Meet Kelli Lucas | Kelli Lucas is a seasoned design strategist and leader.

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

Hi Kelli, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I didn’t grow up thinking I wanted to start a business one day. It never crossed my mind a single time until 2020. I was struggling mentally, like a lot of moms during the pandemic. My kids were struggling with virtual school, my husband and I were both working from home, I was leading a design team, and I felt like I was failing all around. I wasn’t getting the support at work that I desperately needed, felt like my voice wasn’t being heard, and like I just couldn’t be effective at my job. I had hit a wall, career-wise. I was extremely burned out, and wondered if I would ever enjoy working as a designer again.

After work one night, I went to a friend’s garage for a glass of wine (again, in the middle of the pandemic). We happened to work together at the time, and were both feeling similarly exhausted and burned out. At some point that night, one of us said “well I guess we’ll just have to start our own company”. As soon as it was spoken into existence, we knew what this was our way out. Within just a few months, we’d left our former jobs, launched LunarLab. We then went on to sign our first 2 clients in the first week. It was at that point that we realized we could keep doing what we love, the way we wanted to, and on our own schedules. And deliver a huge ROI to our clients.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
LunarLab is a UX and product strategy consulting firm. We empower dreamers to create meaningful, impactful products through collaboration and innovation. In short, we make mobile apps, web apps, websites and digital products easier to use and more profitable. We are a women-owned, women-operated company, who saw gaps in the tech industry between business, technology, and end users. Throughout our years in tech, we kept seeing products fail over and over because they didn’t have good alignment between their business goals, their products, and the people who used their products. We use design, research, and strategy to close those gaps, which can result in increased revenue, improved user retention, increased investment funds, better user satisfaction, and more.

I couldn’t be prouder of where we are after 2.5 years in business. I think much of that success comes from our shared commitment to our company goals. From the earliest days at our company, we’ve been stringent about long-term and short-term goal-setting. We hold ourselves accountable by setting specific monthly goals each month for networking, sales, marketing, revenue, etc. It’s easy to get wrapped up in the day-to-day client work, but those goals are what help us make quick decisions about our business and ensure we’re spending our time focused on the right things that will drive the business forward. It helps us know with clarity where we’re heading this month, this quarter, and this year.

We started out in 2021 as LunarLab LLC. Over the past year, we submitted the paperwork needed to become a benefit corporation, so we are now LunarLab Benefit LLC. This means that we’re a for-profit company, but public benefit is part of the legal structure of the company, and must be considered in our decision-making. We also are in the process of becoming B Lab certified.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
So many excellent options! The High Museum of Art is exceptional. As a kid, I loved the Coca-Cola Museum. Mary Mac’s Tea Room is a must for good southern food. And definitely catch an Atlanta United soccer game – the stadium is amazing.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to give a shout out to my family. My family has always been my biggest supporter. At LunarLab, we often joke that the only reason we have a company Facebook account is so that my family can stay updated on our business.

My parents are eternally my biggest cheerleaders. My husband helps juggle the 4 million things we have going on in our house with 3 teenagers, and is all around so incredibly supportive of everything I do.

Even when the decisions felt scary and risky – like quitting a great job, walking away from a dependable paycheck, and starting our own company – they had complete faith in me,

Website: https://lunarlab.io/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lunarlab.io/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lunarlab

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LunarLab_IO

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lunarlab.io

Other: http://lunarlab.dribbble.com/

Image Credits
Audrey Seymour at Audrey Creative (https://www.audreycreative.com/)