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Capsule

Capsule

for

for

Love

Love

Getting a blind date from vending machines

By Ariel Lai

nsert coins, turn the knob, and… Tang says he wants to change the by WeChat through which users can
ta-da! Here comes a rounded cap- local dating culture with his machines. block or reject friend requests. “They
Isule which contains an appealing “Generally, it’s hard to find a partner have the right to say no,” he says.
little toy that may be an anime figu- here since many occupations have Tang introduces the “Pain Cap-
rine or a miniature of food and ani- long working hours, not to mention sules” in addition to the original Fate
mals. the prominent problem of gender im- Capsules. The new idea allows users
Capsule toys, or Gashapon in balance in many industries,” he says. to share their heartbreaking stories
Japanese, are childhood memories of Tang adds that many female users of with potential dates. While the origi-
many Hong Kong people. But have the machines are nurses or kindergar- nal capsules are more popular among
you ever imagined getting a blind date ten teachers, whereas male users are male users in their 20s, the new Pain
from a capsule toy? The tower of pink usually engineers or members of dis- Capsules, which contain more than
capsule vending machines standing ciplined services. These occupations simple personal information, are well-
outside BT Reptile, a pet store in Shek are known for extreme sex ratios. received by female users.
Kip Mei, does exactly that. Do the Fate Capsule machines ac- If you want to take a chance to
Ben Tang, 26, owner of BT Rep- tually make any successful matches? meet a new partner, find the Fate Cap-
tile, came across the idea in Taiwan Tang says he does hear about suc- sule machines at Shop 208, Kum Yuck
and decided to set up his own one on cessful cases occasionally. “We have Building, 2 Wai Chi Lane, Shek Kip
Valentine’s Day last year. Named “Fate a withdrawal mechanism. When us- Mei or visit their Facebook page for
Capsule”, the machines have sold over ers are no longer single, they ask us to more information.
2,000 capsules, with around 20 to 30 opt them out from the matching and
users a week. have their names removed.” He says
Paying HK$20, a capsule contain- some couples matched through the Edited by Valerie Wan
ing the name and personal details of machines revisited his shop to thank
a date will be spat out from the ma- him.
chine. People who want their infor- He has also taken measures to
mation contained in a capsule have to make the matchmaking process safer.
leave their information such as name, Applicants are screened before their
age, height, weight, hobby and contact information is put in the capsules,
on Fate Capsule’s Facebook page. and they are only allowed to contact