Hostly
What is Hostly?
Hostly is a social connection platform designed to help people connect through real-world experiences with details defined upfront
Hostly isn't just another social app. You start with the plan, then decide who joins. Whether it's for friends, a date, or just good company.
The problem was real
Social plans fall through all the time. Someone suggests grabbing coffee, everyone says "yeah maybe," and nothing happens. Dating apps feel transactional. Friend groups scatter after college. People crave connection but don't know how to make it happen.
We wanted to fix that.
Stephen and me.
Building Hostly from day one.
How it all started...
Hostly started as a frustration Stephen and I kept running into over and over. Making plans sounded easy until it actually had to happen. Someone throws out "let's grab drinks," everyone's in, and then it falls apart. Or worse, you put something together and half the group flakes last minute. It was predictable.
So instead of trying to fix people, we flipped the model. We started building around the idea that the plan comes first. You decide what you're doing, put it out there, and the right people show up. No chasing, no group chat chaos, no maybes pretending to be yes.
From there, I went all in on the build. Not just coding, but building out an international team from the ground up. DevOps, developers, QA, designers, scaling it out to a team of ten focused on one thing, shipping. We moved fast, tested constantly, and got it live across iOS and Android.
Stephen originally founded the idea, and led the strategic vision to drive momentum on scaling the network, partnerships, opportunities and adoption. I focused on making sure what we were building could actually hold up. It was collaborative, scrappy, and at times a bit chaotic, but it worked. And I wouldn't change a thing!
We started in Winnipeg on purpose. If it sticks here, it can scale anywhere.
It's more than an invite
No more 'let's hang sometime.' Just real plans with real people.
Ethan, 32
DatingPicnic at the Park
Sat, Jul 12 · 12:00 PM · Kildonan Park · 11km
Free to Join
Kelly, 28
FriendshipPaint Night
Fri, Jul 11 · 6:00 PM
Across the Board Cafe · 6km
Est. value: Up to $100 · $25+
Browse local events, request to join
Find fun, unique, and community-driven events in your area based on your interests. Not just concerts and bars—real people planning real things.
Choose from 4 categories
FriendshipDating
Just for Fun
NetworkingSelect an age range
25 – 32+
Create events, decide who joins
Easily create events, share details, and choose your crowd. You control who joins—hosts can approve or decline requests. No randos crashing your plans.
Plan your vibe
Omg girrrrrl!! I love Bruno Mars 😭
Really excited about this event!!
I'd love to know how you won these tickets!!? Bruno Mars is amazing!
Find your people.
Tap into the moment
Connect with guests or hosts who share your passions and create meaningful, lasting connections. Real transparency about what's planned and who's interested.
Meet people with same interests
Built for everyone
Building a social app is easy. Building one people actually use? That's hard.
The biggest challenge wasn't the tech—it was designing for everyone. Hostly needed to work for a 20-year-old student looking for friends, a 35-year-old single parent trying dating again, and a 57-year-old looking to rebuild community after the kids moved out. Same app, completely different needs.
We couldn't just pick one demographic and optimize for them. A college student wants spontaneous hangouts. A busy professional needs plans locked in days ahead. Someone exploring dating wants clarity about intentions. Someone just looking for book club friends wants zero pressure.
“I want to meet women who share my interests in music and good vibes. But I'm not sure who's genuine or just out for fun”
Event
Coffee at local café for Marcus
Date and time
May 5th, 2026 • 2 PM
Looking for
DatingShared interests
Preferences
Guest list
“I want to enjoy social time outside of my family life. But it's hard to meet new friends who understand my stage of life.”
Event
Coffee at local café for Christa
Date and time
May 5th, 2026 • 2 PM
Looking for
FriendshipJust for FunShared interests
Preferences
Guest list
Same event. Same time. Same place.
But Marcus sees it as a chance to meet someone special, while Christa just wants good conversation with no pressure.
Hostly works for both.
Where we are now
Starting where it matters most—home.
We're launching Hostly in Winnipeg first, and honestly, it just made sense. This is where we live, where our friends are, and where we can actually talk to the people using the app. We're not trying to conquer the world on day one—we're trying to get it right with our own community first.
Winnipeg's a great testing ground because people here don't sugarcoat things. If something's confusing or annoying, they'll tell us. And if it works? We'll know it's real. We're learning every day, fixing things as we go, and building something that actually helps people connect in meaningful ways.
The plan is simple: start local, learn fast, and grow from there. If we can help Winnipeggers make plans that stick and meet people they genuinely want to hang out with, we'll have something worth sharing with the rest of the world. But for now, we're focused on home—and honestly, that feels exactly right.
Our home and testing ground
