As time passed, the shorter abbreviation of "-con" came to mean the "conpa" as a suffix. There used to be other -con words but presently "Gou-con 合コン" (Gou is from "合同 goudou = consolidated, together, implying co-ed" and "conpa") is the most commonly used word; it translates as young singles' co-ed drinking parties.
It's arranged this way. Party organizers call up a number of males and females and invite them to meet for the drinking party. In Japan, these parties take place in Izakayas or restaurants, not in someone's house or apartment since most Japanese rooms are way too small for hosting parties.
These invited guests are usually 20-something and college kids, but Gou-con co-ed drinking parties are arranged for other age groups, too. Another word for informal drinking parties would be "nomikai 飲み会" ; this word is usually used when the party is formed for people who already know each other.
Like parties everywhere, both Gou-con and Nomikai offer opportunities to find a date. Gou-con parties are oriented more to find a date than Nomikai get togethers. In the latter, relationships among the participants are likely to have already been settled.
In Japan traditionally, arranged marriages used to be common and private meeting setups were called "Omiai お見合い". But EEOC dictates and a somewhat questioning attitude from the West about this tradition eventually changed such a practice. Now Omiai arranged by the family or personal acquaintances of the parents are no longer popular. But in fact, studies show that a high percentage of Japanese people in their 20's~30's are single; poor luck or lack of opportunity to meet the opposite gender are often blamed. People having available sources could participate the Gou-con through their friends but many people don't have such connections.
So now enter Public Omiai parties, renamed with the -con suffix to represent the idea being updated, and coupled with a promotion of the local businesses, called "Machi-con (Machi means town)". This translates as town-size company-finding parties.
In these Machi-cons, the local government or community or the government can be the promoter but often they all are tied up and sell the tickets to the general public or a limited public. Event promoters team up with the local restaurants and other businesses. The style varies but commonly the participants buy a ticket and visit freely a number of participating restaurants in the area for a limited time. Other businesses get involved by issuing coupons for special services offered during the event. Participants have opportunities to meet people while visiting those participants restaurants here and there, and enjoying their food and drinks. Japanese love festivals involving food; this is another kind of food festival with local business promotions targeting the dating community. Each event often has a name with the whole or part of the city's name for the prefix and the -con for the suffix, such as Hama-con (Yoko"hama") and Shibu-con ("Shibu"ya).
An example of a popular Machi-con event is Chiba-con, held in Chiba City, of Chiba Prefecture. The number of tickets sold total 300, 150 of each gender. The ticket cost is 5,900 yen for male guests and 3.900 yen for female guests. The registration is somewhere around the Chiba station. Guests wear a wrist band to enter the participating restaurants/izakayas which are open to participants only during the event hours (15:00~18:00 on a Sunday). Food served is buffet style, drinks are either free for fixed choices or available for a discounted price. I guess the free drinks may be soft drinks since it's a day time event but I'm not sure. This event says it is not only for singles looking for a date.
These events seem popular because participants don't have to appear too eager for finding a date. They easily can leave any situation and just say "well, I wanna try another restaurant". Everyone is made to feel more safe and relaxed, no pressure. Local businesses benefit too; they get a good opportunity of promote what they sell. Some areas involve local tourism as well; other attractions and events besides restaurants can be tied into the main event.
Such events may not be perfect but overall the idea works well. Some events have attracted thousands of participants. People can get together for food, drinks, fun, and good company, plus the local economy gets a boost. Not a bad idea, is it?!
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