Amy Laurent on her new book and TV show, Miss Advised

By Beth Mellow

On the rocky road to love, many of us are guilty of getting emotionally attached too quickly, drunk texting at 2 a.m. or letting an undeserving ex back into our lives. In the hopes of becoming smarter daters and finding “the one,” we turn to relationship experts to advise us and matchmakers to help us find someone with whom we’ll click.

But would you choose a matchmaker who is guilty of the same dating faux pas as you, who is single and still on the hunt for true love?
Apparently many would, as Amy Laurent’s booming matchmaking business indicates. The thirtysomething singleton who calls the Upper East Side home has been in business for seven years and currently operates offices in New York, Los Angeles, Miami and London. Additionally, since Laurent appeared on Bravo TV’s Miss Advised, a docu-series that ended its season on Aug. 6 focused on the personal lives of three single relationship “experts,” she claims that her services are in more demand than ever. “I’ve seen an uptick in business. Applications for men and women have increased since the start of the show,” she said.

Laurent speculates that the expansion of her client roster has to do with the fact that viewers relate to her.

“What’s interesting is that while I’m out having a drink or at the gym running on the treadmill, women approach me and ask, ‘Are you that girl?’ They tell me that they totally get what I’m going through,” she said. “I think they identify with me in the sense that, like a lot of other women, I am a workaholic and I’ve gone for long periods of time when I don’t even have a date.”

In addition to the series spotlighting the day-to-day at Laurent’s office, it opened a window on her personal life. Viewers were along for the ride when her notorious ex-boyfriend, AB (pronounced “Abie”), who had left her for a job in Saudi Arabia, returns and Laurent, without hesitating, accepts an invitation to see him. On her blog, she admits that she would advise her clients against doing exactly what she did, then ponders, “So what the hell happened to me?”

Laurent continues to open up about her relationship foibles in her new book, 8 Weeks to Everlasting: A Step-by-Step Guide to Getting (and Keeping) the Guy You Want (St. Martin’s Griffin, 2012). In the book, she provides practical advice on how to manage the early, precarious part of a relationship, providing examples from the love lives of clients and friends as well as her own experiences. At one point, she discusses her brief relationship with a television writer named “Quinten” for whom she made herself too available, saying yes to any date, even if it was last minute or inconvenient.

“I’m just like you when it comes to my own heart, but when it comes to guiding you, I’m going to be clearheaded. I’m devoted to it,” she continued coyly. “I think I focus on getting people across their obstacles so I don’t have to deal with my own.”

Laurent realizes it might be risky to her business reputation, but felt it was important to honestly portray herself in her book and on the show. “I’m a very real person and I really thought, I’m so tired of all the experts out there creating this myth that we’re perfect,” she said.
Not only has Laurent used her romantic life as a source to draw from when advising clients, it was her dating experiences that attracted her to matchmaking in the first place. The East Coast native was in her twenties, living in Los Angeles and eager to meet guys. After scoping out a few ads for matchmaking services, she applied to a couple and was disappointed in the men she was paired with.

“Women didn’t pay for the service, so, because of that, I felt that I wasn’t really listened to. I thought more consideration was given to the guys because they were paying clients. I knew that there were things I would do differently if I had my own matchmaking service,” said.
Dissatisfied with her sales job at a custom brokerage, Laurent started her matchmaking company with the goal of making happy matches for both the men and women who enlist her help.

“The women don’t pay for my services, but I listen to them as much as my male clients and consider their thoughts and feelings as just as important,” she said.

Her approach, according to her company’s statistics, has been working. To date, Laurent’s matchmaking has resulted in 27 marriages, with an 80 to 85 percent success rate in finding relationships for her clients. Also, though men pay to be part of the service, Laurent and her team don’t accept poor behavior. In her book she admits to jettisoning one client for making lewd comments to dates and saying sayonara to a guy who would “grill the girls in a passive-aggressive way.”

While Laurent’s reputation for being a fair-minded matchmaker has been great for business, she admits it’s not always great for her already imperfect dating life. She explains that discussing her profession with a potential beau at a cocktail party can be awkward. “I think it’s very intimidating for a lot of men,” she said. “A lot of guys think I will be analyzing them and that it will be weird.”
Nevertheless, Laurent continues her own pursuit of love and sees the television show and book as learning experiences.

“You don’t have to be perfect to be ready to date, but you have to be open and honest. It’s been scary and I felt vulnerable, but I had to be honest with myself,” She said.

For further information about Laurent, visit amylaurent.com. Her book, 8 Weeks to Everlasting, is in bookstores and available at Amazon.com.

The colorful interior of Coco Le Vu. Photo by Andrew Schwartz.

By Beth Mellow
The sweet melody of “Sugar, Sugar” and other candy-themed music greets customers as they enter Coco Le Vu candy shop, which recently opened at 202 110th St. in East Harlem.
Sisters Christine and Nalanie Milano, who co-own Coco Le Vu, decided to open a candy shop in honor of their father, who recently passed away. “Our father was a happy person, so we wanted to create a happy place. I mean, after all, who doesn’t love candy?” Christine Milano asked.
Coco Le Vu stocks all kinds of sweets, from novelty candy, such as popcorn-flavored gummies, to old favorites like Now & Later and Bazooka gum. Visitors will also find Hello Kitty-branded candy and other whimsical confections. The store features gourmet chocolates that are handmade by the owners’ sister, Francine, a trained dessert chef, and offers gift baskets, products at wholesale rates and candy stations for special events.
While both sisters are passionate about their business, neither had prior experience owning a store. Nalanie works in finance and balances her full-time job with work at Coco Le Vu on weekends. Christine, who has over a decade of experience as an events planner, focuses solely on the shop. They are training staff and, Nalanie admits, “We’re learning along with them.”
The sisters went to the National Candy Expo in 2011, met with potential vendors and visited candy shops across New York City in preparation for their opening. They also gave special consideration to the location of the store.
“We originally considered Park Slope since it’s such a family-oriented neighborhood, but ultimately we decided to open in East Harlem because this is where we grew up and we still have a lot of support here,” Christine said.
While the women no longer live in the neighborhood—Nalanie lives in Midtown and Christine lives in White Plains—they still have lots of friends, former neighbors and relatives who stop in at Coco Le Vu on a regular basis. In fact, they have collaborated with other women they grew up with in East Harlem; the sisters are childhood friends with the founders of Amanesca, a catering and cooking education business, and have worked with them to host dessert-making classes for adults at the shop.
Besides drawing on support from the community, the goal of opening Coco Le Vu in East Harlem is to give back to the neighborhood, specifically the children raised there. “We want to be associated with education; we are currently working with local PTAs and some of the teachers who taught us when we were young,” said Christine.
The sisters are developing a rewards program for local students launching at their alma mater, P.S. 206. Kids who earn good grades are taken on field trips to the candy shop and are awarded the opportunity to choose from a bevy of tasty treats available there.
In addition to celebrating the academic accomplishments of local children, Coco Le Vu also serves as a venue for other types of celebration. There is a party room in the back of the store where parents can host birthday parties, starting at $25 a head.
While the sisters are thrilled by the warm reception they have received from the neighborhood, the fact that they are establishing a family business is what brings them the most pleasure.
“All of our family works here. [Our dad] would always preach, ‘Family has to stick together,’ and enforced that, as sisters, we had to look out for each other,” Christina said. Even the Milanos youngest sister, Kaylene, who is still in high school, helps out on the cash register.
For further information, visit www.cocolevu.com.