high-net-worth individuals at €1,000+ for six months of white-glove service.
The Two Years No One Talks About
It took two years of daily work, zero revenue, just building a database large enough to actually match people. Kristýna's husband Jakub, a mathematician who later built their proprietary matching algorithm, funded the entire operation.
She couldn't match anyone until she had enough people on both sides. Different age ranges. Different life stages. Different goals.
It's the cold start problem every two-sided marketplace faces, and no one has solved it faster than two years.
The lesson: Whether you're building a dating platform, membership community, or freelancer marketplace, you can't fake the network effect. Plan for 18-24 months minimum. If you don't have runway funding, maintain other income streams while building.
When a Legal Challenge Threatened Everything
About five years in, a client with powerful connections initiated legal action. The premium matchmaking business essentially froze for two years while waiting for the court to rule.
The verdict? Date2K had done everything correctly. Case dismissed.
But by then, the damage was done. What saved them was Mingly, Kristýna's second venture: a completely free community dating platform for people with disabilities, seniors, and others excluded from mainstream dating apps. Built by 40 pro-bono volunteers during a Czech Digital hackathon.
While Date2K was tied up in court, Mingly kept Kristýna relevant, kept her expertise sharp, and kept her in the conversation about dating and relationships.
When the court finally ruled in their favor, she didn't have one business. She had two.
The lesson: Diversification isn't just financial. It's survival when one revenue stream faces existential threats you can't control.
The WordPress + LearnDash Stack
Both Date2K and Mingly run on WordPress. Both use LearnDash for e-learning components.
Kristýna specifically chose this stack because they could manage content themselves after initial setup, it integrated cleanly with existing infrastructure, and they could use it across both businesses.
The tactical detail: They hired a Czech tech company to build templates, pre-designed course structures that Kristýna could then copy and fill with her own content.
This is the move most non-technical founders miss. Don't build from scratch. Hire an expert once to create the scaffolding, then maintain editorial control to populate it.
In fact, Kristýna originally tried custom development. It failed because it didn't integrate with anything else. She scrapped it and went back to off-the-shelf tools.
The lesson: Don't try to out-tech the tech companies. Use tools built by people who do this full-time.
The Pricing Architecture
Kristýna is building a tiered model to scale without sacrificing her high-touch VIP service:
Tier 1: E-Learning Courses (€50/month) Self-paced courses on specific dating challenges: building confidence, first date preparation, communication skills. Delivered through LearnDash. Entirely self-service.
Tier 2: Hybrid Model (Mid Price Point) E-learning + group coaching + occasional 1-on-1 check-ins. One coach can serve 20-30 people in a cohort while still providing human interaction.
Tier 3: VIP White-Glove Service (€1,000+ for six months) Personal meetings, stylist consultations, professional photography, psychology sessions, curated introductions, feedback after every date.
When someone sees a €50 course and a €1,000 VIP service side-by-side, the €1,000 doesn't seem unreasonable. It seems like the premium option for people who are serious.
The €50 course becomes the entry point that makes the high-ticket offer more accessible by contrast. People who can't afford €1,000 now have an option. People who can afford it see the course and think, “I'll pay for the VIP.”
AI: Improving Clients, Not Replacing Them
Kristýna is experimenting with AI, but not the way most dating apps are.
She's NOT using AI to write messages for clients or chat with prospects on their behalf.
She IS using AI for face recognition to help clients choose better profile photos, communication analysis to identify where clients struggle in messaging, and a custom-trained chatbot based on her expertise.
The philosophy: Focus on improving the clients, not replacing them. At the end of the day, it will be the client personally on the date.
For membership site owners: Use AI to enhance delivery, not replace your expertise. Use it to scale feedback, not eliminate the need for human guidance.
The Bottom Line
If you're building a membership site or online platform on WordPress, here's what stands out from Kristýna's 12-year journey:
✓ Critical mass in a two-sided marketplace takes 18-24 months minimum
✓ Diversification saves you from single points of failure
✓ Don't build custom tech unless you ARE a tech company
✓ Tiered pricing makes premium services more valuable, not less
✓ Your expertise might not fully translate to e-learning, and that's okay
✓ Use AI to improve clients, not replace expertise
Kristýna didn't scale through viral marketing or venture capital. She scaled through patient capital, disciplined database building, and a pricing architecture that makes premium feel accessible.
Sometimes the smartest growth strategy is just making sure you survive long enough for the network effect to kick in.
Connect with Kristýna Mertlová:
Date2K: https://date2k.cz/
Mingly: https://mingly.cz/
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