The Story of Subhan Sheikh & VVSComputers: From Child Prodigy to Canada’s Leading Apple Electronics Business

From a young age, I’ve always been fascinated by technology — not just using it, but understanding how it works, breaking it apart, and finding ways to make it better. What started as a childhood curiosity quickly turned into a lifelong passion, and over the years that passion has grown into the career and business I’m proud to run today.

I’ve always loved playing PC games as a kid, but the problem was, this was the mid-2000s — viruses were super common back then, and the PC would spend more time in the shop than with me. That was until 2008 (I was 6 at the time). Our computer had so many viruses, and my dad just stopped bothering to fix it — it had become a monthly thing. After three months of no computer, I decided to take matters into my own hands.

I’ve always had this habit of trying to “MacGyver” everything, and back then, my way of fixing the PC was going into my mom’s kitchen cabinet, grabbing a knife, and splicing every wire I could see. I even stripped the case down to bare metal — mind you, I was only 6! But that moment is what made me fall in love with computers and wanting to understand everything about them.

By the time I was in grade 2 (around 2010), I was basically the school’s IT department — and this was still new even for most adults. Over the next few years, I took on projects like building PCs and making Hackintoshes.

Then when I was 11, a family friend told me about a girl from Pakistan (Arfa Karim) who broke the world record as the youngest Microsoft Certified Professional. Out of pure spite and competitiveness, I said I could do it better. So for the next month, I argued with Microsoft to let me write the exam. At first, they thought I was just some kid with too much time on his hands, but eventually they let me. I studied hard, and on March 6, 2014, I passed the exam at age 12 — and became the youngest MCP in North America at the time.

After that, I felt really encouraged to use my skills for something. I started fixing computers around the neighborhood for like $30 — mostly virus removals. Eventually I stepped into the Apple world, which became the foundation of my career.

I discovered a YouTuber named Louis Rossmann fixing Mac logic boards at the component level — I was hooked. I bought a 2012 MacBook Pro to fix and flip, and in the process, I met someone really talented who ran a specialist apple repair shop. That led to me landing an internship at his shop that summer in Grade 8 2016.

From there, things just kept growing. In the summer of 2018, I was flipping MacBooks full-time out of my bedroom and made more than both my parents combined.

Then I got into day trading just before I finished high school, but when COVID hit, things went south. I lost about $40K in summer 2022. That was rough.

Having lost everything, I made a humble return to what I knew best — the tech business. I spent about 6 months doing repairs, then started getting deeper into the distribution side of the business. I also enrolled in a cybersecurity bootcamp and became a board-certified cybersecurity engineer (CompTIA Sec+), just as a backup plan.

By summer 2023, I was regularly closing multi six-figure B2B deals with my now-partners. Then in Spring 2024, I pitched them the idea of going full-force into e-commerce together. They believed in me and the potential, and collectively we built what is now VVSComputers.

The timing was crazy too — right before I was set to start full-time, I got offered a $70K/year job. I had to decide: take the stable route and be comfortable at 22, or take the risk and give this 100%. I chose the latter.

One year later, I can proudly say I made the right choice. It’s worked out better than I imagined, and I’m genuinely thankful Best Buy believed in us. The future really excites me.

Looking back, every struggle — from tearing apart scrap computers as a child, to breaking the world record in 2014, to biking 2km every day in 2016 for my summer internship, to losing $40K in one summer and rebuilding from the ashes — I wouldn’t do it any other way. Each of those moments shaped me into who I am today, and gave me the resilience, discipline, and passion that fuel everything I do.

That same passion is at the core of VVSComputers. What started as my love for fixing and flipping computers has now grown into one of the most trusted wholesale and retail tech companies in Canada. Whether it’s the latest Apple products, high-quality refurbished devices, or premium electronics, we’ve built VVSComputers to be the destination for unbeatable prices, reliable quality, and unmatched customer trust.

For me, this is more than just a business — it’s the realization of a lifelong journey. And as proud as I am of what we’ve built, I know the best is still ahead.

Thats My Story
With love,
Subhan Sheikh

You can connect with me on LinkedIn to follow my journey and see what we’re building next at VVSComputers.