E-commerce Product Validation Specialist Needed (Shopify/DTC Experience)

I am looking for an experienced e-commerce operator to help me identify and validate a physical product opportunity. This is not a Shopify store building project at this stage. My goal is to find a product/niche with real potential before investing money into development, inventory, or advertising. I have an initial testing budget and I want to work with someone who understands product selection, market validation, margins, competition, and customer acquisition. The ideal person has experience with: Shopify / DTC brands Dropshipping or lean e-commerce models Product research and validation Meta Ads / TikTok Ads Competitor analysis Understanding unit economics (margins, CAC, ROAS) Your first task would be to help answer: What product/niche should we test and why? What products should we avoid and why? How would you validate the idea before spending the budget? How would you allocate the first $1,000? What metrics would determine if we continue or stop? Please do not send generic examples of "winning products." I am looking for someone who thinks like an operator and business partner, not just someone who builds websites. There is potential for ongoing collaboration if we find a good opportunity.