Cherry Blossoms (marriage agency)
 Promotional Image with Cherry Blossoms 2016 Logo | |
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International dating Online Dating transnational marriage social networking | |
| Founded | 1974 |
| Headquarters | Kapaau, Hawaii, USA |
Key people | Mike Krosky, President |
| Website |
blossoms |
Cherry Blossoms is the oldest and one of the largest international social networking companies in the World today. It was established in 1974 as a picture catalog specializing in women from Asia. The agency printed catalogs of "personals" listings, selling addresses to customers who were then left to their own devices in corresponding with and courting the women. Eventually, photographs supplemented text listings, then color photographs were added.[1] As of 2001, Cherry Blossoms had evolved entirely to a web-based format. Circa 2014, friending capability was added.
Cherry Blossoms currently operates in over a hundred countries, with a strong presence in China, South America, and southeast Asia, especially the Philippines.[2] Relative to many other dating sites, Cherry Blossoms' female clientele has a higher average age and tends to be more interested in marriage rather than short-term hookups.
Statistics
Cherry Blossoms was started as a picture catalog magazine-style introduction service of Ridge Consultants in 1974 and is no longer owned by the original founder. The website states in excess of 60,000 female members and 15,000 male members.
Controversy
There have been several prominent cases of abuse and murder involving couples who met via Cherry Blossoms, including the case of Jack Reeves, who was convicted of murdering two of his wives; the case became the subject of a 1999 book called Mail Order Murder.
Additional controversy surrounds Cherry Blossoms and most other online dating sites due to the increase in Romance scam use of the site by members.
Mail Order Bride classification
Cherry Blossoms is often mentioned in news articles about the "mail order bride" industry, although Mike Krosky, head of Cherry Blossoms, states, βIt is an antiquated, uninformed expression. One hundred years ago there were mail-order brides. There is no such thing today."[3]
References
- β Jackson, Suzanne H. (June 2002). "To Honor and Obey: Trafficking in "Mail-Order Brides"". Geo. Wash. L. Rev. 70 (475).
- β Brooks, Mark (1 October 2013). "CherryBlossoms.com Interview With CEO Mike Krosky". Online Personals Watch. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
- β Lisa Anne Simons (2001), MARRIAGE, MIGRATION, AND MARKETS: INTERNATIONAL MATCHMAKING AND INTERNATIONAL FEMINISM (PDF)