A software consultancy from Pula, working with clients since 2013
We design and build custom business software for small and mid-size companies: CRMs, booking and payment systems, internal tools and integrations. You work directly with the engineer who designs your system and writes its code, from the first estimate to years of running in production.
Vanja Retkovac
I’ve been building software professionally since 2007, starting with Outlet.hr, an online outlet store built from scratch. In 2010 I co-founded iMall, Croatia’s first open online shopping mall, and led its engineering as CTO. In 2013 I co-founded Candesco in Pula.
At Candesco I built tix.hr, the ticketing system that sold Črnja Tours’ bus seats online, at agencies and on board, and Docgen, a civil aviation documentation platform for Smartfactory in Biel, Switzerland. From 2020 to 2024 I worked on Rally’s one-click checkout, a US startup that raised a $12M Series A, joining as engineer #3 and growing into lead of a five-person backend team. From late 2025 to mid 2026 I worked as a contract engineer for Arke in Milan, which makes ERP software for manufacturers: ERP modules in Go, a production planning engine in Python and an AI dashboard builder for its CEO.
Today I build systems like VibeCRM with AI coding agents, which I’ve used daily on client work since 2025, and I lead every Candesco project from the first call to launch. I work mainly in PHP/Laravel, Vue, Python and Go, and studied Computer Science at the University of Zagreb (FER).
- first commercial project
- 2007
- Candesco founded in Pula
- 2013
- main stack
- PHP, Vue, Python, Go
Trusted collaborators
For larger projects, I bring in senior frontend, mobile and infrastructure engineers I’ve worked with for years. You always have one point of contact, and the architecture stays with us.
Two decades of systems in production
- 2007
Outlet.hr
First commercial project: an online outlet store built from scratch.
- 2010Case study
iMall
Croatia’s first open online marketplace. Co-founder and CTO. Nearly 300 stores at its peak.
- 2013
Candesco founded in Pula
A software company for small and mid-size businesses.
- 2014Case study
tix.hr for Črnja Tours
Bus ticketing across Europe, online, at agencies and on board. 100,000+ tickets issued in 2018.
- 2014Summary
tour.hr
Our first own product: day-tour booking, years before Airbnb Experiences, piloted in Pula. Too early for the market: almost no one bought tours online yet.
- 2016Summary
Docgen
A platform for civil aviation manuals with legal cross-references and multi-round approvals, built for Smartfactory in Biel, Switzerland. Estimated at 700 hours, delivered within 4 hours of the estimate.
- 2020Case study
Rally
One-click checkout for US e-commerce brands. Engineer #3, then lead of the backend team.
- 2025Summary
Arke
ERP software for manufacturers, for a company in Milan, Italy. ERP modules in Go, a production planning engine in Python and an AI dashboard builder for the CEO.
- 2025
VibeCRM
Sales, payments and trip operations for Story Travel, built with AI coding agents.
How we work
Ownership agreed per project
You own the code we write for you, or you license a product we own and maintain, like VibeCRM. Either way, it’s in the contract before we start.
Hosted in the EU
Your system runs on Hetzner servers in Germany, or on your own infrastructure if you prefer.
Support with a guaranteed response time
8-hour response and 99.5% uptime as standard; 4 hours and 99.9% as a premium tier. Bug fixes are always free, and up to 2 hours of small changes a month are included. You talk to the engineer who built your system.
Estimates after design
We design the solution before we quote it, so you get a clear scope with a price and a timeline.
AI agents, senior review
We use AI coding agents to build faster. A senior engineer designs every system and reviews every change before it ships.
One engineer, start to finish
The person who estimates your project designs it, writes its code and supports it in production.
Candesco d.o.o., Marulićeva 5, 52100 Pula, Croatia
Have a project in mind? Tell us what you need, and we’ll come back with how we would build it, what it would cost and how long it would take.
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Free 30-minute consultation · No commitment required · Typically respond within 24 hours