Brothers from LI create top dating app

In 2005, Cliff Lerner left an equities analyst job at Lehman Brothers, burned out and looking to get a life.

Six years later, still time-strapped and with no significant other, he and his brother, Darrell, are helping facilitate others' love lives.

The siblings, graduates of Roslyn High School, founded SNAP Interactive Inc., developer of AreYouInterested.com, one of Facebook's top dating apps based on monthly active users, says AppData, an application-traffic tracking service.

The app is getting 40,000 new profiles a day and has 14 million monthly unique users, said Cliff Lerner, 32, the Manhattan-based chief executive of the company, which employs 20.

Are You Interested's approach to matchmaking is "social and casual," with no lengthy questionnaires, said Darrell Lerner. People are less threatened to make the first move, he added.

That appeals to user Leandra Dunn. Time to socialize is scarce, says Dunn, 21. Besides working part-time, she's a full-time student and commutes from Ronkonkoma to the City College of New York in Manhattan. In late November, she signed on to Are You Interested app and has been having some "friendly conversations" with several people.

"It's fun," she said. "It's something you can get into. You can adjust to your comfort level" when it comes to how much information you share in your app profile, she said.

The app is free for users, who can pay a monthly subscription fee for added features, such as seeing who views their profile.

With its focus on social media and smart-phone apps - Are You Interested is accessible on the iPhone - the company is on "a great avenue" that combines "two strong growth areas," said Toon van Beeck, senior analyst with Los Angeles-based industry research firm IBISWorld. About 44 percent of those using online dating sites are in the 18- to 29-year-old age group, consumers who are tech-savvy and willing to spend money on apps or monthly fees, he said.

Other Facebook dating apps include Zoosk and Badoo. Traditional online dating sites such as Match.com and eHarmony are also offering apps.

While there's no system to track successful matches, the AreYouInterested.com site has been contacted by more than 100 couples who say they've married, said Darrell, 36, of Great Neck. He recently heard from a user in the United Kingdom asking for a screen shot from the date in 2008 when he met his fiancee. The couple want to use it for a "save the date" announcement for their wedding.

The Lerners started the business with $750,000 from friends and family. In January they raised $8.5 million in a private stock sale to institutional investors. Revenue has grown for seven straight quarters, said Darrell, and the stock price - 23 cents on Dec. 14 - closed Thursday at $3.10. The stock is traded on the OTC Bulletin Board.

With the cash infusion, they plan to add staff, localize the app for other countries, and develop an Android app.

Immersed in details on some days, Darrell said, "it's easy to forget there are actually users on the other end." Not this week, though. On Wednesday the Lerners got an e-mail from a couple in Arizona who met through the app, married and just welcomed a son on Jan. 31.

As a result of their business, "a baby was born," Darrell said. "That brings it all home."