Walter Hodkiewicz

Why this persona fits the audience

Works alone with 6 to 8 independent Shopify sellers, turning CSV exports from Shopify, Meta Ads, and Klaviyo into weekly sales and CAC views. He mostly relies on Excel, a few free dashboard templates, and hand-built formulas to keep client reporting moving.

• Age: 34
• Location: Manchester, UK
• Occupation: Freelance ecommerce analytics consultant
• Income: GBP 55,000
• Education: Bachelor's degree
• Company size: Sole proprietorship (1 person)
• Years in role: 4

“Data doesn't lie, but the way we pull it together can easily tell a story that isn't true if you aren't careful with your source files.”

Walter Hodkiewicz is a 34-year-old freelance analytics consultant based in Manchester, operating as a sole trader serving a roster of six to eight independent Shopify merchants across the UK and Europe. Holding a Bachelor's degree in Mathematics, Walter initially worked in corporate supply chain analysis before pivoting to freelancing four years ago, driven by a desire for autonomy and a frustration with bureaucratic red tape. He currently earns approximately GBP 55,000 annually, a figure he manages carefully to cover taxes, insurance, and savings for a future rural retreat. His work reality is defined by a relentless cycle of data ingestion; every week, he manually downloads CSV exports from Shopify, Meta Ads, and Klaviyo, then stitches them together in Excel using hand-coded formulas and free dashboard templates. While he possesses a high level of technical competence, he deliberately avoids expensive enterprise BI tools, preferring the transparency and control of spreadsheets where he knows exactly how every cell is calculated. Recently, he decided against upgrading to a paid competitor platform after a trial period revealed unnecessary complexity for his specific client needs. Instead, he spent three weeks refining his own internal template library, reducing his weekly reporting time by an hour per client. Despite his comfort with numbers, Walter feels the friction of manual processes acutely, often spending late nights debugging a broken formula rather than strategizing with his clients. He is a man who values practicality over prestige, finding satisfaction in the clean line of a perfectly aligned chart and the trust of a merchant who relies on his numbers for critical business decisions. He is not looking for a magic solution to replace his skills, but rather a tool that respects his workflow and enhances his ability to deliver truth to his clients without adding layers of abstraction.

Background & daily life

A day in their life

Walter wakes at 6:15 AM to a cup of strong black tea, checking emails before getting out of bed to avoid the rush. By 7:00 AM, he is cycling through the city streets, listening to industry podcasts to stay sharp. Back home by 8:15 AM, he settles into his ergonomic chair, starting the tedious ritual of downloading the previous day's CSV exports from his clients' portals. From 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM, he focuses on data cleaning, using Excel macros to merge disparate sources, often wrestling with formatting errors in Meta Ads columns. Lunch is a quick sandwich eaten while reviewing a new Klaviyo campaign structure for a clothing client. Afternoons are reserved for building dynamic dashboards and responding to client queries via email or Slack. By 5:30 PM, he shuts down his computer, physically separating work from home life. Evenings are for cooking, reading tech blogs, or meeting friends, ensuring he doesn't let the data consume his entire identity.

Lifestyle

Walter lives in a converted Victorian terrace in Ardwick, Manchester, filled with ergonomic office gear and a stationary bike that doubles as a desk anchor. His routine is anchored by early morning rides along the Rochdale Canal, where he processes the week's mental load. He is health-conscious, prioritizing sleep and home-cooked meals to maintain energy for long coding sessions. Financially, he operates on a 'cash flow first' basis, reinvesting profits into better hardware rather than luxury goods. Socially, he balances quiet evenings at local jazz bars with active participation in Manchester's cycling community groups. He avoids large corporate parties, preferring one-on-one deep dives with peers who understand the grind of solo entrepreneurship.

Work life

His workspace is a dedicated home office in Manchester, strictly separated from his living area. He manages six to eight clients simultaneously, all independent Shopify store owners ranging from fashion boutiques to niche gadget shops. Every Tuesday and Thursday, he spends four hours manually merging CSV exports from Shopify, Meta Ads Manager, and Klaviyo into a master Excel workbook. The bulk of his day involves debugging complex VLOOKUPs and writing custom DAX-like formulas within Excel to calculate blended CAC and LTV. He has no employees; his only coworkers are the automated email notifications from his clients' platforms and the occasional Slack message. The pressure comes from the unpredictability of client ad spend and the strict requirement for accurate, timely reporting, often requiring him to work late nights when server data lags.

Relationships

Walter shares a close, supportive relationship with his partner, Elena, a graphic designer who understands the freelance lifestyle. They rely on each other for emotional grounding during tax season. Professionally, he maintains a tight-knit network of three other freelancers in Manchester whom he meets monthly for coffee and code reviews. He is less connected to family, who view his work as abstract and confusing, so he rarely discusses the specifics of his job with them. His influence stems from his reliability; if he says a number is right, it stays right, making him a go-to resource for his clients' broader strategic decisions.

How they decide

He is a deliberate, research-heavy decision-maker who values transparency and control above speed. Before adopting any new tool or process, he conducts a 'dry run' using historical data to verify accuracy. He is highly skeptical of marketing claims and prefers community-sourced validation or free trials over paying upfront. He rarely makes impulsive purchases, instead creating a comparison matrix of features, pricing tiers, and data security protocols. Peer recommendations carry significant weight, especially from other consultants, while broad advertising campaigns tend to be ignored unless they offer concrete case studies.

How they sound

Walter speaks with a calm, measured Mancunian accent, avoiding hyperbole. He uses precise terminology like 'blended CAC' and 'attribution windows' naturally, but explains them simply when speaking to non-technical clients. He tends to pause before answering complex questions, preferring to verify facts rather than guess. He avoids jargon-filled buzzwords like 'synergy' or 'disruptive,' finding them empty. His tone is professional yet approachable, often softening bad news with a practical explanation of the underlying data issue. He rarely raises his voice, even under pressure, believing that clarity is more persuasive than volume.