Loading the latest writing…
We caught up with Dylan Koltai, Director of Partnerships at Corefinity, one of our sponsors at this year’s event in Manchester on 14 October, about supporting the community, cutting through the noise, and finding the team at stand #1.
Click on the video above to watch the full interview with Dylan Koltai.
Dylan Koltai is Director of Partnerships for Northern UK and Europe at Corefinity, a fully managed hosting provider specialising in Magento. He explains why supporting a Northern event felt like a duty for Corefinity, and why a merchant-first, not-for-profit day matters. He shares his view that the biggest challenge facing merchants is noise, and his advice for cutting through it. He also describes the weekly performance gains Corefinity sees when merchants move onto its platform.
On the day, you’ll find him at stand #1, and at the after party, which Corefinity is sponsoring.
“Without merchants, there wouldn’t be any ecosystem.” - Dylan Koltai
Could you introduce yourself, your role, and what Corefinity does?
Dylan: My name is Dylan, and I’m Director of Partnerships at Corefinity, focusing on Northern UK and Europe. Corefinity is a fully managed hosting provider specialising in Magento. We host other applications too, but around 70% of our focus is on Magento.
How has Corefinity changed or grown over the last year?
Dylan: The biggest change over the last 12 months has been on the technical and support side. Corefinity really puts its partners and customers first. We listen, and we adapt and change when needed. As a result, the technical offering has improved immensely, and the level of support has skyrocketed. It’s been very exciting to see, and the feedback from our merchants and partners has been great.
How long have you been part of the Magento/Adobe Commerce community, and what does being part of it mean to you?
Dylan: Almost three years, which is crazy. Time has flown by, and honestly it’s meant the world to me. It’s not just a nine-to-five job. I’ve really embraced this as my life and my lifestyle, and I’m so grateful to be a part of it. It’s something I take pride in and talk about a lot. To be part of this community, with these people and the companies we get to work with, has been one of the best things that’s happened to me.
Why did Corefinity decide to become a sponsor of Mage Camp?
Dylan: We’re big believers in supporting the community. This is open source we’re talking about, so we don’t have big budgets behind events like this. As a Northern company, with Northern events, it felt like we had to. It was our duty to be part of it and support in any way we can. It’s about community and bringing people together, and there has to be support from all types of companies.
Mage Camp is merchant-first and not-for-profit. Why does that matter to you?
Dylan: Merchants are a big part of what makes this whole ecosystem turn. Without merchants, there wouldn’t be an ecosystem, so an event tailored specifically for them is crucial. It gives them something to be excited about and, hopefully, to learn a lot from. The not-for-profit part is important too, because you don’t want things to get political. An event that is really about the merchants and bringing the community together creates great vibes, and a day people want to be part of and support.
What can attendees expect from you on the day? Is there anything special planned for your stand?
Dylan: Corefinity is a very different hosting company from what’s traditionally out there, so I think the conversations are going to be really good. I hope people take a lot away from them, because we do something that no other hosting company does. There’s a lot to learn and a lot to be excited about, so come by the stand, talk to us and pick our brains. We’d love to meet anyone who wants a chat. And of course, we’re sponsoring the after party too. There will be some fun activities and maybe some prizes, so come and have some drinks and enjoy the night with us.
What’s the biggest challenge you see merchants facing right now, and what’s one practical tip they could act on today?
Dylan: Noise. There’s so much going on, not only in the Magento ecosystem but across SaaS platforms too. People are shouting in every possible direction, and it’s very easy to get caught up in it because other options can look better. What matters most is for merchants to take a step back, reflect on the business, understand its core needs, and then find the right solution for that business, rather than listening to whatever is trending at a particular moment.
What advice would you give a merchant attending Mage Camp for the first time?
Dylan: Listen, learn and talk. I came into this ecosystem as a mechanical engineer, not a developer, and for me it was all about meeting people, talking, learning and listening. There will be so many great people at this event with so much knowledge, people who have been in the ecosystem for 10, 15, 20 years. So talk to whoever you can and pick their brains.
What are you most looking forward to on 14 October, and what would make the event a success for you?
Dylan: Being in Manchester. It’s one of my favourite places in the UK, and the Magento ecosystem there is some of the best out there. I live in the Netherlands, but I come to Manchester about once a month now. I’m really excited to be back, seeing familiar faces, meeting new ones, and sharing knowledge and ideas. For me, success is getting as many people there as possible and having them leave with real, tangible takeaways. At a lot of events you sit through talks and don’t remember much afterwards. But if even a few people take away key points that make a real difference to their businesses, that would make it a very successful event.
Where do you see the Magento/Adobe Commerce ecosystem heading over the next year or two?
Dylan: The ecosystem is getting stronger, especially over the last 12 months. More of the community is coming together, and more products are coming out that make it easier for merchants to run a Magento site. I’m quite optimistic. There are a lot of great companies doing great things, and Magento can do things no other platform can. When the community shouts about it more and showcases what makes Magento different from every other platform, that will only help us keep doing what we’re doing. It’s something great to be a part of.
Is there a merchant success story you’re especially proud of?
Dylan: It’s happened multiple times, almost every week at Corefinity. A customer comes onto our platform and gets 40, 60, even 70% better performance, saves some costs, gets better support, and our team takes away some of the headaches they had before. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a merchant doing a couple of million a year or 100 million plus. Those differences mean a lot to me and to Corefinity. It’s not just about the monetary value. It’s seeing people be happy and really feel the benefits of working with us.
Where can people find you or learn more?
Dylan: On the 14th I’ll be at stand one, with the big Corefinity banner behind us, all day. I’ll also be at the after party, probably having a few drinks, so I’ll be wandering around there. Outside of the event, you can find us at corefinity.com, and you can look up Dylan Koltai on LinkedIn. I think I’m the only one in the world, so I’m easy to find. I hope to meet some of you next Wednesday.
Corefinity is a fully managed hosting and cloud infrastructure provider, specialising in mission-critical and eCommerce applications. The company hosts Magento (including Magento 1 and 2) and Shopware stores, as well as WordPress and Oro, on Google Cloud, AWS and Microsoft Azure.
Its services include fully managed hosting built on a performance-focused, PCI-compliant stack, cloud management and consultation for Google Cloud, and specialist Magento security and performance audits. Every hosting plan is backed by UK-based support, available 24/7/365, with an average uptime of 99.99% and an average emergency response time of seven minutes.
Find the Corefinity team at stand one in Manchester on 14 October, under the big Corefinity banner. Here’s what you can do there:
Corefinity provides fully managed Magento hosting for ambitious ecommerce brands of every size. Trusted by leading Magento agencies for over a decade, Corefinity delivers high-performance infrastructure designed to scale instantly with demand. Supported 24/7 by UK-based Magento experts, we ensure your store remains lightning quick, secure, and reliable when it matters most.
Visit sponsorMage Camp is almost here, and we're introducing the people who make it possible. We caught up with John Hughes, VP of Product at Hyvä, one of our Marketplace Plus sponsors and a speaker at this year's event on 14 October.
Mage Camp is almost here, and we're introducing the people who make it possible. We caught up with Dion van de Griend, who leads the partnerships team at Hypernode, one of our Headline sponsors at this year's event in Manchester on 14 October.
