Clockout - Network Socially

Younger professionals who'd rather meet in person are the audience for Clockout, a local social network that expects you to show up. It lists social clubs, mixers, galas and brunches nearby, lets members keep up with the conversation in their own industry, and pitches itself as much for finding collaborators or a cofounder as for making friends.

The gate is the distinctive part. Applications are reviewed by a concierge team, which means a waitlist unless an existing member invites you. The listing describes events as numbering in the thousands but doesn't name the cities covered or say if there's a fee past the free download.

The first phase is waiting. You apply, or find someone to invite you, and until the review clears there's little to do. Once inside, a normal week means browsing the event list, picking a rooftop mixer or a brunch club, and showing up.

Between events the feed works as a professional conversation layer, where members in your industry post and you follow along. Over time the app becomes a calendar of gatherings and a loose directory of people you've met at them, with the cofounder search as the ambitious end of that.

The people searching for it tend to be new in a city, early in a career, and tired of networking that happens only through screens. The invite-only structure is itself part of the draw, since it promises a filtered crowd. A 4.7 rating from around a thousand reviewers suggests those who get in like it, though the vetting means few people have tried.

Five screenshots are on the page; a Social app built around events will show an event list, an event detail with venue and attendees, a feed and a profile. Membership-club apps typically use dark backgrounds with photography of venues and a type treatment that signals exclusivity, so expect something closer to a lifestyle brand than a utility.