Woman uses Tinder to create ultimate girl squad

The power of female friendship

(Getty Images/iStockphoto)

It’s a frustrating predicament to face when you’re in the mood for a night out and have no one to go with.

However, when Elva Carri found herself in that exact scenario, she decided to use Tinder to her advantage, with extraordinary results.

One Friday night in Dublin, Carri was disappointed to discover that all of her friends were either too busy or too tired to hit the dance floor with her.

Not one to give up, Carri ventured onto Tinder, changing her preferences from men to women in the hope that she would come across other like-minded women who fancied a night out.

Carri wasn’t expecting the positive response that she received. She quickly matched with more than 100 women, all of whom wanted to join her.

She then chose to create a secret Facebook for all of her matches, which is how the idea for GirlCrew was born.

GirlCrew is a platform that women can use to make new friends and take part in a variety of fun activities, from going on nights out to café meet ups and exercise outings.


 GirlCrew co-founders Elva Carri, Pamela Newenham and Áine Mulloy (Photographer: Peter Varga)
 (GirlCrew)

The organisation currently has more than 100,000 members in 50 cities around the world, in locations including Dublin, London, New York and Melbourne.

Carri joined forces with Pamela Newenham and Áine Mulloy to make GirlCrew the flourishing community that it is today.

Last summer, GirlCrew released its free app that’s available to download on iOS and Android.

The app was officially launched in the US last week on International Women’s Day.

There are all sorts of groups and events on the GirlCrew website, which you can browse by topic.

Categories include things like fashion, festivals, music, sport and travel among many others.

GirlCrew provides women with a supportive network that they can turn to when they want to make new friends or simply express troubles that they’re experiencing.


 Women can use GirlCrew to make new friends and take part in all sorts of different activities (Photographer: Peter Varga)
 (GirlCrew)

While women may differ across the globe in terms of their interests or culture, according to co-founder Newenham, many find themselves struggling with the same issues and insecurities when attempting to meet new people.

“They encounter the same problems, they have the same advice and recommendations,” Newenham told Refinery29.

“Someone from London could post seeking dating advice and people from Melbourne and Brussels will respond."