For over three decades, Roseann Higgins has redefined luxury matchmaking for the world’s most successful and discerning single men. As the Founder & President of SPIES™ (Single Professional Introductions for the Especially Selective™), Roseann has built a world-class invitation-only matchmaking firm designed specifically for high-achieving men: Fortune 500 CEOs, top executives, elite investors, and influential public figures who won’t settle for less than extraordinary.
“I was a precision rifle and pistol marksman in the Navy and like hitting bullseyes with every match. Every introduction is meticulously, compassionately briefed and cannot believe this person I’ve found exists,” Roseann said. “The U.S. divorce rate is over 50 percent; 96 percent of SPIES™ couples live happily ever after! I held a Top Secret Security Clearance. Your secrets are safe with me.”
AZF: What is your “life motto”?
RH: “You can tell me I can’t, but you’d be wrong.” A few people told me I’d never make it in the Navy when I left for boot camp. When I started my matchmaking service, I heard I wouldn’t make it as a matchmaker. I became a Chief Petty Officer before getting a degree and a commission as a Naval Officer. I’ve been matchmaking professionally since 1994. Guess we showed them, eh?
AZF: Did you always know that you wanted to be an entrepreneur? If not, when did you realize that it was the right path right for you?
RH: When asked whether I always knew I’d become an entrepreneur, I must confess the notion didn’t crystallize until later in my journey – though, in hindsight, the seeds were sown early. Had I grasped the concept sooner, I might have bypassed the rather eclectic detours that shaped me: a stint at modeling school, an impulsive enlistment in the Navy, and a bold move to Spain at the tender age of 19. Those chapters were hardly missteps – they forged my character.
My time in the Navy was a whirlwind of adventure and connection. Stationed in locales like Rota, Spain; Panama City, Florida; and New Orleans, I found myself orchestrating introductions that blossomed into romance – three couples I brought together went on to marry, a fact I recall with no small measure of pride. (I’m never this formal, but I’ll go with it.) Across 17 assignments, I thrived on the constant flux of new faces and far-flung places. The Navy didn’t merely indulge my penchant for forging friendships; it flung open the doors to the world, igniting a curiosity that refused to be contained.
For a girl from a small town who grew up with parents who were blind and legally blind, so we never had a car, how on earth did the universe know to capture my insatiable curiosity?! It’s definitely helped me in matchmaking. Each event and each person I meet thrills me!
It was in Spain that I first dipped my toes into academia, enrolling in college courses (starting with Aviation Ground School at Embry-Riddle) that followed me across continents. During a Congressional internship at American University, amid the corridors of power, I glimpsed the alchemy of influence and networks. It was a revelation: monumental change hinged not just on ideas, but on the connections that realized them. By the time I landed at my sixth institution – George Washington University – I’d earned a degree in political science.
Entrepreneurship, I’ve since discovered, is less a career than a calling – an odyssey, not unlike my Navy days or the dance of politics. It’s the thrill of charting untested waters, of weaving a tapestry of relationships and possibilities. I didn’t always know this was my path, but every step, from the catwalks to Capitol Hill, conspired to lead me here.
AZF: How do you feel best supported?
RH: I am best supported by love. I am surrounded by good people who see the good in others! We can’t do entrepreneurship or life alone. Or we can, but the difference between going solo and having a team and circle of extraordinary people who are strong and creative in ways I’m not and loving in ways I’d never expect is mind-bogglingly life-changing.
When I got Influenza A in January, it kicked my ass. As soon as my friends saw my first post sharing the news from my Phoenix VA Hospital room through a nebulizer haze, on oxygen on day 5, they kicked into life-saving mode!
It would take an hour to tell you how each one contributed. The flu opened the door to a flurry of LOVE in the form of remedies and food deliveries starting the night I got home. Advice from a dear girlfriend with CF who knew how to clean out her lungs was huge. I thank her with all my heart.
These are the people who have believed in what I do and supported me in the last 30 years since I announced I was going to start a matchmaking service, attend events, and look for true love as a Romance Headhunter™. They didn’t think I was crazy.
AZF: What motivates you to keep going amidst the challenges that come with being an entrepreneur?
RH: Every time a couple meets and reports how amazing the person they met is (as if I didn’t know, which always makes me smile), I know I’m doing the right thing. God gives us something we can each be the best at. Mine’s approaching strangers, making friends and introducing them. The hard things? I take a deep breath, give it my best and tell the truth.
AZF: Describe your perfect Saturday morning.
RH: My Saturday mornings start with the 3 Fs – Follow-up, Friends and Fitness. I pick up my phone to see who’s texted since last night to let me know how their first dates went. Some Saturdays I have coffee with friends. We talk about nothing and everything.
Follow that with a hike on the back trails at Piestewa Peak or a 125-degree IR bike ride at Hotworx, and it’s a perfect day. A new man entered the picture as we waited for a train to pass in San Diego. That could wonderfully wreck my Saturday mornings.
AZF: What’s one piece of advice you’d give to a young entrepreneur who is just starting out?
RH: Pick a field you can be the best in that excites you and fills you with purpose – where you can make your mark. You go to sleep and wake up with your business on your mind every single day. Like a life partner, choose well!
AZF: What excites you most about being an entrepreneur?
RH: I get to wake up every day, meet the most extraordinary people and change lives. It never gets old. And I’m the boss. I get to innovate the matchmaking industry, go to events where I have a blast meeting people, and go to weddings. It’s a legacy that will have an impact for hundreds of years from the children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren and so on…all because of the moms and dads I went up to and said, “I think I need to get to know you!”
Learn more about SPIES at especiallyselective.com or on Facebook.
About the Foundress
The Foundress is a creative community of female entrepreneurs established by Coley Arnold. The women-led networking group currently has over 120 members who receive exclusive access to mentorship from experienced female entrepreneurs and industry leaders; community gatherings that feature expert speakers and the opportunity to connect with like-minded women; as well as monthly Mastermind Groups where members can brainstorm and collaborate together.
Every Friday, AZF will spotlight a member of The Foundress and her business in the Foundress Fridays online series. Learn more about The Foundress and join the community at foundress.co.
