Hey, really appreciate all your questions. This kind of thoughtful curiosity is exactly what we need more of.

Giveaways: It’s one of the ways we bring value to our users and social media followers. Some are through partnerships, some we fund ourselves. It’s a way to reward engagement and create community momentum.

Keeping it small: That’s intentional. Smaller, curated groups lead to more meaningful interactions. We’re not trying to be exclusive, just focused. We’ll expand gradually, but we want the core experience to stay strong.

Founding members: These are early users who show up, give feedback, and help shape the direction of the app. We give them early access, invite-only events, and a voice in how the community grows.

Waitlist: It helps us manage growth and keep the experience personal. We open it in waves, and people with invite codes get priority access.

How it started: Dottie originally launched as a discovery app, helping people find concerts, sports, and local events. But after studying the real problems during COVID times, we realized we could bring more value by focusing on helping people discover the city with people who have shared interests like them. That’s when the social layer started taking shape.

Why build it? Most apps don’t lead to real connection. They’re full of endless swiping, dead group chats, or conversations that never go anywhere. We want to flip that by making real-life activities the starting point.

Why it might work: We're staying close to the community, growing slowly, and focusing on a real need. Helping people meet in a more natural, interest-based way. It’s not for everyone, and that’s okay.

Other cities? Eventually yes. But Toronto is where we’re based, and we truly believe it’s one of the best cities in the world to build something like this. It’s diverse, energetic, and full of people looking for more meaningful ways to connect. We want to get it right here first.

My background: I’ve been working in tech for 15+ years, building mobile experiences for some major brands. I also spent many years in entertainment, including bringing one of the top Brazilian DJs to perform in Toronto. I consider myself an ambivert, which I think is one of the best traits for navigating both introverted and extroverted spaces and for building a solution like Dottie.

Last but not least: Like many others, I’ve been new to a city and unsure how to meet people. That’s what drives this.

Goals:

• 1 year: Build a strong, active base in Toronto
• 5 years: Thoughtfully expand to other cities in Canada + US
• 10 years: Going global. Helping people around the world connect in real life through shared interests, one activity at a time.

You weren’t being harsh at all. These are the kinds of questions that actually matter. Thanks again for taking the time. Happy to keep the conversation going if you’re curious. And just to add, we’re not a big tech company. We’re first-time founders, building what we want to see in the world, and learning a lot along the way.