BNI SteadFast
Zayed Talib
Shopify & ecommerce consultant
Do you know anyone running a shop who also sells online, and has to count their stock twice?
My business
I've spent 10 years across Asia and North America building and running eCommerce operations, and since 2012 I've worked with over 20 businesses moving their retail models onto Shopify. My focus is the whole ecosystem, not just the website: connecting the store to POS, fulfilment, accounting and marketing so it runs as one business instead of several. I work on retainer with Singapore SME retailers who want a long-term operations partner, and I train their teams so they aren't dependent on me for everyday changes.
Accomplishments
- 10 years building and running eCommerce operations across Asia and North America.
- 20+ Shopify stores built, migrated or rebuilt.
- Specialist in Shopify POS: unifying physical retail and online into one system.
- Long-term retainer relationships rather than one-off builds.
Skills
- Shopify POS implementation.
- Platform migration: WooCommerce, Wix, Squarespace, Vend, marketplace sellers going independent.
- Theme customisation and conversion optimisation.
- Integrations: accounting, inventory, fulfilment, marketing.
- Training retail teams to actually run the system after handover.
Networks
BNI SteadFast · Shopify Partner ecosystem (apps, agencies, platform contacts) · Singapore SME retail and DTC founders · Fulfilment, payments and marketing providers across Southeast Asia.
Burning desire
To help 50 Singapore retailers stop running their shop and their website as two separate businesses, and to build a consulting practice that runs on long-term partnerships rather than one-off projects.
Goals
Sign six new Singapore SME retailers onto ongoing Shopify retainers over the next 12 months, and build a digital product line (checklists, guides and courses) for retailers not yet ready for hands-on work.
How to refer me
Say this“Do you know anyone running a shop who also sells online, and has to count their stock twice?”
My ideal referral
A Singapore business owner with one to five retail outlets who is either about to sell online for the first time, or already on Shopify but only using it as a catalogue. Usually the owner does the ordering, the stock counts and the Instagram themselves. Typically SGD 1–10M revenue, small team, no in-house developer.
Three triggers to listen for
- Migration: “we're moving off WooCommerce / our POS is being discontinued.”
- Retail + online split: “the shop and the website don't talk to each other.”
- Growth ceiling: “our site works, but it's holding the brand back.”
Top problem I solve
Retailers running their shop and their website as two separate businesses: two stock counts, two customer lists, manual reconciliation every month, and no idea which products actually make money.
Top product
Shopify POS implementation: one system for the shop counter and the online store, with stock, customers and reporting unified.
My contact sphere
- Accountants & corporate secretarial firms
- Marketing, SEO & creative agencies (they subcontract to me, not compete)
- Product photographers & content studios
- 3PL, fulfilment & logistics providers
- Packaging & print suppliers
- Retail interior & fit-out
- Payment & POS hardware providers
- Business brokers & startup advisors
Not a fit
Alcohol, tobacco, gambling and adult-category businesses: I decline these on principle, regardless of budget. Also: one-off project work with no ongoing relationship, price-first buyers, marketing-only briefs, and enterprises with a procurement process.
Where my referrals come from
Other founders in the same circles: word travels fast among Singapore homegrown brands. Creative and marketing agencies who need a Shopify specialist behind them rather than a competitor. POS and platform vendors whose customers are outgrowing them. Accountants and corporate secretarial firms, because they see a new retail business before anyone else does.
Why I joined SteadFast
I'm new to the chapter, so my BNI story is still ahead of me. For ten years my business has grown almost entirely through founder relationships and word of mouth, but that happened by accident rather than by design. I joined to make it deliberate: to be in a room every week with people who serve the same business owners I do, and to learn how to explain what I do in a way that someone outside my industry can actually repeat to a client. Ask me again in six months and I'll have a better answer.
Seven of my last ten clients hired me directly as founder or owner. Referrals reach me fastest through the person who owns the business.
Last 10 clients
- 1 Commune Lifestyle Furniture & lifestyle retail. Hired by the CEO. Two years migrating retail and online operations onto the Shopify stack.
- 2 Al Fajr Lifestyle brand. Hired by the CEO. Rebuilding the site to match the brand's ambitions and international standard of execution.
- 3 COMO Shambhala Wellness & hospitality. Introduced by 360&5, run day to day with the brand's General Manager. Shopify-side campaign deployment.
- 4 The Meatery F&B / DTC. Hired by the owner. WooCommerce to Shopify migration plus subscription purchasing.
- 5 Anothersole Footwear. Hired by the founder. From founding to multi-million revenue in Singapore; software deployment across SG, international and US markets.
- 6 Nomad's Soiree Hired by the founder. WooCommerce to Shopify migration, external app installation and ecosystem health check before handover.
- 7 Kedai Sujimy F&B / retail. Hired by the founder. Day-to-day operations, plus team training in barcode-scanning data capture and Excel.
- 8 Soilboy Plants & lifestyle retail. Introduced by 360&5. Advisory on Shopify POS deployment and adoption.
- 9 Scents by Six Fragrance retail. Vend POS to Shopify POS migration and team adoption.
- 10 Adlina Anis Modest fashion. Hired by the founder. Growth and sustainability across front-end, marketing and content.
What they have in common
Singapore-founded lifestyle, fashion, F&B and home brands, mostly with physical retail alongside the website. Almost all founder-led: the person who hires me is the person who owns the business. Typically SGD 1–10M revenue, one to five outlets, a small team and no in-house developer. Relationships are long: Commune has run two years, Anothersole from founding onward. These are not one-off builds.
Before we finish: our commitments
Fill these in together, then print or save as PDF. Nothing typed here is sent anywhere.