Blake and Doug met in late 2009 with a shared passion for technology and real estate. After selling his house and quitting his job in Texas -- and luckily convincing his wife to do the same -- Doug, his wife and their dog, Jonas, joined forces with Blake on the east coast (in less than ideal living situations, mind you). Soon after they relocated to San Francisco. After launching Homeboodle in 2010, an enterprise-focused sales and marketing platform for home sellers, Blake and Doug saw several challenges to address on the consumer side of the equation, most notably in the rental space. They started researching the rental market and began work on their new product, Lovely. Together, the co-founding team, along with front-end programing whiz (and humorist) Zach have been working hard toward realizing a very simple yet powerful mission: to make it easy and painless to find the place you’ll love. Community and Marketing Manager Joel brought his high energy ideas to the team in late 2011 and is working to grow and engage the Lovely community.
Blake Pierson
Founder & CEO
Blake enjoys moving and experiencing new cities. Since graduating from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School in 2005, Blake has lived and rented in Philadelphia, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Jackson Hole, Ocean City and San Francisco, in addition to living and owning a condo in Washington D.C. He grew up in the real estate industry working with his parents' construction and development companies, and the pains and frustrations of finding rentals across the U.S. caused him to team up with Doug to found Lovely to address the pain points associated with renting and to make it easier to find a home that you, well, love.
Doug Wormhoudt
Founder & President
Doug's been programming since he could drive, having a life-long fascination with both hardware and software. Starting with skipping school to write code for a local web development company, Doug's passion for development has always been in the forefront of his life. During a stint as lead developer for Tyco, in his native Houston, Doug met Blake and jumped at the opportunity to come to San Francisco and take some of the sting out of the apartment rental process. When Doug isn't crafting code for Lovely, you'll find him watching boxing with his wife Kathy, or spending quality time with his dog Jonas.
Zach Dilks
Lead Developer
Zach grew up in nowhere Florida, waiting for a chance to get out and do something big. After making the move to to San Francisco, he met the Lovely founders, saw the size and potential for the space, and eagerly joined the team. When he isn't busy dominating front-end development, you can find him volunteering at the local community farm, or exploring San Francisco's comedy scene.
Joel Goyette
Community & Marketing Manager
Joel has been creating and nurturing communities long before "Community Manager" became a job title. He is passionate about bringing people together and making sure everybody has a fantastic time -- online and offline. Prior to joining LiveLovely.com, Joel spent time on the marketing and product management teams at OpenTable, business development at Fair Trade USA and a few up-and-coming culinary ventures in the Bay Area. Joel has a degree in International Business from San Diego State University, and has lived extensively in Argentina, Brazil and Spain. That explains why @Lovely sometimes tweets in Spanish and Portuguese.
