I didn't start with a plan to build a portfolio. I started with one problem, built one app, and couldn't stop.
Six months later, MRVL Technologies has 17 live apps on the App Store — productivity tools, security apps, invoicing, social, creator tools — and a few more in review. All built solo all bootstrapped, zero VC money.
Here's the honest breakdown of what I've learned:
What's worked
Building getting better with every build. My first app took weeks of deliberation. By app 10, I was going from idea to App Store submission in days. The market tells you more in 48 hours of being live than 3 weeks of planning.
A portfolio compounds. Each new app is a chance to cross-promote the others. Users of one app discover two more. The network effect is slow but it's real — and it costs nothing.
Attribution matters from day one. I built our own internal SDK (Attribr) to track installs and 30-day retention across every app. I was flying blind before that. Now I know exactly which channels drive subscribers who actually stay.
The partner programme changed growth for us. Instead of paid ads, I built a referral system where TikTok creators earn cash per paying subscriber they refer. £0.75–£4.00 per subscriber. 50 spots, self-serve signup. The whole thing runs without me touching it.
What's failed
Launching without research. Two apps got rejected or flopped because I didn't properly map what competitors were charging for vs. giving free. I was over-giving on the free tier and leaving money on the table. I now do a full competitive research doc before writing a single line of code.
Trying to do everything at once. At one point I had 5 apps in simultaneous development. Quality dropped, nothing got proper attention. Now I finish and submit one before starting the next.
Underpricing. Every single time I've raised prices, conversion hasn't dropped. The first few apps launched at £1.99/mo because I was scared. The later ones launched at £5.99–£9.99 and convert just fine.
Where we're at
17 apps live on the App Store
2 in Apple Review right now
Attribution, referral tracking, and partner payouts all automated
Monthly infrastructure cost: ~£340 across everything
The goal isn't to be the next unicorn. It's to build a portfolio of small, profitable apps that solve real problems — and keep growing it.
Happy to answer questions about any part of the stack, the process, or the business model. Ask away.
— John, founder of MRVL Technologies (mrvltechnologies.com)
Top comments (2)
17 apps in 6 months. That's the right mindset — volume beats perfection every time. Most of my best product decisions came from shipping fast and seeing what sticks.
Curious about your discovery strategy. With 17 apps, how are you getting eyeballs on each one? That's always been the harder problem in my experience. Building is the easy part now — finding the right people to put it in front of is the bottleneck.
I've been experimenting with Reddit keyword monitoring to find potential users for my SaaS. Tracking pain-point phrases across niche subreddits, then showing up with helpful answers. Early days but the signal quality is way higher than any content marketing I've tried.
Hey , have you have native or hybrid tech stacks ?
Looking at some apps (like Ark) it seems like native (SwiftUI, kotlin)