Answers, and how we do things.
How an event works, what we ask of each other, and where to reach a person when you need one.
Before you book.
Closer puts a small group of vetted people around a table in someone's home. There is nothing to swipe through and no interest you have to share. You book a spot, you turn up, and your host takes care of the rest.
Members. Every member passes a trust and safety screening before they can book, and re-verifies each year. Hosts can bring their own friends, who go through the same screening. You won't host or sit with strangers off the street.
Create your account and pass the trust and safety screening. It is a one-time step, and you re-verify once a year to keep booking.
Browse the events coming up and book the one you want. Members book directly, with no application each time.
In members' homes. Your host handles the address, the food, and the plan. The full address reaches you once your seat is confirmed.
Your ticket is a QR code in the Closer app, along with the address and the group chat. Open the app at the door and your host checks you in.
Cancel up to 48 hours before the event and it costs nothing. Your seat opens up to someone else.
Inside 48 hours the ticket is not refundable, though we will do our best to move you to another date. If you do not cancel and do not turn up, there is a $20 no-show fee.
Closer covers the budget. The host runs the night. Members pay an annual platform fee to book, and it includes the trust and safety screening, curation, programming, and the concierge.
What we all sign on to.
Every member signs on to the same few things. It is what makes a room of strangers work.
- Be open.
- Welcome perspectives that are not yours. Read the room. Honor a no without question.
- Be present.
- Give the table your attention. Keep conversations moving, and notice who is quiet and who is taking up space.
- Drink responsibly.
- Enjoy yourself. Do not disrupt the room.
- Care for the space.
- Treat the space, the host, and everyone in it with respect. Help when needed. Thank your host.
- Hold your seat.
- Tables are small, so a seat you do not use is one nobody else could take. Cancel up to 48 hours before and it costs nothing. Miss an event without cancelling and there is a $20 fee.
- Flag what's off.
- Hosts can ask anyone to leave who is not aligned with this. If anything feels off, message us and we will handle it.
Opening your door.
The questions people ask before they apply to host.
Only if you want to. There are three formats: a soirée with light bites, a home-cooked dinner where you cook what you actually love to cook, or an experience built around something to do together, at your place or a space nearby. You pick.
Doesn't matter. Hosts have run nights in 400-square-foot studios and lofts that fit twenty-five. The format and the headcount get matched to your space, not the other way around. We figure it out with you when you apply.
Yes. Closer covers the budget, so hosting never costs you anything out of pocket. It reaches you before the event, and the room is yours to run.
You do not need your own place. It can happen in a common space nearby: a friend's building, the lounge or roof deck in yours, a favourite spot outdoors.
If none of those work, message us. We can pair you with a space, and we are always open to new partners who want to bring people together in theirs.
Something is not working.
You can sign in with your password, or with a magic link sent to your email. If the link has not arrived, check your spam folder. If you are still locked out, email hello@becloser.co and we will get you back in.
Open the event in the app or on the website and cancel from there. Up to 48 hours before, it costs nothing. The full detail is on our cancellation policy page.
Email hello@becloser.co or use the contact form. We will reply within 24 to 48 hours.
Talk to a person.
A person reads every message. We will reply within 24 to 48 hours.