Marin Varvodić isn’t one of those guys who grew up gaming and discovered code that way. His story starts with a different kind of game — on the handball court — and after an injury, it winds through bars in Germany and the betting industry before ending up — or rather, just getting started — at the heart of the Atlassian ecosystem.

We spoke with him about the path that led to Cealor, what it means to build SaaS products within one of the world’s largest software ecosystems, and the acquisition that changed everything.

Before we get into Atlassian and the acquisition — tell us about your journey. How did you end up in IT?

My story didn’t start in IT. It started in sports. I played handball, and that was my main focus for a long time. After finishing university in Split, I moved abroad. At 25, I had a serious injury, and that was basically the end of my handball career. It was a major turning point — I suddenly had to figure out what to do next.

At the time, I was living in Germany, and I decided to stay. The first step was learning the language. While I was settling in, I worked as a bartender for over a year. It wasn’t glamorous, but it taught me a lot.

I also had a job offer at a bank — a safe choice on paper. But the startup and IT scene in Germany was just starting to grow, so I took a risk and went that way instead of the “safe” option. I started with a few startups and ended up working as a Product Manager at a big betting company. That’s actually where I first really got into the world of product, processes, and tools — the same things that are now at the heart of everything we do at Cealor.

I had a job offer at a bank — a safe choice on paper. But the startup scene in Germany was just starting to grow, so I took the risk.

For people who don’t know — what is Atlassian, and what do they actually make?

Atlassian is one of the biggest names in software for teamwork and project management, used by teams all over the world. Their most famous products are Jira, for planning and tracking work, and Confluence, for sharing knowledge and docs. They also have other tools like Bitbucket for code and Jira Service Management for support teams.

What makes Atlassian strong is how well everything connects — tasks, docs, code, tickets — everything stays in sync, so teams don’t need a bunch of separate apps. That’s why it’s so popular across almost every industry, including a lot of companies in our region.

How did you get into this ecosystem, and decide to stay in it?

While I was working at the betting company, we decided to implement Atlassian. That’s when I connected with a consulting company that specialized in Atlassian. They were just getting started, but they had this fierce energy that I really liked. I got into the whole system fast, and it just clicked with me.

We also became friends pretty quickly outside of work. Through that, I got invited to an event in Barcelona, where I met more people from the ecosystem — clients, partners, all kinds of people. It was such a cool experience, and so different from the betting world, which at the time was incredibly stressful. That contrast made it even clearer to me — this was the direction I wanted to go.

How was Cealor born?

Right before COVID hit, I decided to move back to Croatia, maybe keep working remote for the same company. But around that time, friends from that same company came up with an idea — let’s build our own Atlassian apps. They already knew the clients’ pain points and had a few smaller apps that just needed cleaning up. We also had developers in Croatia who’d already worked on Atlassian projects, so it all came together fast.

While COVID was causing chaos in the markets, we were heads down building.

In 2021, Cealor launched its first app. Clients started coming in fast. The buying process takes longer than typical e-commerce, since these apps are tied directly to Atlassian products, but it worked. By 2025, we hit 1M ARR — a huge milestone for us.

How much does the vendor status on the Atlassian Marketplace actually bring you? Do you have real numbers?

Vendor status matters a lot, because for the end customer, it’s basically a guarantee of quality and seriousness. It shows our products are tested, secure, and meet the strict standards Atlassian requires.

As for how we get clients, it’s roughly 50/50. Half come directly through the Marketplace, and the other half through Solution partners. Working with consulting partner firms is key when it comes to big enterprise systems — they know exactly what their clients need and can recommend us as the right fit. Thanks to that model, we now work with names like Reddit and Apple.

Do you think you’ll build plugins for Azure DevOps or GitHub? Where do you see bigger potential?

The market’s going through a big shift right now, mostly because of how fast AI is changing the core of SaaS businesses. That’s why our strategy is to focus on stabilizing what we already have, but there are also some new ideas we want to bring out. Atlassian itself is changing a lot, and that’s opening up new opportunities.

My biggest challenge is other ecosystems. I live inside Atlassian, I know the pain points, I see what’s going on there. With other platforms, I don’t have that same customer context, so building new apps isn’t easy for me. I’d love to expand, but honestly — I don’t have the expertise there yet, and I don’t feel fully comfortable doing it. We actually tried once with Monday.com, and it didn’t go well.

What kind of revenue can a plugin generate after a year? Is it a real revenue stream?

If the app is good, it usually takes about 12 months to really get momentum. It just doesn’t show results right away. There’s so much on the market now that you really have to put work into communication and visibility for anything to happen with an app. And sometimes, even a great idea just doesn’t take off. That’s the reality of it.

How often do customers ask for custom features after implementation?

Quite a lot, honestly. But our rules are clear. If something doesn’t fit our vision, we simply don’t do it. If it’s something really big — the kind of thing that could block other products — we know how to bring in extra resources and charge for that implementation separately. But the rule stays the same: if it doesn’t fit our vision, we don’t build it.

Does it pay off long-term to build a plugin as a standalone SaaS business, or is it more of a positioning tool?

The answer is simple: SaaS business. Plugins can open doors to different projects, but focusing on a scalable SaaS model gives you long-term stability and growth. Through constant communication with clients, you find new needs, and that’s how the product grows together with the market.

Enterprise projects feel more like agency work to me, and I’m not a big fan of that model. Though things are changing now. Atlassian’s development speed has gotten really fast. Things that used to take them years now move much quicker with AI, and because of that, SaaS companies building horizontal solutions are running into more problems. Atlassian is pushing more into their own space.

We’re positioned differently, which makes it easier for us. We build smaller, vertical solutions, and that’s the key right now — something Atlassian is openly promoting as well.

We build smaller, vertical solutions — and that’s the key right now, something Atlassian is openly promoting as well.

Let’s talk about the acquisition. How did it happen?

Atlassian is changing a lot, and we’ve been watching how some partners who were on top for years just kind of fade into the background. Vectors is a company based in the Emirates, with teams in Tunisia and France. They have great apps and a strong base of enterprise clients, but they needed more experience in cloud and app development — which is exactly where we’re strong.

The conversation actually started at one of the events. We just realized we had a lot in common, a similar vision, and that led to them acquiring us — along with our brand, which we’d put a lot of work into. I’m staying on with the company. I don’t feel like I sold something — honestly, it feels more like we stepped into a bigger story.

Almost overnight, we went from 10 people to 50. More cultures, more offices, more responsibilities, but also way more power as a team. Now an idea can go from concept to market in just a few weeks.

I don’t feel like I sold something — it feels more like we stepped into a bigger story. Overnight, we went from 10 to 50 people.

How happy are you with how things turned out?

Very happy. I have to say, my biggest success is that the entire development team has been with us since day one. I see that as my biggest achievement, and I’m truly happy to be part of this journey with them. They’re the real proof that I’m doing this right.

I put a lot into relationships with people — that matters to me a lot. It’s not just some cliché, it’s how I see things. I believe that’s part of every big story.

My biggest success is that the entire development team has been with us since day one. They’re the real proof that I’m doing this right.

Cealor is a member of the Split Tech City community. Learn more about their Atlassian apps through their official channels.