t seems appropriate that Sarah Kathryn Smith’s career came about as a result of serendipity.

After all, “matchmaker” is a quaint, old-fashioned term that hints of magic and fortune telling and other elements found in fables.

But Smith (BSFCS ’98, Consumser Economics) has taken serendipity and matchmaking, combined them with the internet, TV, radio and demographic research, and thrown in a sprinkle of hard-nosed business acumen to establish a business that has expanded to five major cities and includes plans to franchise in many more.

Eight At Eight Dinner Club began as a computer-based dream of a dot.com entrepreneur who believed he could conduct a dating service/dinner club completely on-line – sending out email notices to members about upcoming dinners, having them meet at the same pre-arranged restaurant, and allowing “nature” to take its course.

But as the dot.com bubble burst in 1999, Smith’s father learned the Eight At Eight founder wanted to unload the business and suggested his oldest daughter take on the challenge.

“I used my college savings to buy the business when I was 22,” recalls Smith, who still had college savings by virtue of attending UGA on HOPE Scholarship funds. “Mostly I was paying for a website and stationery and a small membership list.”

The next day, Smith began marketing her new business with a phone call to Atlanta radio station 99X. “I asked them if they had heard about this new concept,” she says. “I went on their show and within 48 hours had doubled the membership.”

Smith’s matchmaking skills date back to high school when she arranged dates for several couples. While none led to marriage, the couples did date happily. Now, Smith had the opportunity to use those matchmaking skills in a professional venue. For the first six months, Smith continued her day job with an investment capital firm while spending nights and weekends – and most of her salary – getting Eight At Eight up and running. “My business became my favorite hobby and expense,” she says of those early days.

Besides increasing the membership numbers, Smith also realized the importance of a personal touch. So, at each Eight At Eight gathering either Smith, her sister Emily (BSFCS ’01, Consumer Economics), or another “hostess” greets the four men and four women who gather first in the bar of the restaurant for a free drink or two and conversation.

“It’s important that every time there’s a gathering a familiar face is there to greet those attending,” Smith says.

At a recent gathering in an Italian-themed restaurant in Atlanta, Smith demonstrated her skill as groups of eight – four men and four women – gathered at 7 p.m., 7:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Smith and three col leagues were on-hand to greet those arriving and provide the ice-breaking small talk necessary when eight strangers are meeting for the first time. Just before each group went to their table, Smith excused herself and checked out the place cards, re-arranging a few as she determined that particular men and women might have more in common than others.

Once the last table was seated, however, she was done for the evening. Those attending an Eight At Eight dinner pay for their own meals—separate checks already have been arranged for by Smith.

“We’ll email everyone tomorrow and ask if the dinner went well,” she says. “About the worst comment we can receive is that the table was too quiet. No one likes that, but sometimes those attending just aren’t very outgoing.”

In addition to the dinner parties, Smith also has expanded Eight At Eight to include other get-togethers for the members, who pay $150 annually for the membership plus a small fee for each dinner or other event they attend. The other events, such as “happy hours,” gatherings for dog lovers at Piedmont Park, or trips to professional sporting events, provide members an added opportunity to meet new people or to get to better know someone they met at a dinner.

Such was the case for Karen Vaughan and David McManus.

Vaughan, whom Smith calls one of her most loyal customers, began her membership with Eight At Eight before Smith even owned it. A young attorney, Vaughan said that when she returned to her hometown of Atlanta she realized that all of her childhood friends had either married or moved away. With little time to establish her own social life, Vaughan “outsourced” her social schedule to Eight At Eight.

“One of the great things about Eight At Eight is that it’s not just a dating service,” Vaughan says. “At each dinner you’re meeting seven other people, both men and women.”

Vaughan made a number of close friends and found Eight At Eight was a great networking opportunity. “I met people who were in a variety of professions and we would exchange business cards.”

Eventually, Vaughan also met her future husband at an Eight At Eight dinner. The two actually weren’t seated near each other during the dinner, but struck up a conversation while waiting on a particularly slow valet service. The next day, Vaughan emailed David McManus about an Eight At Eight cocktail party that evening. The couple married in November 2003. Among those in attendance were three close friends Vaughan also met through Eight At Eight.

Once she had established the Atlanta location, Smith decided that Eight At Eight was a concept that could work in multiple locations, so she soon established Eight At Eight Dinner Clubs in Dallas, Las Vegas, and Chicago. For the past year, she’s lived in New York City establishing an Eight At Eight there.

While living for a year in Chicago, Smith had the good fortune to meet someone connected with the Oprah Winfrey talk show. Soon, she was sitting with Oprah, explaining the concept and receiving plenty of positive feedback.

The only problem, female membership soared at all of her locations, but not enough men have signed up. To counter that trend, Smith has been calling national sports talk shows, trying to land an interview. She’s scheduled to appear on “Cold Pizza” which airs on ESPN, but doesn’t have an exact date. A recent article in The Wall Street Journal focusing on the lack of men signing up for Eight At Eight and other dating organizations has eased the problem, Smith says.

“Men are always saying they can’t find women to date,” she says. “I ask them what they like to do and they say, ‘Go to sporting events, hang out in sports bars.’ Women say they can’t find men. I ask them what they like to do and they say, ‘Watch TV, go to the movies.’ No wonder they can’t find each other! They’re not where the other people are!”

While at first blush it might seem that Smith’s success hinges solely on the force of her own personality, she credits the principles she learned in consumer economics with providing the grounding she needs to continue making her business grow.

“I originally chose consumer economics because it had no language requirement. Instead, I took computer and internet classes,” she says. In addition, the major gave her the opportunity to learn about pricing strategies and consumer behavior. As she considers expanding, Smith has returned to professor Doug Bachtel for help in determining which cities have the right demographics for an Eight At Eight franchise.

“He and Mick Ragsdale sat me down and said that Las Vegas was a market worth expanding to because it had a large enough population of single professionals to start an Eight At Eight franchise there,” she says. “They were also a tremendous help in explaining what facts to look for and what tables to use within the census bureau.”

As she continues living in New York City, establishing Eight At Eight there, Smith is also making plans to sell franchises in other large markets.

“I have my hands full managing the five locations that already are established,” she says. “But I would like to sell 20 to 30 franchises and expand the business more that way.”

As for her own personal life, the Vivian Leigh look-alike who earned money during the Atlanta Olympics by appearing as Gone With The Wind’s Scarlett O’Hara, says she’s too busy managing her business to have much of a social life, but maybe one day she’ll save herself a seat at an Eight At Eight dinner.