Title: Business Strategy Manager
Company: Fujifilm Canada Inc.
Location: Oakville, Ontario, Canada
Education: Diploma in Marketing Management, Varsity College, South Africa (2013); Diploma, High School
Career History: Business Strategy Manager, Fujifilm Canada Inc., Mississauga, Ontario, Canada (2023-Present); Co-Founder, First Seed Capital, Ontario, Canada (2023-Present); Chief Strategist, SteynStorm Consulting, Oakville, Ontario, Canada (2022-2023); Business Development Manager, Fujifilm Canada Inc., Mississauga, Ontario, Canada (2020-2022); Business Development Manager, The Central Group, Ontario, Canada (2018-2020); Digital Sales Manager, Muscat Media Group, Muscat Governorate, Oman (2017-2018)
Gary Steyn, Business Strategy Manager at Fujifilm Canada Inc., has been recognized as a Marquis Emerging Leader for their contributions in the field of business.
Having accrued over two decades of professional experience, with expertise in business strategic growth and development and consulting, Mr. Steyn has excelled as a business strategist and entrepreneur—starting and growing six businesses across numerous industries and continents. He has been active as the business strategy manager at Fujifilm Canada Inc. and co-founder at First Seed Capital since 2023. At Fujifilm, his responsibilities include developing and implementing the photofinishing division’s overall strategic plan, analyzing business performance, and providing insights and recommendations to senior management. Meanwhile, at First Seed Capital, he and his co-founder have strived to help entrepreneurs build themselves in a new country; even if they have the skills, he noted, they might not have access to capital, banking history, and local references. Through First Seed Capital, they provide local programs that help practical business starters such as laundromats and wellness and beauty parlors.
In addition, Mr. Steyn serves as the chief strategist and consultant at Steyn Storm—through which he dedicates himself to two to three clients, whom he consults for e-commerce and online retail businesses, and helps expand and partner with global brands. He predominantly focuses on strategic business development plans concerning the growth of companies. He started at Fujifilm as a business development manager from 2020 to 2022; served in this same capacity at The Central Group from 2018 to 2020, where he achieved $1 million in sales in his first year, for which he was recognized with the Sales Achievement Award; was a digital sales manager at Muscat Media Group from 2017 to 2018; and was active as the communications director at Focus on the Family from 2014 to 2017. Before these appointments, he led as the chief executive officer at Live The Dream Point of Purchase from 2007 to 2014 and the national sales executive at Lonehill Trading from 2004 to 2006. He launched his career as the publisher of the Millennium Today Newspaper in his native country South Africa in 1998, distributing thousands of copies of it—followed by a role as the managing director of his own coffee shop.
Over the course of his accomplished career, Mr. Steyn considers the highlight to be writing his book, “The True Love Story: True Life Story of Gary Steyn,” which was published in 2019 and details his adverse, tumultuous, and at times tragic upbringing in South Africa and his eventual path toward finding his faith. The book inspired numerous people and led to him being a guest on the show “100 Huntley Street.” In addition, he has written numerous articles and has been interviewed across television and radio. Outside of his primary endeavors, he is an ordained pastor and was also active as the national director of the South African branch of Hellenic Ministries, a Christian organization through which he took groups of people to Greece and explained the group’s cause. He’s currently working on two projects, an initiative called Courage to Spot Losing the Ones We Love, which focuses on the courage of people who continue living after a loss, and a screenplay about artificial intelligence.
Looking toward the future, Mr. Steyn strives to have a global business. So far, he has managed to start businesses on two continents, Africa and North America, and he now plans to have an international company. He’s working with First Seed Capital on different initiatives and will hopefully be able to have more locations in the near future.