Small, independent businesses deserve the same quality of infrastructure as large ones.

The Store

Before SYNY existed, there was a specialty food store in Belgium. I joined with no background in retail, no experience in the food industry, and no roadmap. What I had was an accounting background, an intolerance for disorder, and the kind of personality that can’t leave a broken system alone.

The Mess

The store looked fine from the outside. Underneath, it was a mess. The product database was inconsistent. The categorization made no sense. Invoices were unreliable. Accounts receivable were always weeks behind. The kind of disorder that costs a business money quietly, steadily, every single day.

The Fix

I started fixing things. Not because anyone asked me to. Because I couldn’t not.

Over time, the product catalog got rebuilt from scratch. The POS was migrated. Clients started receiving invoices accurate to the cent, consistent every month. I built a tracking system so the owner always knew who owed what, when, and why. His cash flow improved. His negotiating position with clients improved. None of this was glamorous. Most people never knew it happened. But the results were real.

That’s still how I work today.

Why SYNY Exists

I started SYNY because small, independent businesses deserve the same quality of infrastructure as large ones. The boutique competing online against brands with full engineering teams. The family store up against a national chain. They have the product, the relationships, the personality. What they often don’t have is the organized, efficient foundation that lets them scale without breaking.

That’s the gap I fill.

How I Work

The way I work is unusual. Before I touch anything, I spend time understanding the business from the inside: the tools, the files, the documentation, how the team communicates, how the owner thinks and organizes. Not to judge it. To build something that fits them, not me. If I build it my way, it’ll feel like me. That doesn’t help anyone.

I’ve learned more from my clients than they have from me. That’s not false modesty. It’s the method.

My conditions are simple: honesty and room to work. I won’t help sell something a business owner can’t stand behind. And I can’t do my job with someone second-guessing every decision. What I can do, when those conditions are met, is build something that outlasts the engagement: a store that works, a system the team can actually use, a foundation the business can grow on for years.