About me
Marek Ryguła
An outage doesn't care whose code caused it. The cause can be in a module, the hosting, an integration, or on a vendor's side. I work alone, remotely, under the SAMIL brand, and I take technical responsibility for a store, including what's outside my own code: choosing a hosting provider, integrations, dealing with vendors.
Approach
Business first, then the system, then the code
I'm not a hobbyist who codes for the fun of it. Code is a tool to me, and I work so the store runs and sells. Before I change anything, I check what the problem means for sales and which systems it touches. When something breaks, I size up how serious it is and react proportionally.
I can read someone else's code and work out why it behaves the way it does. In a store that several developers have worked on, that's where every safe change starts. In short, my role is Stability, Integrations & Emergency Support.
Proof
Three facts instead of a pitch
A fix in the PrestaShop core
I reported a bug together with a fix, and a project maintainer merged it into the 9.2.x branch. You can check PR #42123 yourself on GitHub, without having to take my word for it.
One module across three generations of PrestaShop
samilreturns supports PrestaShop 1.6, 1.7 and 8. One compatibility layer handles the differences between versions, and I test it on all three running side by side in Docker.
92 modules of my own
Some built for a single client, some general-purpose. On top of that, plenty of other developers' modules that I've extended and fixed.
AI in my work
AI makes me faster. I'm the one who checks and decides.
I use AI daily, and I don't hide it. I understand how language models work, and I build my own agents for specific tasks. I built the samilreturns module with AI assistance, using tooling I set up specifically for that project.
The same rules on every project
I keep my rules for testing, working with code and writing copy in one place, not scattered across separate projects. When I improve a rule on one job, I carry it over to the others. Only the rules move between projects, never one client's data or code.
Agents that check the work
An agent walks through a store on desktop and phone, takes screenshots and reports problems before I look at it myself - that's how I checked the product-page redesign on duetunicato.pl and the cart redesign on sklep.dayspashe.pl. A different agent reviews every piece of copy on this site before it's published, and I decide which of its suggestions to take.
I fix the method, not just the result
When an agent gets something wrong, I fix its instructions too, so the same mistake doesn't come back on the next job.
AI speeds up and automates part of my work. I check the result myself, because I know what to look for in it, and I'm the one responsible for it.
Track record
Client work since 2008, PrestaShop since 2013
2008
First clients
I take on my first paid work for clients.
2010
SAMIL founded
I register the business. I still work under this name today.
2013
PrestaShop
Before that, OpenCart and projects built from scratch. From this year on, I work on PrestaShop.
I've worked for clients in Poland, Ireland, France, Germany and the US, billing in EUR, USD and PLN. One of those clients is efag.ie, an Irish store selling vaping products, whose technical side I've run since 2020. For efag.ie I built the module that adds volume fields to products and includes Ireland's E-Liquid Products Tax in the final price. For dmtex.fr, a French client, I handled small requests as they came up from 2019 to 2024: hosting and server limits, cookie consent setup, Google Search Console.
The path here
Broad at first, PrestaShop today
In the early years I worked broadly: websites and stores for different industries, listing templates for the Allegro marketplace, SEO work, and stores on other platforms (Shoper and WooCommerce, among others). That period left me with an understanding of other platforms and of where a store meets marketing. Today I work on PrestaShop, and I don't take on new builds on other platforms.
Boundaries
Where my scope ends
I don't do graphic design, I don't run ad accounts, and I don't stand in for a server administrator. When a problem goes beyond what I do, I say so plainly, point you to a specialist, and handle contact with them on your behalf.
Outside work
A steady rhythm and a clear head during an outage
I'm a father of two, so my week runs on a schedule. For you, that means predictability: I work Monday to Friday, 9:00-18:00 CET/CEST, and during those hours I react to an outage within 4 hours.
I meditate and deliberately train my response to stress. During an outage, when everyone else is rushing, I assess the situation first and act second. Time off is planned too: mountains, padel, board games. I come back to work rested.
Next step
Let's start with a call
You describe what's happening in your store, and we check whether there's a fit. Up to 50 minutes, by phone or Google Meet, no obligation and no cost.
Company details: SAMIL Marek Ryguła, ul. Słoneczna 16c, 43-243 Wisła Wielka, Poland. VAT ID PL6381587777. This is the registered address; I work remotely.