We are sure that we have the highest quality unattached
professionals of any agency. We have been around since
1985 over 21 years, most agencies last less than 3 years.
2. HOW DOES YOUR SERVICE WORK?
Most unattached professional people have the
same problem, where can you go to meet other unattached
professionals of the quality you would want to spend your
life with? Most of your time is spent searching, not dating.
We can change that situation by introducing you to the
best selection of unattached professionals in the U.K.
You may also attend social events organised by our sister
organisation ‘Panache’. Social events are a
good evening out on your own and you will make good friends,
male and female, however the caliber of people attending
social events are not to the same standard as those you
meet through the introduction service, as many social members
for a variety of reasons are not yet ready for a committed
relationship.
3. WHERE DO YOU ADVERTISE?
Our marketing sources have included The Saturday
Times, The Sunday Times, The Evening Standard, the top
financial publications, most quality women’s magazines,
commercial radio, specialist magazines such as GQ, Time
Out and Tatler, The London Underground, poster sites such
as at Clapham Junction, as well as direct mail. Our most
successful lead source however, (around 50%) is from the
recommendation of previous members.
4. HOW DO I JOIN?
You will need to telephone 0207 930 5555, so
we may check basic details about you. We can then tell
you honestly whether our service is likely to work for
you. If we feel comfortable with each other, we will invite
you to attend an interview in London or at your home. Our
office hours for new member enquiries are Monday - Thursday
9.30 am to 9.30 pm. And Friday 9.30 am to 7 pm (you can
try at weekends but no promises!) for members dating hot
line (enquiries) call 01323 490666,
7pm to 9pm Mondays and Thursday.
5. WHO DO YOU NOT INVITE TO SEE YOU?
We must feel proud of you and know that our members
would also be proud to meet you. We must believe that you
will benefit from our service and you will be comfortable
dating our members. We have found from past experience
that our service does not work for everybody, and we will
be honest enough from the outset to tell you and advise
you of other agencies more suitable for your needs. Our
introduction service does not work for men under 26 years
of age or less than 5’6” in height. Again from
past experience we have found the service does not work
for ladies over 44 years of age or over dress size 14.
We expect all members to be intelligent, articulate, socially
skilled and well mannered. If a client’s longest
relationship was less than 9 months or they had just come
out of a long-term relationship it is unlikely they would
be invited for an interview. You can call and talk to us
and we will be able to discuss alternatives for your specific
situation.
6. WHERE DO YOU INTERVIEW?
Clients are interviewed in London, Brighton or
at your home. We spend around 4/5 hours together in a 'one
to one' interview, where we endeavor to find out what you
require from a relationship. This is made up of factors
from your previous relationships in addition to what you
need from the future. We pride ourselves in providing the
facility that enables you to find someone very special
with whom to spend your life. Interviews started during
normal hours 10.45am or 4.0pm are free
of charge. Interviews held by special request outside of
these hours incur a charge (late start in the week £10
for every 30mins started after 4pm, Saturdays £55,
Sundays and Bank holidays £70. Interviews held at
home are free in central London and a small travel allowance
is charged for further distances. In all circumstances
we take a deposit by debit/credit card when we book an
interview, provided you keep the appointment this payment
is not processed. If you fail to make the appointment for
whatever reason including resetting the appointment to
another time or day you will then be charged a £30
non attendance fee or if you give us less than 3 hours
notice the fee is £60 as we will incur costs.
7. HOW MANY MEMBERS DO YOU HAVE?
We have over 3,000 members in total. However
total membership figures can be misleading, if for example,
they were all ladies aged over 50 or gentlemen under 25
this may not be of any use to you. Some agencies claim
membership figures of the total numbers ever to join e.g.
10,000 in our case, but active members are the real test.
When you attend the interview we will tell you how many
introductions we can guarantee you and how successful the
service is likely to be for you. Active membership figures
vary throughout the year but are usually around 200/300
If we take on 30 new members
and 28 of our current members pair up and leave we’re
back to square one. If we were less successful our membership
figures would be higher.
8. CAN I SEE PHOTOGRAPHS? Usually
No. We attract the quality of people we do because
of our absolute confidentiality. Do you think top people
would join if we showed their photograph to people walking
into our office? There are agencies that will show photographs
of their members before you join, we will not. For our
VIP clients however, we hand select ladies and gentlemen
and if appropriate show photographs to them as they are
under strict contractual obligations to maintain absolute
confidentiality.
9. WHAT MEMBERSHIP LEVEL WILL I NEED?
The interview is completely without charge and
without pressure to
join. If we offer membership, we are able to select from a choice of 6 membership
options. We have low cost memberships suitable for members requiring only
a basic level of service to memberships of £3000 for people who require
the best service that money can buy. The interview is partly to assess which
level of membership you would require. Joining fees are spent on marketing,
to maintain the quality of the members available to you. With all memberships
a monthly service fee extends the membership period and covers the administration
costs. We will not recommend an inexpensive membership if we do not think
it will work for you. We are more likely to suggest another agency. A guide
to which membership level you will require is given in the membership level
details see paragraph 10. Our consultant will recommend the membership
10. WHAT ARE THE LEVELS OF MEMBERSHIP?
(for copies of our contracts and refund guarantees see www.execclub2.co.uk)
Executive Club Joining Fees
All listed memberships are lifetime memberships or as stated below. All prices
include VAT.
SOCIAL ONLY MEMBERSHIP
This membership allows you to attend all the social events.
You are also normally allowed to bring guests with you
if you wish. Cost £125 for a two
year membership
*SOCIAL & PASSIVE MEMBERSHIP
This membership allows your details to be entered onto
our database, you cannot activate dates, but your details
will be available to our clients who may ask to meet you.
You may also attend social events. Cost £365 **
** This membership is only suitable and
restricted by us to certain groups of people, usually ladies
aged under 30 who are slim, attractive, non smoking, single,
without children, 5.4 to 5.8 tall, and requires only a
two hour interview. As this membership is subsidised, you
will be required to make your decision whether or not to
join at the interview, as it is not financially viable
to interview clients twice. NOTE: if you
are considering this membership you must discuss it with
us first before attending an interview, as this only requires
a two hour interview. If you have a full 4/5 hour interview
an extra charge of £30 will be added to this heavily
subsidised membership fee.
ACTIVE DATING MEMBERSHIPS
(all these memberships are for life and are inclusive of VAT)
A. BASIC MEMBERSHIP
A personal advisor will help you to select and arrange
your introductions. Your active membership lasts for 12
months from your date of joining or the activation of 10
introductions of your choice. Your membership is then continued
for your lifetime as a passive member where members can
ask to date you but we no longer arrange introductions
at your request. This is a membership specifically designed
for someone on a very tight budget where the joining and
service fees are of prime importance. (We would normally
recommend “Standard Membership” as it is a
superior membership both in quality of service and value
for money). Cost £950.00
B. STANDARD MEMBERSHIP
We do not limit the active introductions you can make.
This is a good level of lifetime membership. It is excellent
value for money and will provide a good service for ladies
aged 26 to 37ish and men aged 26 to 58. If you are in the
financial position to afford it, we would usually recommend
the Gold service as it gives additional benefits at a small
increase in cost. Cost £1275
C. GOLD MEMBERSHIP
In addition to the benefits of Standard
Membership. You will receive a pro-active service whereby
your advisor will call you to tell you about new members
as soon as they become available. In addition they are
allowed to access a special data base on non members who
have responded to specific advertisements placed for our
VIP clients. You also have free access to meet with the
owner who can give advice on getting the very best from
the service and general advice on dating gleaned from over
21 years in the business. This is a superior membership
for clients requiring a higher level of service and recommended
for higher earning ladies (less men can match your life
style), ladies aged over 37, ladies under 5ft 3ins or over
5ft 9ins or any ladies on a shorter time frame for finding
a committed relationship. It is also recommended to Gentleman
under 5ft 9 ins or wanting to meet with younger ladies.This
is the membership we would usually recommend to most members
we interview. VIP membership should also be considered
if you are in a position to afford it. Cost £1450
E. V.I.P MEMBERSHIP
Your VIP advisor will visit you and spend half a day
with you at your home, understanding you and your lifestyle.
At your request she will visit you at your home or office
bringing hand selected profiles and photographs to you
from which to choose your dates. In addition your VIP advisor
will monitor all new members joining and telephone you
with details of those who meet your requirements. This
means you could be meeting new members within days of them
joining. Your VIP advisor also has access to other affiliated
organisations and if appropriate will contact you. A superb
service for people requiring one of the best services in
Europe. This service is recommended for people wanting
to get the best service we can provide. Who is it for?
Generally very successful ladies aged from 33, and most
ladies aged 39 or above, would require this service level
(less men available who can match your lifestyle and you
are competing with 32 year old so you need to jump to the
front of the queue). Suitable for gentleman of any age
who want the best service especially so if you want to
meet ladies a lot younger than yourself. If you can afford
it this is a superb level of membership. Cost £3250.00
F. PRESIDENTIAL MEMBERSHIP
This membership is our highest level and It is a service
second to no other in the U.K. regardless of cost. It is
similar to VIP but with many added benefits including Alun
Jenkins (the owner) arranging your introductions. And we
will carry out personal headhunting for you at no extra
costs Cost £7500.
G. PRESIDENTIAL PLUS- GUARANTEED MEMBERSHIP
This is a guaranteed success service OR YOUR MEMBERSHIP
FEE REFUNDED. It is a service second to no other in the
U.K. regardless of cost. It the same service as Presidential
with an absolute success guarantee, that should you fail
to find a partner ( to marry or live with) within 2 years
of active membership we will at your request refund your
fee as follows - If you have had a relationship lasting
4 months or more with a member we will refund 50% of your
membership fee if not we will REFUND ALL YOUR FEE. . Cost £9500
H. REDUCTIONS
(We have discounts for members aged under 30 and a positive
discrimination policy to offset the fall off in service
for black 30% brown 20% Asian 10%)
AGE DISCOUNTS
For non smoking, single people, without children without
any other complications and aged under 30 the following
reductions apply on Basic, Standard and Gold memberships
only: Under 25 - 40%, age 26 - 35%, age 27 - 30%, age
28 - 20% age 29 - 10%. (for social passive memberships
half these rates apply as the service is already heavily
discounted)
SKIN DISCOUNTS
In addition to age discounts we operate a positive discrimination policy
on skin colour to offset any fall off in service. Black less 30%
, Brown 20% , Asian/Oriental 10% .
For Social & Passive membership (as they are already heavily subsidised)
, we offer 50% of the above discounts only.
I. SERVICE FEES
Lifetime memberships are kept active by payment of a
monthly service fee, you may drop in and out of active
membership. see paragraph 37 for details.
J. PHASED PAYMENTS
If you join at your interview (you have a three day cooling
off period to change your mind at no cost) then we will
give you an option to pay your membership fee in three
parts. On joining 50% of the fee is payable with 25% being
paid 1 month later and the remaining 25% a month after
that. We also allow single parents or low earners to spread
their payments over longer periods. Also members joining
at their interview ( other than if we offer you VIP membership
where we waive 1 months fee of £135 ) we will start
the service immediately but the service fee will be suspended
for three months saving around £90 as it saves us
having to make a second appointment to complete the paperwork
and take a photograph.
11. HOW DO I CHOOSE MY DATES?
Your personal advisor will recommend members
to you. Your advisor will tell you more about the members
including their appearance from their photographs. You
make the final decision whether you would like to meet
them, if so we contact them to tell them of you. If they
agree we’ll call you back with any positive results.
When we pass over a members’ telephone number, your ‘date
is on’, and you can only talk yourself out of that
date. The member has agreed that, on the information they
were given, you are the sort of person they would like
to meet over a coffee, to see if it could develop further.
Remember, if we contact you with a member’s details
you are under no pressure to say ‘yes’, but
if you do, we expect you to meet, albeit for a 15-minute
coffee. We discourage our members requesting people who
provisionally accept dates and then decline to meet for
a coffee without very good reason.
12. HOW DO I MAKE THE ACTUAL DATE?
Telephone your date at a time you think is reasonable
for them. Before 8 am on weekdays or 9.30 am on weekends
or after 10. pm, we consider unreasonable. Ask for your
contact, remembering that the person may be our member’s
daughter with the same name or the baby-sitter, so always
be as discreet as we are and never mention The Executive
Club. Use ‘a friend of ‘codeword’ or ‘from
The Club’, if you have to. They, of course, are expecting
a call from you and already know your first name. Your
date however may be in the middle of a children’s
party or with a nosy neighbour, so always ask if it is
convenient to talk, if not arrange a more convenient time.
In case of difficulty in making contact, call your advisor
for help.
13. HOW DO I ACT ON MY DATE?
Your first and second date with members is a ‘club
date’, this means that you are our representative
and we demand that you act in such a manner that we can
be proud of you. Try to relax and don’t talk about
your ‘ex’! If any member makes you feel uncomfortable
in any way, telephone your advisor, so we can monitor the
situation. If a member starts talking about his/her obsession
for orange suspenders on a first or second date we would
check their previous dates for any problems and we may
decline to date that member. We investigate all complaints
of poor manners.
14. HOW ARE THE MATCHES PRODUCED?
You are allocated a personal advisor who searches
for and recommends members to you. Who you choose to date
is always your choice. You are at liberty to decline any
person for any reason, although we ask that you tell us
why honestly, as it helps member to adapt to get the best
from our service.
15. WHAT DETAILS DO YOU GIVE OUT TO MEMBERS?
Here is typical description we would give to
you.
She lives in the swiss cottage area of London she says she’s a simple
solicitor in a top international law firm, specialising in commercial law,
aged early 30’s, 5ft 5ins tall weighs 8stone 9 pounds dress size 10
with an excellent figure. We would rate her as very attractive with short
brown hair very trendy, with very good skin, slim build shapely. She’s
well spoken classy and always bubbly to talk to, single never married without
children and is a non smoker. If you’re into star signs she’s
an Aries. She has British and USA.nationality lived in the USA until 1990
but loves the UK and wants to live here for ever she says . Her personality
is kind caring hardworking maybe too hardworking, confident bubbly and fun
to be with. She drinks occasionally and is educated to degree level and has
a MBA. She enjoys her work and is reasonably well paid but spends it all
on clothes and holidays she says. She enjoys trips to the cinema and theatre,
occasional concerts from pop to classical loves the proms. Great days out
Ascot, Henley or visiting stately homes around the UK. Enjoys the countryside,
walks in the country or renting a cottage in the Cotswold's at Christmas.
Loves log fires and snow. Moderate skier poor golfer but good at tennis.
Enjoys travel been all over South America, Canada and the USA would like
to explore Europe and Africa. She’s renown for giving dinner parties
or just having friends round for good conversation (not about work!) and
sharing a good bottle of wine. She would like to meet someone aged 33 to
46ish kind intelligent able to tame me as I know I am a little too independent
for my own good so willing to learn.
16. DO I ONLY MEET MEMBERS OF THE SAME MEMBERSHIP
LEVEL AS MYSELF?
No. The fee you pay is for the level of personal
service you receive from us and the ability to access the
new members more quickly and in no way affects who you
can meet
17. WILL PEOPLE ASK TO DATE ME?
Perhaps, tall, interesting gentlemen over 35
years of age often get dated by ladies. Attractive girls
under 33 are often requested by gentlemen. Shorter gentlemen
and ladies over 37 will need to request their own dates
to get the best from the service and should consider higher
membership levels.
18 + 19. WHAT IF I AM SHORT OR OVER WEIGHT?
From previous experience we have found the service
works less well, especially so for shorter gentlemen who
should normally be at least 5ft 6ins tall. You will be
given an indication of any problems associated with height
at your interview. Being overweight will reduce how well
the service will work, more so for ladies. Members outside
of the normal range would usually require a higher level
of membership
20. DOES IT MATTER WHERE I LIVE?
Yes. The service works best for people living
or working within 20 miles of the M25. However people of
a certain caliber living outside of London have little
option but to travel to London to meet people of the quality
they require. It is a condition of membership that all
clients will meet initially in central London.
21. HOW FAR SHOULD I TRAVEL FOR MY DATES?
Generally, the higher the quality of the people
you require to meet, the further you should be prepared
to travel to meet them. We consider 15 miles to be a realistic
minimum, although we would recommend 25 miles, as members
will often meet you halfway and after all, for that special
person to spend the rest of your life with, how can anywhere
within reason be too far? We have members who fly from
Europe for their dates! Your first two meetings however
should be in central London unless you both agree otherwise.
Gentlemen we find it rather bad form to ask that a women
travels to meet you locally for your first date so please
do not ask.
22. HOW MANY INTRODUCTIONS WILL YOU OFFER ME?
That depends to a large extent on who you are,
where you live and how old you are. After assessing you
at the interview we will give you a minimum guarantee in
writing. . We are the only dating service in the UK we
know of that guarantees you a minimum number of introductions
in a specified time period and gives you right to a proportionate
refund of your joining fee. See www.execclub2.co.uk for
details. We will arrange up to two introductions at a time
provided you have not more than one member still to see.
23. WHAT IF I SMOKE?
Over 90% of our members will not date a smoker,
so being a smoker will obviously reduce your choice of
dates. Do not be tempted to lie about your smoking. Remember,
many members have joined us specifically requesting a non-smoker.
If you have deceived our members or us, we may ask you
to compensate the member for a wasted evening and we will
consider removing your membership. We insist that you tell
us the truth. IF YOU START OR INCREASE YOUR SMOKING
YOU MUST TELL US. If you stop or reduce your smoking,
tell us, as it will improve your choice of contacts.
24. DO YOU INTERVIEW ALL MEMBERS?
Yes. We interview all new members prior to them
being offered membership of The Executive Club. We have
also taken over other introduction agencies (Together Introductions,
RSVP, Personal Touch etc). Their members were also interviewed
by their respective agencies prior to being offered membership.
We also have access to a database of non members who responded
to specific advertisements we have placed for individual
VIP members. If we allow you access to this database they
are not members and have not been screened in the same
way as members, however you would always be informed of
this situation.
25. DO YOU CHECK ON PEOPLE’S BEHAVIOUR?
Indeed we do. It is a contractual condition upon
you that we expect every member to act in a manner that
does not bring discredit to themselves, a fellow member
or our organisation. We investigate every complaint. On
your first two meetings with a person you are regarded
as ‘our representative’ and we expect you to
be courteous and well mannered. To stand up a member without
good cause will usually result in us terminating your membership
without refund. We encourage members to phone and talk
to us if they experience anything other than a pleasant
time.
26. DOES AGE MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
It certainly does! There are TWO unattached professional females aged 35
to 50 for every ONE unattached professional male in the UK ( source government
census)
MALES
Under 25 We do not accept
you, as we cannot attract enough girls under 26 to give
you a good service.
27 to 32 You will need to do most of,
if not all of the dating, as attractive single girls under
30 are usually dated frequently.
33 to 41 Ladies may date you as well,
especially if you are interesting and tall. Generally,
in this age group, the service works very well as we have
more ladies than gentlemen.
42 to 58 The older you get, the more
in demand you become, tall, interesting guys over 42 are
usually spoilt. Quality gentlemen in this age group nearly
always get snapped up very quickly.
Over 60 We suggest you phone us, as we
discourage ladies over 44 joining
NOTE as unlike other organisations as
we do not take ladies over early 40’s or size 12
so we have no pressure to push unsuitable dates on gentlemen
just to make up their number of dates.
FEMALES
Under 24 We do not usually accept ladies under 24.
24 to 29 Attractive single ladies in
this age group are in demand, hence we discount your joining
fees. See para 10G.
30 to 37 The service usually works very
well indeed.
38 to 42 To get the best from the service
you will need to request dates for yourself, but you should
still have a wide choice of people. Also consider a higher
level of membership, Gold or VIP , as the success rate
is very age dependant.
43 to 45 As successful gentlemen given
the choice, tend to date younger ladies. The service starts
to slow down and you are likely to have to initiate most
of the dates to get the best from the service. You are
likely to need at least our Gold or VIP level of membership
Over 45 We have found from experience
that our gentleman are very reluctant to accept dates from
ladies in their late 40’s so we feel it would be
a waste of your money joining regardless of how young you
may look. Feel free to call us and we will give you advise
on better ways of meeting people than joining us and we
can tell you of other agencies that cater for ladies up
to late 60’s.
27. HOW SUCCESSFUL IS THE SERVICE?
This obviously depends on many factors, but be
guided by our ‘10’ rule. For every 10 people
you choose to meet through our service, experience tells
us 2 will be a complete waste of time, 6 out of 10, will
be very interesting but without enough in common to take
it further. Two out of the ten, you will date several times
and they will become friends. When you have 4 good friends
one is likely to become so special that you leave us. NEVER
JUDGE US BY MEETING ONLY TWO OR THREE PEOPLE. Providing
you meet members twice, the ‘10’ rule always
works.
28. WILL THE SERVICE DEFINITELY WORK FOR ME?
No. We cannot make people like you. We can only
introduce you to a much wider selection of people than
you are ever likely to meet without us. We would not however,
offer you membership if we did not believe that our service
was the best option for you. If you are in doubt, call
and talk to us. If you have a nice personality and are
presentable then generally the service works very well
indeed. It will not work for people who are mean, unfriendly,
cold or closed etc. At your interview we will give you
an estimate of the probability of success given your circumstances
along with an estimate of how many dates and in what time
period you are likely to require to find a partner. If
we do not honestly believe we are the best service for
you, we will, given your circumstances recommend better
agencies for you. Why would we do this? – simple
if you have a poor experience with us or another agency,
it tarnishes the whole reputation of our industry (as
happened to time share). However if an agency is successful
for you, then you become our life long ambassadors, recommending
our services to your friends. As 50% of our new members
come through personal recommendation you can see how important
it is we avoid failure.
29. WHAT HAPPENS IF I TELL A LIE?
We expect every member to be honest with us.
If you lie about your age, height, smoking, etc. we will
remove your membership without refund. If, for example,
you were married and still living with your wife, we would
remove your membership AND press for criminal charges of
obtaining our services through deception. All members have
to sign a legal declaration that everything they have told
us is the truth and they have not withheld any information
that may have prejudiced our decision to accept them as
members
30. WHAT DO WE EXPECT OF YOU?
We expect you to be courteous, well mannered,
reliable, respect fellow members and to have integrity.
If a cheque is dishonoured when presented to your bank,
all our refund guarantees becomes void under these circumstances.
We shall insist on the payment being made good. If you
join at your interview you have a three day cooling off
period to cancel your membership at no cost whosoever providing
your payment clears.
31.& 32 CAN I SUSPEND MY MEMBERSHIP?
Yes. On all lifetime memberships you may reactivate
your membership at anytime by paying the appropriate service
fee. On a fixed term membership it will expire at the end
of the fixed period.
33. HOW SAFE IS YOUR SERVICE?
We meet every new dating member, we insist on
home addresses and telephone numbers, and we have photographs
of every member. We look into any complaints so we can
build up ‘intelligence’ on members who could
be a problem. We remove membership from people we are not
happy with. Remember the ‘floating’ single
may be someone we have already declined to accept or removed
from membership. To stay a member with us, we have to be
proud of you. In twenty one years we have not had any serious
problems with any member.
34. HOW CONFIDENTIAL IS YOUR SERVICE?
Very. We have top business people and world famous
names, so your confidentiality is essential to us. We never
use our trade name on outgoing calls; messages on answer
phones are left in such a way that they may be replayed
in company and your guests wouldn’t have an idea
what it was about. Nosy secretaries? No problem, we won’t
even leave our telephone number (B.T. call return service
won’t get it either). Some agencies will show your
photographs to anyone who comes to their offices, we never
do. We consider that to be a serious beach of confidentiality.
Even in the event that we were burgled, we do not keep
records of your name, address, telephone number or photograph
at our London offices. All waste paper at our service centre
is incinerated on our premises and London’s waste
paper is shredded. All members are required to sign a legally
binding confidentiality agreement (See a copy on www.execclub2.co.uk)
35. IF I WAIT, DOES IT GET CHEAPER?
Never. Special offers! We know of agencies that
charge £800.00 to join and then charge people who
wouldn’t join straight away the same service for £99.00
or less! (they’ve gone bust again). Some agencies
drop supposedly drop the price as a pressure to join on
the day. We never discount our fees to new members other
than the published special discounts for the under 30’s
and skin colour discounts as we want the members we introduce
you to have been decisive and have joined for the right
reasons. We treat all members as friend so we give you
this promise, no new members pay less than you do.
36. WHAT IF I AM NOT HAPPY?
Tell us! Discuss any problems with your advisor.
If you are still not happy talk to our owner Alun Jenkins.
Our job is to make you happy. We care about the success
of our service and always strive for excellence. To be
a member of our organisation is a privilege, as it is,
to be of service to you. We are “family”. As
a last resort you could always make use of our famous refund
guarantee, where we will pay the joining fee of any other
introduction agency in the world. We do not know of any
other agency in the U.K. that will match this offer.
37. WHY SERVICE FEES?
Your joining fee is spent on marketing to attract
the quality of members we do. Lifetime memberships pay
a monthly service fee which is their contribution towards
the running costs of the organisation, office rents, postage
salaries, etc. Monthly Service fee are: Social & Passive,
and Basic - £12.50 Standard £25 Gold £30,
VIP & Presidential £135
38. DOES NATIONALITY MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
Yes it can. It is also dependent on your fluency
with English, as can your skin colour or religion. (did
you notice our discounts for different skin colours? See
paragraph 10H) If you phone us we will tell you honestly
what prejudices exist and how it affects the service to
39. ARE YOU A MEMBER OF A TRADE ASSOCIATION?
Yes. For your added security we are full members of the
Association of British Introduction Agencies (ABIA). We
have agreed to abide by the industries Code of Practice
a copy of which is given to all members along with this
information, although of course we operate to standards
far in excess of these minimum standards set by the ABIA.
40. WHAT DEFINES AN INTRODUCTION?
We define an “introduction” as when
we have obtained the permission of the other member for
you to call them, or you have given your permission for
them to call you. It is a condition of membership that
you should meet each other even if it is for 15 minutes
over a coffee. If for some reason you cannot contact each
other, call us and we will investigate. If after talking
on the telephone the member is reluctant to meet you, call
and tell us. If this happens to you more than 1 in 10 times
it’s likely you are doing something on the telephone
to put them off. If this is the case, call your advisor
who will assist you and if need be, arrange an appointment
with one of our staff to advise you on how to improve your
success rate. Remember we cannot make people like you,
at the time we told you of each other, you must have both
wanted to meet, otherwise we would have stopped the introduction
if we felt the member was not keen to meet you.
41. WHAT IS THE COMPANY STRUCTURE?
The Executive Club is the trading name of several
trading organisations. Members of The Executive Club of
St James’s join ‘E.C. St James’s’ and
this is the name that shows on ALL credit card transactions.
Payment of your service fees and the dating service is
carried out by ‘E.C. Seaford Ltd’. VIP members
are serviced by ‘VIP Services’ to whom your
standing order is paid.
42. CAN I SEE A COPY OF THE CONTRACT AND CONFIDENTIALITY
AGREEMENTS I HAVE TO SIGN AND A COPY OF YOUR REFUND GUARANTEE?
Yes of course, log onto our special site www.execclub2.co.uk
43. HOW DO YOUR FEES COMPARE WITH OTHER AGENCIES?
Reputable introduction agencies who interview their members have certain
overhead cost that have to be met. The main cost of all quality agencies
is the marketing costs to attract the right quality people. Other costs
are office and staff wages costs to service their clients. Fees of other
agencies operating at the "professionals" level similar to our
Standard membership at £1275 (although they may be
for a fixed period of 12 or 15 months unlike ours which gives a lifetime
membership ) Drawing Down the Moon at £1650/£3,500, Sara Eden
at £1300, Berkeley International FROM £7000, Gray and Farrar
at £8800, Fiona Smyth at £1500, County Register at £5,875,
Rhodes Harvey from £1500+, Seventy Thirty at £10,000 plus.
For the members we choose to accept we guarantee our service is superior
to any of these other agencies by backing it up with a money back refund
guarantee. We are the only agency in the U.K. to do so, and have done so
since 1985 and may account for why we can stay so selective and obtain
so many members through personal recommendation.
44. WOULD A MORE EXPENSIVE AGENCY GIVE ME A BETTER
SERVICE?
We doubt it, providing you fall within our criteria for us to offer you membership,
we know of no other service regardless of cost that can match our service.
Ask any other agency if you can try them for four weeks and have ALL your
money refunded towards any other agency in the world without any reason other
than you ask for it. We know of no other agency regardless of cost that
offers even one of our refund guarantees let alone the three we are proud
to offer our clients, in writing , and have done so for 22 years.
45. THE WRITTEN GUARANTEES
a. We will refund your joining fees
towards any other agency in the world should you even
think someone else can provide you with a better service.
b. We give every dating member the minimum
number of introductions they will receive in one year (in
writing) or the right to a proportionate refund (others
may NOT specify time periods then extend your membership
until you reach the minimum number promised – that
could add up to two dates a year and you could die before
your number of dates are achieved.
c. All dating members joining at their
interview may change their mind within 3 days of joining
and have ALL their money refunded.
d. For Presidential members, should
we not find a partner that you decide to marry or live
with within
two years we will refund all your membership fee.
All this is in addition to the four/ five hour interview
we give to clients at no cost, whether you join or not.
46. HOW CAN YOU PROVIDE A TOP LEVEL OF SERVICE
AT THESE LOWER FEES?
The reason we can keep our membership costs lower than others is:
a. We have
been around since 1985 and have many thousands of happy ex clients recommending
our service to their friends hence over 50% of our new members join through
personal recommendation. Without this we would need to double our membership
fees as we would have to spend well over double on marketing to obtain
sufficient new members, and
b. We only interview clients in London,
our main service centre is in Sussex where rent and rates
are 75% cheaper than central London and our labour rates
are 50% less than London. In addition we are able to cream
off really caring employees (with the extra confidentiality
advantage that they live 70 miles from London so they are
unlikely to know you or your friends). (We are far better
suited for some people, indeed we often recommend other
agencies as most other agencies will accept ladies up to
their late 60's or of larger dress sizes or gentlemen looking
for a less than serious relationship etc ).
(Presidential a service guaranteed to find you your long
term partner or all your fee refunded at £7500)
47 WANT EVEN MORE INFORMATION ABOUT DATING AND
AGENCIES IN GENERAL.
See www.tipsforsuccessfuldating.co.uk this
site can link you to wealth of knowledge from details about dating agencies
to understanding the opposite sex.
NOTE: these notes are given for guidance only.
We have so many different membership levels certain factors
may not be applicable to every level of membership. If
a specific factor contained in these notes is important
to you, call and seek our advice before joining. We constantly
seek to improve our service, the situations these notes
apply to may change and therefore these guidelines do
not bind us contractually.
CONTACT INFORMATION
HEAD OFFICE & DATING CENTRE
(please send all correspondence to here)
The Club
Data House
Princess Drive
Seaford
East Sussex
BN25 2TZ
E:mail alun@execclub.net
TEL: 01323 490666
Mon and Thu 7pm—9pm
LONDON OFFICE
(Interviews only)
2nd Floor
Portland House
Bressenden Place
London
SW1E 5RS
Tel: 0207 930 5555
New members enquires and urgent calls
Web site
www.execclub.net
&
www.execclub2.co.uk
Contracts, confidentiality agreements and guarantees
web site
www .execclub2.co.uk
Tips about dating in general and all dating agencies
www.tipsforsuccessfuldating.co.uk
E:mail alun@execclub.net
Owner
Richard Alun Jenkins
CODE OF PRACTICE FOR INTRODUCTION AGENCIES
A Code drawn up by the Association of British Introduction Agencies
Forward by Council of A.B.I.A.
In October 1981 the Association of British Introduction Agencies was created,
at the instigation of the Office of Fair Trading, in response to genuine
concern about the conduct of dating and introduction agencies. The ABIA is
now recognised generally as the authoritative voice of the introduction industry
with its members providing a reputable and ethical service. In the absence,
so far, of any official legislation, we strive to create a greater public
and media awareness of our service, to raise standards across all of the
industry and enhance the image of our industry. Whilst it would be quite
wrong to infer that all non-member agencies are questionable, it is a sad
fact that many are – not so much through lack of integrity but through
a lack of resources and commercial acumen. The industry is plagued by the
growth of short-lived agencies whose founders expect rich returns from poorly
researched and funded businesses, with many lasting no longer than a few
short weeks. The services provided by agencies are particularly personal
ones, and it is very helpful that consumers having problems with the services
can have access under the code to procedures for resolving the problems,
including independent arbitration if necessary. This is an area where consumers
have the strongest need for adequate and clear information about the services
being offered before any commitment is entered into. The code provisions
addressing these are valuable. Consumers need to have confidence that a code
of practice will deliver what it promises, and the independent mechanism
set up to enforce this code is able to do this.
Association of British Introduction Agencies.
Suite 109, 315 Chiswick High Road, London W4 4HH
Tel: 0208 742 0386 www.abia.org.uk
Aims of the Association
1. To monitor, regulate and improve
the standard of service offered to members of the public.
2. To act as an intermediary between
the industry and the public (including, for example, the
media) in respect of agencies’ practice.
3. To represent the industry in dealings
with Government.
4. To collect and evaluate information
concerning United Kingdom Introduction agencies, whether
members or otherwise. This Code of Practice is
designed to further these aims and will be updated as occasion demands. The
Principles set out here are not intended to interpret, qualify or supplant
the law of the land. They apply only to transactions with consumers. The
Association considers that its members have a duty to accept the Code in
its entirety. If clients feel dissatisfied with their treatment by a member
they have a right to take this up with the Association and, if not resolved,
to
an independent scheme set up in conjunction with an independent panel of
arbitrators.
Standards of Practice
(All members of the Association have accepted these Standards of Practice)
Before any fees are paid or interviews conducted, or any
binding commitment entered into, a prospective client shall
be given a copy of this Code of Practice, together with
a clear and Introduction and Dating Agencies: These agencies
must make it clear that their primary objective is simply
to facilitate introductions. It must be clearly stated
whether or not an interview is to be conducted with the
clients and whether or not all clients are
(A) OBJECTIVE AND METHOD OF INTRODUCTION USED
a1. Marriage Bureaux: At the outset,
marriage bureaux must make it clear that their primary
objective is to help clients find marriage partners.
It must
be clearly stated whether or not an interview is to be conducted with the
client and whether or not all clients are interviewed.
a2. Introduction and Dating Agencies: These agencies must
make it clear that their primary objective is simply to facilitate introductions.
It must be
clearly stated whether or not an interview is to be conducted and whether
or not all clients are interviewed.
a3. ‘Lists’ Method: this
must be described in detail to prospective clients.
(B) ELIGIBILITY FOR MARRIAGE. Bureaux
must state whether or not membership is restricted to
those current unmarried. Where membership
is so restricted applicants should be asked provide a signed statement that
they are legally free to marry
(C) CRITERIA USED FOR MATCHING. The criteria
used for matching clients must be fully explained. Clients
must be told whether stated
preferences will be fully adhered to or whether they will be treated as general
indicators only.
(D) NUMBERS OF INTRODUCTIONS, ETC. Agencies
shall give individual applicants, upon request, a realistic
indication of the number of
introductions they are likely to be offered during their period of membership,
given their particular circumstances and stated preferences. Upon
request, the agency shall tell the client how many people they have available
for introduction in the client’s age group and area at any time. If
a
bureau offers other services (e.g. social events for single people) a realistic
indication of the likely extent of these must be given, subject to
individual agencies terms and conditions listed in their contracts.
(E) FEES CHARGED. All fees charged should
be clearly stated, including any additional charges, which
might be
made for interviews, further introductions, etc., or upon marriage. It should
be made clear whether or not such
fees include VAT
(F) REFUNDS Agencies should offer clients
the choice of either a refund proportionate to the amount
of service received or an
extension of membership if they are unable to provide the level of service
indicated initially. This criteria will apply at the end of the
membership period only.
2. All agencies must have an office
set aside for the exclusive use of the agency that clients
and other interested members of the public can easily
identify, locate and visit. Each agency must have a listed telephone number
that the public can, during normal working hours, use to speak to
someone in authority within that agency.
3. The agency must show to the satisfaction
of the Council of the A.B.I.A. that the agency has a client
base, which is reasonably balanced in terms of
age and sex to enable them to realistically offer clients an adequate selection
of introductions.
4. All information obtained from clients
shall be treated in the strictest of confidence and all
legal provisions governing the protection of data will
be
followed. It is incumbent upon all member agencies to give guidance (and
advice) to their clients regarding standards and codes of behaviour. The
lists of names and addresses of clients must remain the property of the member
company and must not be sold, lent, hired, or used for any purpose
other than as part of their introduction service. Bureaux shall ensure that
clients are removed from their lists of members immediately they so
request
5. All information supplied by the client
to the agency shall not be divulged, without the prior
consent of the client, to any other person or party except
those of the agency’s members who have agreed beforehand to have their
details given to other members of the agency.
6. In the unlikely event of an agency
belonging to the Association ceasing to trade, the agency
will, with the client’s consent, arrange for the
unexpired
portion of any membership to be transferred, free of charge, to another member
agency that offers a comparable service.
7. All members shall prominently indicate
in their literature that they are a member of the Association
and show its address alongside.
Advertising
1. No member shall publish advertisements
that are inaccurate, ambiguous, exaggerated or liable to
be misconstrued. All advertising by members must comply
with the codes and standards set by the Advertising Standards
Authority and the ITC and Radio Authority, and with the
requirements of any legislation currently in force. It
must be realistic and avoid arousing expectations that
cannot be fulfilled.
2. Advertisements must not contain the
words ‘guarantee’ or ‘guaranteed’ unless
the full terms of such undertakings as well as the remedial
action open to a customer are either clearly set out in
the advertisement or are available to the customer in writing
before any monies are paid.
3. The price quoted shall be the price
at which the client can participate fully in a member’s
services. Members must therefore quote the relevant price
for their service, plus any additional charge that may
reasonably arise (including VAT). If the quoted price excludes
any part of the service, such exclusions must be clearly
specified.
Handling Complaints
1. Members of the Association must ensure
that effective and immediate action is taken to achieve
just settlement of a complaint. To this end there will
be an easily identifiable and accessible arrangement for
the reception and handling of complaints from clients.
2. All members should maintain an analysis
of justified complaints in relation to any of the provisions
of the Code of Practice and should take action based on
this information to improve their service to the client.
3. When complaints are raised through
a third party (e.g. Trading Standards Officer or a Citizens
Advice Bureau), willing guidance must be given to that
body and every attempt should be made to re-establish direct
communication with the complaining client and to reach
a satisfactory settlement with them.
4. In the event that a complaint is
not resolved, members of the Association must make it clear
to clients that they have the right to refer the complaint
to the Association.
5. Members will give every assistance
to the Association whilst it is investigating a complaint.
6. Where the A.B.I.A. considers the
conciliation procedure has failed to resolve the dispute
it will give the member company 14 days’ notice of
this decision, in which time the company may take steps
to resolve the issue. In the absence of its being resolved
within that period the A.B.I.A. will inform the client
of their right to seek resolution of their complaint under
special low-cost arbitration arrangements administered
by the independent arbitrators. This independently run
scheme, however, is not suitable for more complex disputes;
the arbitrators or the A.B.I.A. can advise on whether or
not a case is appropriate. Under these arrangements, arbitration
will normally be on the basis of documents only. The award
of such arbitration is final, legally binding and enforceable.
The client will be advised also that they can, alternatively,
take legal action through the courts.
Compliance with the Code of Practice
1. Regular random checks are made by
Officers of the Association on members to ensure that literature
given to the public confirms to the Code
and does not use language or arguments, which might well lead to unrealistic
expectations on behalf of the prospective clients.
2. All complaints, or other incidents
involving non-compliance with the Code, are recorded and
examined by a Sub-Committee of the Council, which
consists of a majority of independent persons co-opted to the Council. They
are empowered to censure member agencies for non-compliance, to
direct compliance and, if necessary, to terminate the member agency’s
membership of the Association.
3. An analysis of all complaints under the Code shall
be made on an annual basis.
updated October 31st 2008
