Who we are
We’re Nadya Yashchuk and Ivan Lukichev, and we do everything ourselves: the design, the app, the servers, the store listings and the support inbox. Our apps are published as a small sole proprietorship registered in Austria, near Salzburg; the formal details are in the legal notice.
Because it’s just the two of us, every decision stays personal. We choose what to build, we read every message, and each update is shaped by what the people in real Kreis groups ask for.
Why Kreis exists
Kreis started with a cycling club near Salzburg. After every ride, photos were scattered across a messaging group: compressed, out of order, and gone from the chat a few weeks later. Setting up a shared album in a big cloud service didn’t work either — half the club didn’t want another account, and the person who created the album was suddenly its administrator forever.
We wanted something that feels like a photo album for the group, not a file system: one place per group, every photo in full quality, sorted by day, with a like and a comment when you feel like it. Joining should take a code or a link, not a password. And people without the app should still be able to hand in their photos from an event.
That’s what Kreis is today. It launched on Google Play and the App Store in 2026, and the same two people still build it.
What we care about
- Private by design. A group is closed. There are no public profiles, no discovery feed and no ads. Only the people you invite see your photos.
- Full quality, always. Kreis keeps the original file. Download any photo, or back up the whole archive, whenever you like.
- Simple enough for everyone. Passwordless login with a one-time code, invite links, and a collect link for guests without the app.
- Your data stays yours. Servers in the EU, no selling or analysing your photos, and you can delete your account inside the app at any time.
- Fair pricing. The free plan covers a small group for good. One paid plan covers the whole group; members never pay.
Our other apps
Kreis is the newest of a few small apps we make together. VERT is an offline altimeter and ski tracker for the trips your photos come from. Arrow Puzzle: Tap & Escape is a calm one-tap logic puzzle, and Pixel Paint is a pixel-art colouring app. Different ideas, the same promise: simple, friendly, no tricks.
Say hello
We read everything that comes in, and a lot of what lands in Kreis started as a message from a group. Questions, ideas, a bug, or a club that wants to try Kreis together: write to contact@nadzeyayashchuk.com. For the legal side, see the legal notice, the privacy policy and the terms of use.