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From spreadsheets and late-night WhatsApps to one system that runs the business.

Pace Plumbing is a Cape Town plumbing business run by Don and Lisa Holmes, trading through three companies with teams out on jobs every day.

Office systemField appDebtor follow-upWebsite
Before

Quotes and invoices lived in Excel. Jobs were arranged over WhatsApp. Whatever didn't get done in the day got done at night, and Don and Lisa wanted their time back.

What we built

Not a website with a contact form. A system built around how Pace works, with the website as its front door.

The office systemEvery customer, quote and invoice in one place, for all three companies, each with its own numbering, VAT, bank details and terms. Quotes turn into deposit invoices, and deposits come off the final invoice automatically.
Sending from one placeQuotes, invoices, statements and compliance certificates go out straight from the system, several at once if needed, with every email logged against the customer.
The dispatch boardOne board showing which team is on which job, and when.
The field appTeam leaders see the day's jobs on their phones, take photos, record geysers by serial number, and clock out automatically when they leave a site.
Debtor follow-upFive steps from a friendly heads-up before an invoice is due to a final notice at 30 days. They pause when a customer promises to pay and stop the moment an invoice is paid. Don and Lisa can preview, pause or skip any of them.
Their history, brought acrossYears of past invoices from the spreadsheets were imported and reconciled, so the system started with the full picture.
The websiteReal photos of Pace's work, a map of the peninsula they cover, and a booking form that sends enquiries straight to the office.
How it runs now

Don and Lisa run the office from the system themselves. Nothing is typed twice: each step hands over to the next. Team leaders log jobs, photos and hours from the field, and overdue invoices get followed up without anyone picking up the phone.

01EnquiryFrom the website booking form, straight to the office.
02QuoteThe right company's details and certificates attached.
03JobOn the board, then on the team leader's phone.
04InvoiceDeposit already taken off, sent from the system.
05PaidFollowed up automatically until it is.

In use every day since 20 August 2026. In the first two months, 327 quotes, invoices and statements went out from the system, and 40 of the 69 quotes sent were accepted.

“We used to do quotes at the kitchen table after supper. Now they go out before the van has left the site, and neither of us has phoned anyone about an invoice since August.”
Don and Lisa Holmes, Pace Plumbing
What's next

Pace has moved its accounting to Xero, so the next step is connecting the two: invoices and payments flowing between Pace's system and Xero automatically, with nothing typed twice and the books matching without a monthly reconciliation.

Still doing the admin at night?