Dustin van Zyl

Director & Solutions Architect โ€” 2ndBrain Africa
๐Ÿ“ Pretoria, South Africa

Enterprise-grade digital ecosystems for South African businesses. 10+ years bridging strategy, technology, and creative execution.

10+
Years Experience
50+
Brands Served
21k+
Subscribers Managed
R66k+
Revenue Tracked
DV
Profile

Solutions Architect and Digital Agency Director with over a decade of experience designing and delivering end-to-end digital ecosystems for South African businesses. From enterprise-grade e-commerce platforms and automated email pipelines to custom analytics dashboards and brand identity systems โ€” I build the full stack.

Previously at TransUnion (global information and insights), I led digital transformation initiatives that scaled across markets. Now, through 2ndBrain Africa, I deliver the same enterprise-grade solutions to businesses that traditional agencies overcharge and under-deliver for.

My work spans 50+ brands across spa & wellness, retail, hospitality, financial services, and professional services โ€” each with a complete digital presence: website, e-commerce, email marketing, analytics, and brand identity.

Core Competencies

Solutions Architecture Digital Transformation Full-Stack Development E-Commerce Strategy Email Marketing Analytics & BI Brand Identity Content Strategy UI/UX Design Project Management Team Leadership Client Strategy

Technical Stack

Next.js WordPress WooCommerce Vue.js Python Node.js Docker PostgreSQL Listmonk Mailgun GoatCounter Tailwind CSS REST APIs Linux / Caddy Git
Experience
2024 โ€“ Present

Director & Solutions Architect

2ndBrain Africa (DVZ Digital) ยท Pretoria

Founder and director of a full-service digital agency delivering enterprise-grade websites, e-commerce platforms, email marketing pipelines, analytics dashboards, brand identity systems, and content creation for South African businesses.

  • Built complete digital ecosystem for Soul Thai Spa โ€” 3 locations, Next.js + WooCommerce, 21k+ email subscribers, unified analytics dashboard
  • Designed and deployed custom Listmonk + Mailgun email pipeline capable of sending 100k+ campaigns per month
  • Built real-time analytics bridge combining GoatCounter site data, WooCommerce orders, and Listmonk campaign stats into one dashboard
  • Created comprehensive brand identity manuals and outreach playbooks for client acquisition
  • Architected multi-site VPS hosting infrastructure with Docker, Caddy auto-TLS, and automated backups
Next.jsWooCommerceListmonkMailgunDockerPythonGoatCounterCaddy
2020 โ€“ 2024

Solutions Architect

TransUnion ยท Pretoria

Led digital transformation initiatives at a global information and insights company. Designed and implemented solutions that scaled across South African and international markets.

  • Architected customer-facing digital platforms serving millions of users
  • Led cross-functional teams bridging product, engineering, and business strategy
  • Drove API-first integration strategies connecting legacy systems with modern web platforms
  • Reduced time-to-market for new digital products by 40% through reusable architecture patterns
Solutions ArchitectureAPI DesignDigital TransformationTeam Leadership
2004 โ€“ Present

Professional Photographer & Content Creator

Freelance ยท International

Specialist news and event photographer whose work has featured in publications on five continents. Photographed some of the most recognisable people in the world.

  • Photographed Prince William, Prince Harry, Nelson Mandela, Madonna, and David Beckham
  • Work published across five continents in major news and lifestyle publications
  • Deep understanding of visual storytelling, brand imagery, and content that converts
PhotographyVisual StorytellingContent CreationBrand Imagery
Selected Work
๐Ÿ’†
Spa & Wellness

Soul Thai Spa

Full digital ecosystem for 3 Pretoria-based spas. Modern Next.js e-commerce site, WooCommerce backend, automated email pipeline serving 21,244 subscribers, unified analytics dashboard.

21,244
Subscribers
R66k
Revenue
22,851
Emails Sent
1,120
Site Visits
Next.jsWooCommerceListmonkMailgunDocker
๐Ÿ“Š
Analytics & BI

Custom Analytics Dashboard

Real-time unified dashboard combining GoatCounter site traffic, WooCommerce orders, and Listmonk email campaign data. Live theme customisation, date range picker, mobile-responsive.

3
Data Sources
Real-time
Updates
4
Theme Options
100%
Custom-Built
PythonGoatCounterWooCommerce APIPostgreSQLDocker
๐ŸŽจ
Brand Identity

Brand Identity Manuals

Complete 8-chapter brand identity manuals โ€” colour palettes, typography, tone of voice, logo usage, application guidelines. Delivered as HTML + PDF. Extracted from live brand assets.

8
Chapters
2
Formats
Live
Deployed
HTML/CSSTypographyColour TheoryPDF Gen
๐Ÿ“ง
Email Marketing

Email Campaign Pipeline

Enterprise-grade email marketing infrastructure using Listmonk + Mailgun. Full-width HTML templates, subscriber management, automated sequences, open/click tracking, rate-limited delivery.

21k+
Subscribers
22k+
Emails Sent
100/hr
Rate Limit
ListmonkMailgunPostgreSQLHTML EmailDocker
Connect
Based in Pretoria ยท Available for consulting, project work, and partnerships