Shawn He wants to be your brand’s Amazon whisperer

“In business, you have to find where your expertise is the ultimate advantage. For us, that means finding the brands that don’t know anything about Amazon and showing them exactly how much money they’re losing by not being there,” says Shawn He (Finance ‘17).

Shawn isn't just managing accounts as co-founder of Black Compass Digital (external link) , he’s running an Amazon brand accelerator designed to bridge the gap between niche Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) success and massive retail scale. By taking Shopify brands (external link)  already doing $10M+ in revenue and plugging them into the Amazon ecosystem, he creates a proof of concept that often leads to the "holy grail" of business: $50M+ purchase orders from big-box retailers and long-term brand equity.

“You’re wearing so many hats as an entrepreneur,” says Shawn. “From financial planning and strategic vision to being a broker in the space.” 

“My day-to-day involves attending Amazon conferences to meet with senior leaders, discussing how we’re bringing outside sales into their ecosystem,” he adds. “Many agencies just shuffle the same pool of money around; we’re bringing a whole new pot of money to the table.”

With the e-commerce landscape becoming increasingly saturated and costs on platforms like Meta and TikTok skyrocketing, Shawn views Amazon as a “vital free cash flow” engine. But the transition isn't always seamless for founders used to the agility of social media marketing.

“If you are DTC, you are running lean and pivoting constantly. Once you’re on Amazon, you’re in a machine that moves slowly. You need to navigate that bureaucratic engine, and 80% of success there comes down to the relationships we have,” Shawn explains. 

“Founders often come to us because they are spread too thin. They’re struggling with tax laws, compliance, and IP issues. We are the experts who know the media buy-in and the specific levers to pull to make that channel work.”

To maintain that edge, Black Compass Digital employs a specialized team of 15 across North America, Latin America, Japan and India composed exclusively of ex-Amazon employees. “That allows our model to be incredibly effective. We aren't guessing how the engine runs because we've worked inside it.”

As a co-founder, Shawn is doubling down on technical literacy to keep operations lean. He sees artificial intelligence as the ultimate equalizer for small, high-growth teams, even if the rapid pace of changes poses new challenges. 

“Work that used to take a month now takes a day, but global crises are pushing costs up, and the life cycle to getting a product out the door is getting compressed.”

“Regardless, it’s crucial for entrepreneurs to leverage AI. Amazon is even working on natural language tools like MCP (external link) , which lets you run complex analysis on Seller Central just by asking questions,” he adds.

While many brands are content staying online, Shawn pushes his clients toward the higher margins of physical retail. He points out that while DTC was once the gold mine of e-commerce, the math has shifted significantly over the last few years.

“On DTC, after you pay for marketing, shipping and yourself, you might be left with $15 out of every $100. With big-box retail, you’re back to $30 or $40 because the retailer takes ownership of the inventory and expenditures,” he explains. 

“Big-box stores want to see that you’ve done well on Amazon first; it’s the indicator that you have omnichannel potential. Shoppers want to see what's online; if it’s doing well on Amazon, it belongs in their stores.”

Before launching Black Compass, Shawn built his own Amazon brand from scratch in 2016, systematically uncovering the best products to sell until exiting the business in 2021. It was a founder’s journey that required the "street smarts" he attributes to his time at the Ted Rogers School of Management.

“I studied Finance at TRSM, and it gave me a holistic view of different industries,” he reflects. “But the real value was the networking. Networking with your peers gives you the confidence to go out and make mistakes. I made good friends there, and those contacts helped me get my first jobs.”

Shawn credits the culture at the school with preparing him for the grit required in the startup world. “It taught me that there are different versions of success and many different paths to get there. That entrepreneurial mindset, like knowing how to pivot when the 'machine' changes—that’s what keeps us ahead,” explains Shawn.

As global crises push fulfillment costs up and advertising spend becomes more expensive, Shawn remains focused on the bottom line for his clients. “Marrying DTC growth with retail execution is what makes us special. Selling that vision and helping brands cut through the noise is the ultimate measure of success.”