Celeb Shot: Wingman of the Year Hunter Werner
The Capital Region Cupid will use the power of wingmen to help local singles fall in love at a sold-out live dating show in Saratoga this Thursday.
Given the fact that I have fallen (happily) into the role of matchmaker at our popular Single in Saratoga events, it was only a matter of time before someone introduced me to Hunter Werner, the Albany-based YouTuber behind the Wingman of the Year brand.
Up until now, Hunter has been creating viral content—everything from man-on-the-street videos to an interview with the owner of a nudist retreat—and sharing clips featuring people (or inanimate objects) he nominates for Wingman of the Year, an annual award.
But former Celeb Shot interviewee Ashley Salvadore connected me with Hunter because of what he has on the horizon: his first Wingman of the Year Live show coming to The Comedy Works in downtown Saratoga this Thursday. “These are going to be real people putting themselves out there,” says Hunter, who works as the marketing and public relations manager for VIA Aquarium by day. “This is going to be reality TV on stage.”
While the live show is already sold out, Hunter will be producing a video of the entire show and posting it on YouTube for all to see. I caught up with Hunter this past week to find out more about how the dating show will work, his plans to take over the world of dating, and what being a good wingman means to him.
Tell me about yourself.
I'm 29. I'm from Warrensburg, New York. I just moved to Albany about three years ago after I got out of the Navy. I was in the Navy for eight, nine years. So I moved here, met a bunch of people and here we are now.
How did Wingman of the Year come to be?
I always wanted to be an entrepreneur but I never knew what I wanted to do. I thought if I could start a business where I could hang out with my friends, that’d be cool. But that doesn’t seem very reasonable. I thought about something my best friend said to me [in high school]. There’s a long story about where the name Wingman of the Year came from…But I ended up hooking him up with a girl one time and come Monday in school—this was senior year—he was like, “Dude, you’re the Wingman of the Year.” And then when I was thinking of a business name, that’s what popped into my head. Now I try to be Cupid.
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Can you tell me that OG wingman story?
Oh, gosh. I don’t know if you’re going to want to write it in there.
OK, fine. A different time you were a wingman?
Oh, there's been plenty. I mean, we went out to Saratoga SantaCon last year. We brought mistletoe with us and must have had over a hundred people kiss. We hooked up a bunch of people. We’re always looking to do it. And throwing this dating show, just putting people in the same room…
Tell me about the dating show.
We used to do a lot of man-on-the-street content with the microphones and whatnot. But I’m fully evolving Wingman of the Year into a dating show network. So there are going to be these live shows, but we’re also going to be doing in-studio shows that you can see on YouTube.
How will Thursday’s show work?
So it’s one guy with a wingman and three girls each with a wingman. Now, we always say anyone could be a wingman—their wingman could be their mom. During the first part, the bachelor’s going to be blindfolded and doesn’t know who the bachelorettes are. But then after the first round, the blindfold is coming off. Only one of them is going to get with the bachelor. Or if he doesn’t like any of them, maybe zero. But I’m going to try to wingman. I’m going to ask who’s single in the crowd. I’ll be like, “OK, buy Katie a drink after.” And there are going to be perks in the show where if you have a good wingman, you are safe from elimination in the first round. We’re trying to say like, “Hey, if you’re a good wingman, it benefits people.”
Do you think any relationships will come from this show or future ones?
There’s a lot of pressure, but diamonds form under pressure. I’m not saying people are going to get married off this, but we’re going to hook up a lot of people. I’d like to do this monthly—maybe weekly eventually.
Do you have a dating philosophy?
I think dating is hackable. I’m a marketing guy. You’re always marketing yourself. I'm marketing myself to you right now—I'm trying to make you like me so you write a good article. Same thing with dating. You’ve gotta make that person like you. If it’s a dating app, you’ve gotta make sure you have good headshots. You only get one first impression.
What are your thoughts on the current dating scene in the Capital Region?
The dating apps are awful. I think what we’re bringing to the table is something new and something great. Nobody’s doing it, especially in this area. We live in the Capital Region for Christ’s sake. We need these new things and new ways to meet people. Because I feel like people are scared to meet people. That’s why I’m like, “Bring your wingman—it’s so much easier.”
What does being a good wingman mean to you?
A lot of people, when they think of a wingman, they think of a dating scenario— like a bar scene, right? But anyone could be a wingman. Like Ashley's a wingman. She linked us up for this. Say you go out with one of your friends to the bar and you get too drunk and she holds your hair at the end of the day. The DD could be a wingman. So what the brand really means is being a good friend. That’s all it means.
What’s your longterm goal?
I want to be the MrBeast of dating. When I die, I want my gravestone to obviously say “Wingman of the Year,” but by the time we’re done with this stuff, I want to have made so many people fall in love that there’s impact on the population. But before that, I want to make amazing content that people want to binge.
—Natalie
Stay tuned for a link to the full video of the very first Wingman of the Year Live show.
Quote of the Week
“She tests me daily to see if I can read her mind.”
—One husband speaking about his wife of 45 years at AIM Services’ Vin Le Soir
Vibe Check: Vin Le Soir
On Wednesday, the Saratoga Eagle headquarters was transformed into an intimate and elegant event space for Aim Services’ annual Vin Le Soir fundraiser, which this year brought attendees on a journey through Portugal by way of wine samples. The 125 guests sipped on an array of pours and nibbled on bites by the Wandering Food Dude—which is owned by the former chef of Longfellows, the longtime host of Vin Le Soir—before AIM’s Bo Goliber got on the mic.
“The people that we serve tend to be somewhat isolated because of their disability, and as a result of that they lean on AIM pretty heavily,” Bo said. “We wanted to create a fund that can be available for those folks without us ever having to say no if someone reaches out for holiday assistance, for Thanksgiving help, or if their hot water tank breaks or their car breaks down.”
The Family Circus
While we were picking out our favorite Saratoga costumes four our annual Halloween roundup, one local family’s creative group costume landed them on a much bigger stage. Earlier this week, the Messia family from Averill Park was one of three families featured on Good Morning America’s Monstrous Masquerade costume contest. Did the Messias’ circus-themed costume take home the grand prize and Golden Pumpkin Trophy? See for yourself.
You’ve Got a Friend in Me
Reigning Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile champ Cody’s Wish isn’t just a fan favorite for his six graded stakes victories—he’s also known far beyond the racing world for his connection to namesake Cody Dorman, a teenager with Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome who forged an unlikely friendship with the horse at a Make-A-Wish event at Keeneland in 2018. (If you missed the NBC Sports story that ran around the time of the Kentucky Derby, watch it now.) Today, Cody’s Wish will be stepping into the starting gate for the last time as he looks to defend his Dirt Mile title before being retired. And yep, Cody Dorman will be in the stands at Santa Anita Park.
“The beauty of it is when Cody’s Wish becomes a stallion, there are going to be a bunch of little horses running around in two years and they are going to be named Cody this and Cody that,” Godolphin farm manager Danny Mulvihill recently told the Los Angeles Times. “His name is going to be all over the racing and thoroughbred world for a long, long time to come.”
A Nod to the Pod
In case you missed it, Palette owner Catherine Hover’s podcast Seriously Catherine launched last week to much fanfare. The weekly episodes will highlight small business owners and entrepreneurs from around the Capital Region, and feature favorite segments like Face Palm Mom moments and a preview of what’s coming up on (did you guess?) Saratoga Living After Hours. In this week’s episode, Catherine talks with best-selling author, keynote speaker and startup investor Fran Hauser about her career, family life and being kind. Click the link above to give it a listen!
Whiskey Business
Did you get your tickets yet for Whiskey Night in Saratoga, our annual whiskey tasting with First Fill Spirits returning to Putnam Place this Wednesday at 6:30? Get them now, and use code SLAH20 at checkout for an exclusive SLAH readers-only $20 off promo.
In the Pack
Yesterday marked the online release of Saratoga Living’s Holiday Issue, featuring Pink Pup owner Tim Pink (and 15 of his friends). Read Tim’s story, or check out the complete digital version of the mag online.