We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tessa Hall and Alex Barnes a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Tessa and Alex, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

Friend of a Friend (FOAF) was born from a simple truth: we’re all craving real connection. Not just more friends — but the kind of shared moments that make you feel seen.

It started in Alex’s backyard with 30 of us — friends and friends-of-friends — just wanting to hang out and actually connect. That first night sparked something special, and it hasn’t stopped since. What began as a backyard gathering turned into wine tastings, matcha collabs, and events with over 100 people — all designed to feel intentional, effortless, and fun.

We are deeply passionate about turning strangers into friends through curated experiences that break the script. No small talk. No weird networking vibes. Just real people, in real life, building real community.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Friend of a Friend (FOAF) is a social club and creative community born out of a deep craving for real-life connection. It started with the two of us — best friends who’ve always loved planning gatherings and bringing people together in a meaningful way. In a world that feels increasingly disconnected, we saw a clear need for something more human, more creative, and more joyful.

Our first event was in Alex’s backyard — 30 friends and their friends sharing food and conversation. It was casual, but it felt different. People stayed late. Strangers became friends. And afterward, everyone asked the same thing: “When’s the next one?” That moment sparked what would become FOAF.

Since then, we’ve grown from backyard hangs to full-scale events with over 100 attendees — from intimate wine tastings to matcha collabs with local coffee shops, backyards, and hidden corners of the city. Every FOAF experience is designed to feel thoughtful, a little unexpected, and deeply connective.

What sets us apart is that we’re not just throwing parties — we’re building a movement. One rooted in creativity, vulnerability, and the belief that the best relationships begin when someone introduces you to a friend of a friend.

We offer curated social experiences, brand collaborations, community partnerships, and a growing collection of FOAF-branded products that reflect our ethos: connection over curation, play over polish, and belonging over perfection.

We’re most proud of the moments we can’t plan: when someone shows up alone and leaves with a new group chat. When people say, “That was the first time I felt like I clicked with someone in a long time.”

What we want people to know is this: FOAF is more than an event. It’s a reminder that connection is still out there — and sometimes, it’s just one friend-of-a-friend away.

How’d you meet your business partner?

⸻

Funny enough, FOAF began the way we hope most of our events do — through a friend of a friend.

We met the way a lot of great connections happen: someone we both knew thought we’d hit it off and introduced us. They were right. From our very first conversation, we clicked — same sense of humor, same love of planning over-the-top hangouts, same dream of building something that brought people together in a way that felt real.

That instant connection became a friendship, and eventually, a partnership rooted in trust, creativity, and shared vision. FOAF was never just a business idea — it was a natural extension of how we live.

We started as a friend-of-a-friend story, and now we’re building a world full of them.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

At FOAF, we treat community like friendship — not a transaction. So staying in touch doesn’t mean just showing up in inboxes; it means creating experiences people want to return to.

We foster loyalty by being personal, consistent, and unexpected. Whether it’s a DM reply that turns into a deeper convo, or an inside joke from one event showing up at the next — we remember the little things. That’s what makes people feel seen.

We also keep in touch across platforms — gorilla marketing, social media where we show the behind-the-scenes and the heart behind the brand, and in-person interactions that remind people why they came in the first place.

At the end of the day, our “clients” are real people. They show up for us because we show up for them — not just with great events or content, but with intention, integrity, and a genuine desire to connect

Contact Info:

• Website: [email protected]
• Instagram: Foafsocialclub
• Linkedin: Foafsocialclub
• Other: Tik tok foafsocialclub

Image Credits

@thelindawangphotography