The Scoop: SuccessMatch Founder Trea Tijmens takes a personal approach to matchmaking and works directly with a select group of elite singles. Not only are her clients highly successful in their professional lives, but they also connect with Trea’s philosophy of being 100% committed to a successful outcome and doing the work necessary to get there. She first meets with potential clients via video conference to see if they would be a good fit before inviting them to join her matchmaking and coaching services, after which she meets them one on one in her Swiss offices. Additionally, Trea caps the size of her SuccessMatch clientele so she can ensure that each person receives a high level of service.
When one man in his 60s sought out Trea Tijmens’ SuccessMatch matchmaking service, he was convinced he’d never love — or even date — again. He had lost his wife to cancer and thought his days of having a companion were over, but she assured him that he had the potential to find a new partner.
“I’ve seen that you can find love at any age,” she told us.
With newfound confidence, the man agreed to let Trea match him with potential partners. Soon, she matched him with a woman who had also lost a partner to illness.
SuccessMatch offers services for a select group of singles.
“They dated for a long time and eventually became much more than friends,” Trea said. “Now, they’ve been together for many, many years.”
Since Trea founded SuccessMatch in 2005, she has facilitated many similar pairings, and she has connected each of those couples personally, as she is the company’s sole matchmaker.
“One of the reasons clients choose SuccessMatch is because they can work personally with me — the CEO, the dating expert, and the matchmaker,” she said.
Trea can handle all of SuccessMatch’s business because she only works with a small group of clients at any given time. This means she personally knows and vets each client, even those in her database, to create matches between compatible personalities.
“I offer a high-end, high-touch service, so I can be very selective in those with whom I choose to work,” she said.
Why Trea Wanted to Focus on a Select Group of Clients
In her previous career in human resources, Trea noticed a surprising trend: Many successful people, even high-level executives, had no partners with whom to share their lives. She observed that they spent most of their time developing careers rather than finding relationships.
That sparked an idea: a dedicated matchmaking service for elite, successful singles. So Trea founded SuccessMatch in 2005.
Though they’re all prosperous professionals, Trea’s clients are diverse. SuccessMatch is based in Switzerland, so many clients are Swiss or European, but Trea speaks five languages, so she also attracts clients from around the world. They range in age from their early 30s to their late 60s.
Trea chooses her clients carefully. She offers a holistic approach and process, and invests herself 100% in helping her clients find their life partners.
“I choose to work with people I like, trust, respect, and who are 100% committed to doing what is necessary to get to a successful outcome,” she said.
Trea offers a free 15-minute initial consultation to decide if she and a potential client could be a good fit. If so, they schedule a 50-minute paid consultation during which she and the potential client discuss each of their expectations for matchmaking. For example, if a client tells Trea that he or she just wants to date, she’ll let them know that SuccessMatch is not the right agency.
Trea can make long-lasting matches because she’s selective with her clients and offers a holistic approach.
If both the client and Trea decide that they want to work together, she starts by creating a customized plan. As a matchmaker and dating expert, she does far more than pair two people she thinks might have a good time on a date.
“After doing this for a long time, I know what highly successful singles need to find a partner — and it’s more than just dating,” she said. “I offer my support, expert advice, and guidance throughout the process.”
For her matchmaking clients, Trea hand-picks partners based on criteria she and the client have established together. After both parties agree to a first date, Trea makes the introductions and sets up the entire first date experience.
On a first date, individuals can often be swayed by factors like hormones or chemistry and connect with someone who doesn’t align with what they said they wanted or needed. So, after the first date, Trea meets with both parties to see if they’re interested in seeing each other again. During those meetings, she also encourages clients to focus on the criteria they initially established, instead of being swayed by a date’s good looks or charisma.
“For all of my clients, I provide support and tools to help them choose their partners wisely,” she said.
Coaching Sessions Teach You How to Grow Your Relationship
Trea also offers a coaching-only program to help her clients find love. She offers Find Your Success Match, a four-month proven coaching program that is designed for strong, smart, successful, professional women.
The first concept that Trea teaches singles is how to create a happy and fulfilling life now, and how to be their best authentic self because she says “you can’t find the right partner if you’re not the right partner.”
For example, participants learn to leave issues they had in previous relationships behind, as well as working on letting go of self-sabotaging behavior.
Next, Trea teaches them strategies for finding the right partner. These include creating and recognizing ways to meet potential partners in real life, as well as how to use dating apps successfully.
“I teach them how to create, recognize, and act on opportunities,” Trea said.
The last step, then, is choosing the right person with whom to connect. Clients learn methods for creating the relationships they want by setting standards and clearly communicating what they need from the other person from the beginning.
“I help my clients determine what they want and need from a partner to be happy and fulfilled,” Trea said. “I help them align their messaging so they can communicate what they want with clarity and grace.”
By implementing these strategies, many of Trea’s coaching clients have had immense success in finding partners. She notes that 80% of the women in the Find Your Success Match program are in relationships before the four-month program ends.
In an online testimonial about the program, Eva, a 52-year-old from Zurich, said, “WOW, all I can say is I wish I had taken your coaching program earlier. After you helped me let go of my limiting beliefs, it was almost embarrassing to find that there were so many quality men who were interested in the same type of relationship I was.”
SuccessMatch Emphasizes Choosing a Life Partner for the Right Reasons
No matter why successful professionals need a matchmaker — whether they’re too busy to date or recently lost a spouse — Trea is there to help them find a life partner. Whether clients work with her as a matchmaker or a dating coach, they all can meet compatible singles.
After 14 years running SuccessMatch, Trea remains passionate about bringing love into people’s lives. Her background in the corporate world taught her that even those who are fulfilled in their careers still want to find a partner or spouse. People cannot thrive without love.
“Choosing your partner wisely is important because it should be the person you’ll spend the rest of your life with,” Trea said.
With SuccessMatch, Trea gets to help her clients do just that. As one client said in a testimonial: “Thanks to Trea, I found the love of my life. We are about to celebrate our fifth wedding anniversary, as well as our son Matthias’ second birthday.”
