Meet Lucas Grey | Interaction Designer & Founder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lucas Grey and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lucas, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
We were two designers eager to learn what it’s like to build something from scratch. I started learning about no-code tools to create your own apps and web apps from my instructor, so I wondered if designers could earn an income aside from working for clients or employers. That initial motivation led us to start exploring problems we resonated with and wanted to address. Ultimately, we decided to create a notes app to compete with Apple Notes. We noticed ourselves heavily relying on Apple Notes but facing challenges with organization and consistent usage. Sometimes we kept tasks in Reminders or messaging apps, and when it came time to retrieve them, we often forgot which app we had used. So we dove deep into researching why this happens and exploring design solutions to address it. Since most notes apps aren’t technically challenging to develop, we knew the differentiating factor would lie in the design, which played to our strengths. Currently, we’ve just launched our waitlist at ollav.app and managed to get over 100 waitlisters within 3 days just from sharing on ouw own socials.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
At the heart of Ollav is the desire to create a digital haven – a space that brings users a sense of peace and joy. A sanctuary where the outside noise fades away, if even for a moment, and you feel genuinely seen and heard. It’s about more than just solving problems; we want to craft an experience that truly connects with every person, whether through the app, our waitlist interactions, or our daily community engagement. We strive to be a friend.

Amazingly, some folks have mentioned that even our waitlist website gave them those calming, joyful vibes. Getting feedback like that is seriously heartwarming and motivating as we’ve navigated this whole journey. Because let’s be real, it hasn’t been an easy road – we pivoted three times before reaching this point, battling self-doubts along the way as designers trying to make waves in a developer and business-driven world.

But then I read something that shifted my perspective: our perceived weaknesses could actually be strengths in disguise. Instead of seeing our design backgrounds as flaws, we started embracing them as assets. Sure, we may be lacking as coders, but that means we lean hard into design as a key advantage. And that vulnerability? It breeds immense gratitude for every supporter giving us this shot. Looked at that way, our uniqueness becomes our superpower.

We may not be the fastest shippers out there, but you can be sure that once you join the Ollav community, you’ll feel that personal connection. Our mission is to make every single user feel genuinely understood.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Old Town Pasadena is definitely a must-visit spot – such a cool vibe wandering through those historic buildings and courtyards. Griffith Observatory is another iconic LA landmark I’d take them to for those amazing city views. The Venice Beach area is one of my personal favorites too – cheesy but I love soaking up that laid-back beach town atmosphere.

For museums, you can’t miss the Getty locations – the Getty Villa out in Malibu for that incredible ancient Roman art, and the iconic Getty Center downtown for the amazing art and architecture. Speaking of downtown, the food scene there is top-notch – I’d absolutely take them on a little food tour to hit some hot spots. I also like the food at Arcadia and the Down Town Alhambra area.

A few other essentials on my Los Angeles itinerary would be eating at Pasta Sisters out in Culver City – such delicious homemade pasta. And of course you gotta do the tourist thing at least once and hit up Universal Studios Hollywood. Between all the iconic sites, chill beach vibes, incredible food, and entertainment, they’d get a real taste of quintessential LA in all its glory.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to give a shout-out to two professors who mentored us along the way – Jenny Rodenhouse and Todd Masilko. I’m also immensely grateful to my co-founder, Feather Xu, for being my partner on this journey. Lastly, we owe a debt of gratitude to everyone who signed up for our waitlist and supported us as friends of Ollav. To us, those early supporters are the true MVPs, as without their encouragement, we wouldn’t be where we are today.

Website: Ollav.app

Instagram: itsgreyarea

Twitter: itslucasgrey