© 2026 You Min Choi
Queer life today is often concentrated in designated contexts—nightlife, events, dating apps—while everyday life remains neutral, uncertain, or unsafe. Tandem responds by extending queer presence into those spaces, not through visibility, but through use.
At partner locations, members receive small perks—discounts or benefits that make it easier to enter and stay.
What brings people together is not identity or performance, but a shared decision: to be there, to do something, to occupy the same time and place.
Tandem means working side by side. In Korean, the Hanja character 人 is pronounced 인 (in) and symbolizes “person” or “human.” At the end of the day, it points to something simple: we are people, too.
The identity draws from the clarity of queer pins and protest signs—direct, minimal, legible—translating them into a more neutral, subtle form through restrained color and typography.
Activities are simple, everyday plans rather than hosted events, and participation does not require interaction or commitment.
A calm, restrained visual language that avoids defining queerness, giving users space to define themselves on their own terms.
Venues don’t always mean safe spaces.
Hana Oji Fay
Assistant Project Manager at The Galante Architecture Studio
We are all afraid of being judged, especially by those you identify with the most. As humans, as social animals, we just want to be around others, without identifying ourselves and without expectations.
Stanley Hainsworth
Former VP Creative Director of Starbucks
In the normal world, queer people are just people. Normalization, in that sense, can be more powerful than visibility.
Joey Zeledón
Designer and Author of Design is Trans
- Grindr
-
Lex
- HER
Dating and social apps offer access and density, but depend on explicit identity and active engagement, often centered around dating.
- Meetup
-
Eventbrite
- Timeleft
Event platforms organize connection, but through time-bound experiences that require planning, commitment, and often existing social circles.
- Queer bars and nightlife
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LGBTQ+ community centers
- Pride events and programming
Queer spaces provide visibility and cultural value, but many are disappearing and limited to certain moments, not everyday life.
We shift the context of belonging from something you seek out to something you can experience within everyday life, without requiring new behaviors or environments.
Optional participation, not interaction-driven
No requirement for identity disclosure or performance
Tandem’s model scales in urban environments with sufficient density to support this, extending beyond the limits of traditional queer infrastructure.
Accessible & Intentional: Roughly the cost of two coffees
Supports the Model: Funds operations, moderation, and community impact
Includes Value: Everyday co-presence + contribution to LGBTQ+ causes
01
Everyday Activities
Create or join everyday activities in your area, with flexible timing and no requirement to interact.
02
Partner Locations
Members receive 12 passes each month, with unused passes rolling over up to a total of 20, to use at partner locations for perks like discounts or small upgrades.
03
Keepsakes
Limited merchandise created with partner locations—small, everyday objects.
04
Built-in Impact
15% of membership revenue is pooled and directed to LGBTQ+ organizations selected by members. Regular transparency reports are shared with the community.
- Estimated at $10–25 per user
- Primary channels include Instagram, partner locations, and word of mouth
- Discovery often starts through friends or social platforms and is reinforced in familiar, everyday environments
Churn
- Highest in the first 1–2 months
- Decreases after initial real-world use, such as joining an activity or visiting a partner location
- People are more likely to stay once they move from hearing about Tandem to using it in places they already go
- Continued use is driven by a sense of belonging, low-stakes connection, everyday perks, and the causes they support
- Churn increases when users do not use Tandem again in their daily routines
Partner Value
- Partners offer small perks such as discounts or upgrades
- Gains include steady, everyday foot traffic rather than one-time visits
- No revenue sharing or operational changes required
- Performance is strongest in locations with consistent, everyday traffic
Phase 1: New York
Launch in NYC during Pride Month with an introductory price of $6.99/month. Start with a small network of partner locations and Instagram as the primary channel.
Partner with local LGBTQ+ organizations to build trust and reach early members.
Insights from Phase 1 inform:
- Which activities drive repeat participation
- Which locations generate return visits
- How users first encounter Tandem
These insights define what scales.
Phase 2: Expand
Expand to other large, dense cities. Work with local LGBTQ+ organizations to establish credibility and introduce Tandem through trusted networks.
Scale what works based on Phase 1 insights. Growth builds through partner locations, repetition, and word of mouth.
Phase 3: Extend
Extend into smaller or less queer-visible cities, where formal queer infrastructure may be limited. Partner with local organizations where possible, and focus on a smaller number of intentional locations to build presence gradually.
Introduce a community-led approach, where early members act as local anchors (ambassadors) within their networks.
“In fact, in nature, diversity — or difference — is the premise. It is through the dynamics of difference that habitats form and new species take shape. Given enough time, everything changes, be it an individual, a population, a species, a lineage. It is through these changes, these little molecular uprisings, that we become a community, human and otherwise.”
Dr. Patricia Ononiwu KaishianAuthor of “Forest Euphoria: The Abounding Queerness of Nature”