Startup Adelska wants to plan your next date, even as you’re staying home

datenight1

Customers Dani Morello and Jason Long hold a date night kit. (Photos courtesy Adelska)

Glass blowing. Chef’s tasting and pasta class. Oyster shucking.

Denver couples can do all of this with the help of date night concierge Adelska. The local startup plans date nights, overnight trips and weekend getaways for couples. The company also launched Adelska Adventures and an at-home date night option this month.

“The goal is always to have a shared experience together,” CEO and founder Gretchen Bartek said. “We say we want you to have a moment where you put away your phones.”

Adelska, previously called Denver Date Nite, began as a side hobby for Bartek in August 2016. The mother of two said she and her husband weren’t going out much anymore.

“I just took it upon myself to start finding really cool things for us to go do, things we’ve never tried before, new neighborhoods we’ve never been to, and I noticed this excitement back in our marriage in a different kind of way … like when you first start dating,” she said.

Bartek said she knew this could evolve into a business when her husband’s boss asked for help planning a weekend getaway with his wife. Bartek told him to give her his credit card and that she would plan the trip.

datenight2

Gretchen Bartek (left) and Brooke Cheishvili have planned more than 2,000 dates since last April.

In August 2018, Bartek began working on the company full time. Brooke Cheishvili, co-founder and chief marketing officer, joined last April and the duo changed the company’s name to Adelska, meaning “to love” in Icelandic (Bartek is from Iceland).

The duo has planned more than 2,000 dates since last April, according to Cheishvili, also a mother of two. In early March, the company began working out of The Village Workspace, a coworking space at 7173 S. Havana St. in Centennial. Cheishvili and Bartek previously worked remotely.

Adelska customers have two options. They can pay a concierge fee for a custom-tailored date or select a pre-planned date or adventure. The company said its customers tend to be married couples ages 35 to 55.

Adelska Adventures allows people to select from a list of pre-planned date options, determine the number of people going and pay a flat fee per person. The fee, which in March ranged from $80 to $185, includes taxes and gratuity for the adventure. The list of dates will change monthly, Cheishvili said.

The new at-home kits, which launched as a response to coronavirus, are date night packages delivered to the customer’s home in the Denver metro area. One of the four at-home kits is learning to make pasta. The kit created by the founder of Rebel Bread Zach Martinucci includes all ingredients necessary to create dinner for up to five people and a video from Martinucci about how to make pasta. According to Cheishvili, the kits start at $65.

Custom date nights, starting at $200 per couple, are offered only in the Denver metro. Weekend and overnight trips can be planned anywhere in Colorado and couples typically pay $500 or more, Cheishvili said.

datenight1

Customers Dani Morello and Jason Long hold a date night kit. (Photos courtesy Adelska)

Glass blowing. Chef’s tasting and pasta class. Oyster shucking.

Denver couples can do all of this with the help of date night concierge Adelska. The local startup plans date nights, overnight trips and weekend getaways for couples. The company also launched Adelska Adventures and an at-home date night option this month.

“The goal is always to have a shared experience together,” CEO and founder Gretchen Bartek said. “We say we want you to have a moment where you put away your phones.”

Adelska, previously called Denver Date Nite, began as a side hobby for Bartek in August 2016. The mother of two said she and her husband weren’t going out much anymore.

“I just took it upon myself to start finding really cool things for us to go do, things we’ve never tried before, new neighborhoods we’ve never been to, and I noticed this excitement back in our marriage in a different kind of way … like when you first start dating,” she said.

Bartek said she knew this could evolve into a business when her husband’s boss asked for help planning a weekend getaway with his wife. Bartek told him to give her his credit card and that she would plan the trip.

datenight2

Gretchen Bartek (left) and Brooke Cheishvili have planned more than 2,000 dates since last April.

In August 2018, Bartek began working on the company full time. Brooke Cheishvili, co-founder and chief marketing officer, joined last April and the duo changed the company’s name to Adelska, meaning “to love” in Icelandic (Bartek is from Iceland).

The duo has planned more than 2,000 dates since last April, according to Cheishvili, also a mother of two. In early March, the company began working out of The Village Workspace, a coworking space at 7173 S. Havana St. in Centennial. Cheishvili and Bartek previously worked remotely.

Adelska customers have two options. They can pay a concierge fee for a custom-tailored date or select a pre-planned date or adventure. The company said its customers tend to be married couples ages 35 to 55.

Adelska Adventures allows people to select from a list of pre-planned date options, determine the number of people going and pay a flat fee per person. The fee, which in March ranged from $80 to $185, includes taxes and gratuity for the adventure. The list of dates will change monthly, Cheishvili said.

The new at-home kits, which launched as a response to coronavirus, are date night packages delivered to the customer’s home in the Denver metro area. One of the four at-home kits is learning to make pasta. The kit created by the founder of Rebel Bread Zach Martinucci includes all ingredients necessary to create dinner for up to five people and a video from Martinucci about how to make pasta. According to Cheishvili, the kits start at $65.

Custom date nights, starting at $200 per couple, are offered only in the Denver metro. Weekend and overnight trips can be planned anywhere in Colorado and couples typically pay $500 or more, Cheishvili said.

Your subscription has expired. Renew now by choosing a subscription below!

For more informaiton, head over to your profile.

Profile


SUBSCRIBE NOW

 — 

 — 

 — 

TERMS OF SERVICE:

ALL MEMBERSHIPS RENEW AUTOMATICALLY. YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR A 1 YEAR MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL AT THE RATE IN EFFECT AT THAT TIME UNLESS YOU CANCEL YOUR MEMBERSHIP BY LOGGING IN OR BY CONTACTING [email protected].

ALL CHARGES FOR MONTHLY OR ANNUAL MEMBERSHIPS ARE NONREFUNDABLE.

EACH MEMBERSHIP WILL ONLY FUNCTION ON UP TO 3 MACHINES. ACCOUNTS ABUSING THAT LIMIT WILL BE DISCONTINUED.

FOR ASSISTANCE WITH YOUR MEMBERSHIP PLEASE EMAIL [email protected]




Return to Homepage

POSTED IN Startups

Editor's Picks

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *