For design-minded founders whose stack wasn't built for the AI era.
Now booking for Q3 2026.
Why clients call me
You need technical leadership with real judgment about the product, not just the code.
You need someone who can sit across from your customers, designers, engineers, and board of directors — and translate between them.
You need someone who can use the latest AI to build real software — not just vibe-coded prototypes.
And you need someone you'd actually want to see on the other end of a Zoom call at the end of a hard day.
How I'm different
Most consultants jump straight to building. I don't. Clarity comes before code — naming the right problem is most of the work.
I work hands-on in the codebase and hands-on with the strategy. Most people sell you one or the other.
My incentives are aligned with yours: I get paid to help you make the smartest moves, even when that means recommending the simpler option.
How I work
- Taste
Better taste than your most expensive robot
You get real judgment about what to build and how, not just execution. AI multiplies output; taste decides what's worth multiplying. 'Elegant' is the benchmark — not the most complex, not the most expensive, the right one.
- Tools
AI that holds up
Taste picks what's worth building; AI accelerates how it gets built. I use the latest tools every day — to multiply clarity, not to cut corners. Output stays boring in the good way: predictable, maintainable, yours.
- Handoff
Built to run without me
I'm not trying to become a permanent dependency. You leave with the systems, tools, and playbooks to keep shipping. A team that's got its shit together beats a team that's got me on retainer.
Don't take my word for it
From designers, engineers, and leaders I've worked alongside.
Martin is the person you want to work with. He knows design and front-end inside and out, cares deeply about accessibility — and he's a natural leader who gets stuff done.
One of the best technical leaders I've worked with — charismatic and seriously capable. I'd jump at the chance to work with him on anything.
It's rare to find deep development expertise paired with the ability to communicate across disciplines. His humour could cut the tension in any difficult meeting.
I wouldn't be where I am without Martin. He keeps who people are at the centre of the solution — and his confidence is infectious.
Selected work
tl;dr
Twelve years in tech. Nearly five at Shopify, leading front-end and UX engineering for Custom Data, Media, and App Developer Experience. Before that, UX Development with clients including The Globe and Mail, and a lot of creative technical work that taught me to sweat the details.
The studio's technical partner for its most complex client builds.
Full event presence shipped on an immovable conference deadline.
Stabilized the team and roadmap, rebuilt the tech stack from the ground up, and hired their long-term CTO before stepping back to advisor.
Full rebuild of a custom WordPress platform on Next.js, Sanity, and Vercel.
Replatformed an innovative restaurant space onto a custom Shopify storefront and app.
The menu
Start with a sprint
Two fixed-scope, two-week sprints to get unstuck — then a longer Build when you're ready to ship. Not sure where to start? There's no wrong door.
Clarity — a written verdict on what to build, and why.
- Written report. A clear map of opportunities and risks, documented so your whole team can align on what matters.
- Code review. If you have an existing codebase, I assess its health and name what's helping or hurting your velocity.
- Technical strategy. A concrete plan that connects your technical decisions to your business goals.
- Collaborative session. We work through the findings together, so you leave with clarity — not just a document.
A demoable, video-ready prototype on a live URL.
- A working prototype. Built on Next.js + Vercel and deployed to live URLs — ready for investors, insurance carriers, and prospective hires.
- A narrative arc. Week 1 defines the story and picks which slices to build; Week 2 builds them.
- Vision, not production. Mock and sample data, no real integrations — a convincing picture of the product, deliberately not the real thing.
- Yours to keep. A documented GitHub repo and a dedicated Vercel org, so you can keep shipping prototypes after we're done.
Production software, shipped — with me in the codebase.
- Shipped features. Real product work merged and deployed on your stack — integrations, tests, CI/CD, and the guardrails a production codebase needs.
- Architecture you can defend. The hard technical calls made and documented, so the system holds up as it grows.
- A team that levels up. Hands-on pairing and review that leaves your engineers sharper — the thing a contractor doesn't give you.
- A codebase you own. Clean handoff, docs, and no lock-in. I'm a force multiplier, not a dependency.
Not sure which fits?
Tell me what's going on and I'll point you to the right next step — or we'll figure it out together on a call. There's no wrong door.
- Two weeks, fixed scope.
- A 50/50 fee split — the Week-1 go/no-go checkpoint is your off-ramp.
- About 4–6 hours of your time.