• Living Business
  • PO Box 15292, Tauranga
  • 08:00 AM - 05:00 PM
  • Monday - Friday

Bookkeeping

Free yourself to work ON the business, not IN the business. With Living Business at your side you can be sure the accounts are in order and the business is IRD compliant. Save time with day to day support in accounts and Payroll, and use our Fix-it Package to clean out old errors.

The Living Business Way

Whip your business into better shape with effective and efficient financial systems. Partner with Living Business to optimise how your business uses Accounting / Job Management / Inventory and other Cloud financial software and reduce duplication and errors from manual processes.

Consulting

Living Business does the heavy lifting for you, knowing which software has the features you want for your business. Whether its accounts, payroll, job management, inventory, POS, CRM or industry specific software you can be confident of making the right choice and getting the right set-up.

HOW WE DO THINGS DIFFERENT

WHY US

A unique combination of expertise in bookkeeping, and business financial software and systems. We understand how business works and can ensure the data in your business makes sense, as well as streamlining the way things get done in your business.


The Living Business Way
Living Business are Gold Champion Xero partners with 5 certified Xero Advisors - growing fast and highly trained in Xero.

OUR SOFTWARE

1

Xero Subscriptions – are you on the best version of Xero for your business?

With Living Business you an access non-advertised Partner Xero plans which may be more suitable for your business, and potentially reduce the subscription cost.
2

Xero Support– do you need independent Xero support?

Working with Living Business complements your existing relationships with your financial advisors as we are not accountants or tax agents. We focus on optimising your use of Xero, and ensuring your Xero data is correct. We work in partnership with your business and your financial advisors.
3

Xero Conversions – are you moving to Xero from another system?

Living Business has the expertise to ensure your set-up is correct with minimal disruption to your business. We can provide a fixed price, and you choose how much you want to be involved.
4

Xero Integrations – are you using other software that links to Xero?

Working with integrations is our speciality. Be confident you have the right software for your business, get the integrations working correctly and minimise duplication between systems.

OUR HISTORY

Living Business started in 2006 as Bay Business Services and steadily built a strong reputation for quality bookkeeping Xero and WorkflowMax consulting with owner Heidi Seal. The business became Living Business in mid 2015 with the new director Helen Schafer building on Heidi’s work. Now with a larger team including more diverse skills Living Business has expanded the software consultancy service as well as offering services in financial system process mapping and making change.

WHAT WE OFFER

Payroll

Living Business offers payroll set-up, advisory and weekly / fortnightly or monthly payroll administration, with IRD compliance.  We work with a wide range of payroll providers including Thankyou Payroll, Flexitime, ...

Financial Process Mapping
Professional Bookkeeping and Administration

Living Business is a member of the NZ Bookkeepers Association. We offer the full range of bookkeeping services including accounts payable/receivable, GST and PAYE management, reconciling, and payroll.  We also ...

Partner Software Subscriptions for Xero and Xero Apps

Managed subscriptions are available for Xero, WorkflowMax, Unleashed, Receipt-Bank, Fergus and others.  Access to special partner pricing is available for Xero and WorkflowMax. For Xero, Cashbook versions are available from ...

Remedial and Trouble-shooting

Sometimes the numbers in the software just don’t look right, there are unexplained transactions or there is just a sense that the full value of the software is not being ...

Custom Software Set-up and Training

Living Business is partners with Xero, WorkflowMax, Unleashed, Vend, Receipt-Bank, and other software.  Our customised software set-ups ensure everything is correct from the start, and that the software delivers the ...

SKILLS AND EXPERIENCES

Xero support and training
WorkflowMax support and training
Payroll
Administration
Software consultancy

Software Consulting Packages

Rates are custom and will depend on No. of users and software brand and application.

Xero / WorkflowMax / Unleashed / Vend / Fergus / payroll / Receipt-Bank

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START UP

$55 Monthly (plus GST)

  • Managed software subscription
  • Direct Lite support – short email and phone enquiries (up to 5 mins per item).
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BALANCE

$110 Monthly (plus GST)

  • Managed software subscription
  • Direct Lite support – short email and phone enquiries (up to 5 mins per item).
  • Regular health-check to correct minor errors and advise best practice
  • Updates on relevant software developments.
  • Regular reporting on relevant software developments
Enquire Now
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CONTROL

$180 Monthly (plus GST)

  • Managed software subscription
  • Priority direct phone and email support. *Unlimited - reasonable use applies
  • Regular checks to identify errors
  • and advise best practice
  • Quarterly team upskilling on software updates
  • financial literacy
  • and best business practice.
  • Regular reporting on relevant software developments
  • Annual pre EOY software audit
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The Living Business Way Packages

Rates are custom and will depend on No. of users and software brand and application.

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START UP

$100 Monthly (plus GST)

  • Annual Business Discovery to find potential opportunities:
  • More robust processes
  • Reduce duplication
  • Optimise software use
  • Increase automation
Order Now
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BALANCE

$250 Monthly (plus GST)

  • Annual Business Discovery to find potential opportunities:
  • More robust processes
  • Reduce duplication
  • Optimise software use
  • Increase automation
  • Visual Process Map and Report on current process and opportunities
  • Visual Process Map and Written report comparing prior and current years (from 2nd year).
Order Now
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CONTROL

$500 Monthly (plus GST)

  • Annual Business Discovery to find potential opportunities:
  • More robust processes
  • Reduce duplication
  • Optimise software use
  • Increase automation
  • Visual Process Map and Report on current process and opportunities.
  • Customised process documents.
  • Regular check-ups and reports on progress
  • Practical training support for change
  • Visual Process Map and Written report comparing prior and current years.
  • Team Reward programme and celebration event.
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The Living Business XERO Health Check

The Living Business Xero Health Check is valued at $350 + GST. 

  • A full review of your Xero accounting file, checking for errors and inconsistencies.
  • Minor on the spot corrections where practical.
  • A written report to you on any areas of potential concern as well as identifying features currently not being used that could add value.
  • A one hour session with you, working in your Xero file to update you on best practice and show you through recommended process changes.

Enquire Now

MEET OUR TEAM

LET'S HAVE A CHAT ABOUT HOW WE CAN HELP YOU

Sam de Villiers

Office Software Specialist

Phone: 022 011 5358.  Hi I’m Sam, I have 20+ years experience in the Financial/Management Account field and are familiar with a lot of different accounting, POS  and office software packages.   As well as spending many years training on a variety of accounting software packages, I have also worked as a CFO for a medium business over the last several years.   I have worked in small and larger business in administration and financial roles, as well as running my own successful small business over nearly a decade. I really enjoy getting stuck into how software systems are being ...

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Bernadette Vera-Agas

Financial Analyst

Hi I’m Bernadette.  Before I moved to New Zealand in 2011, I worked in the corporate finance area, doing financial modelling of publicly-listed companies as a financial analyst with HSBC and as part of fund management with AIG. To familiarise myself with the New Zealand work environment, I upskilled and went back to school. It’s a pleasure to be part of Living Business team. It offers a balanced way of life and a supportive environment. I like to do number crunching, working with financial data and spreadsheets. I enjoy having new experiences, just like my leap of faith to New ...

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Tanya Bamford-King

Xero Guru and Systems Expert

Phone: 021 2712493.  Hi, I’m Tanya and I’ve got a heap of experience in all kinds of areas.  I can work almost any accounting and financial management system you can throw at me including Xero.  In addition I’ve got heaps of experience with databases, spreadsheets and wordprocessing packages.   I’ve worked in some really big businesses and also some small (including my own business for the last 18 years- from 2-15 staff at various times).  Some of my roles have included being a Sysems Analyst with development work for financial tools. Although I did qualify as an accountant quite a long time ...

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Robyn Halberg

Office Systems Expert

Phone: 0211576893. Hi, I’m Robyn and I’m the newest addition to the Living Business team.   Before taking a break for family I spent 14 years with ASB bank, working with all kinds of systems and project management.  I’m really a systems person, super organised and I just thrive on sorting stuff out and figuring out better ways to do things.   More recently I was looking for a change of career and really wanted to get more hands on with helping businesses on a day to day basis.  I completed the Career Academy Certificate in Bookkeeping in 2015 as a ...

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Helen

Owner

Phone: 027 600 5794.  Hi there, I’m Helen. My husband Gerard and I are the proud owners of Living Business. Taking a holistic approach to helping people in business means we look beyond the obvious to find and share vital insights into what’s working and wha t isn’t. The biggest thrill for us is seeing business owners gain a whole new perspective on their business by getting better access to their financials and better understanding. We started our first business 10 years ago, so we know what it’s like learning everything at once, and being everyone at once. The good ...

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Book your complimentary 1 hour discovery session

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LATEST NEW FROM THE BLOG

Our clients do the talking for us

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Ground Work Associates

Simon, Hamilton

Helen’s support as a WorkflowMax expert was crucial in helping us to understand the capabilities, advantages, and limitations of the software we had been using for several years (but not utilising it to its fullest potential). She also provided solutions to long-established and unresolved issues and developed processes alongside us to ensure more robust financial accountability on our projects going forward.

Empowered Leadership

Sarah Devereaux

I would highly recommend Living Business to anyone finding themselves in a situation such as mine. My accounts are now accurate and up to date, and I have peace of mind that they will remain so moving forward. Prior to engaging Helen and the team at Living Business I was with an Accountant who as it later transpired, had incorrectly reconciled items within my Xero File. This meant that my accounts were in disarray and also a surprise result at tax time that I felt was incorrect. I approached Helen at Living Business and explained my situation and Helen reassured me that together we would get everything sorted and brought up to an accurate representation of their actual status. Helen and Heidi were both very friendly and also had great people skills. Heidi proceeded to review and correct the file. She established that due to errors and double entries the tax result was a lot less than stated by the accountant, which was a huge relief for me. Heidi had a great knowledge of Xero and was very dedicated, thorough and really helpful.

Chrome

Rhys Jakich

Nicole and myself initially undertook to do the accounts ourselves but found it a little overwhelming and were continually playing catch up. At the time we were starting a family and it became necessary for Nicole to take more of a back seat. As I had the day to day running of the business to attend to we made the decision to approach Living Business. Visits from Living Business were twice monthly to maintain our accounts which includes payables, the sorting of invoices, statements, filing and the making up of payments batches. We have found Staci’s work is always accurate and completed on time. This is an important factor for me as I’m required to produce monthly reports for Head Office and need the information I work from to be without error. Both Nicole and myself enjoy working with the team at Living Business, everything was always on time and accomplished what’s required with a minimum of fuss and finished to a high standard. Since working with Living Business we’ve noticed how much easier life has become as admin can be quite time consuming. It was a good move to offload it and we would recommend Living Business to other businesses without hesitation.

Bin Inn

Alexis Corkill, Papamoa

To any fellow businesses that are considering Living Business, we would say with confidence (and from experience) that you would certainly not regret it. Initially upon purchasing the business we found life to be chaotic and slightly out of control, with most areas leaning towards the disorganised side of things as opposed to organised. One area in particular was the accounts, which due to large volumes of Invoices was in need of a major overhaul. This would also facilitate the need for ‘Xero’ to be functioning efficiently and up to capacity as soon as possible. To help us achieve this we approached Helen at Living Business, whom we found easy to communicate with and very professional. Helen was confident and knowledgeable with regards to working within ‘Xero’ and also ‘Receipt-Bank’, which we use in conjunction with ‘Xero’. This was a good fit for us and the level of personal service and willingness to help was fantastic. Helen and the team took over a large part of the accounts and in so doing, rectified any issues we had with Xero. They now keep everything up to date and functioning very efficiently. Tasks that we would struggle with are now completed in a fraction of the time and if unsure of anything, Helen will always check in with us first. This has made life so much easier for us, as this was something we could not have dealt with in an already jam-packed day. We now have the time to deal with and learn about other systems within the business which has alleviated a lot of stress for us both. Helen and the team are a fantastic group of people and offer a level of personal and professional service that is second to none. From answering random emails sent at all hours to staff answering the phone whilst at lunch, nothing is too much trouble.

CMT Excavations

Helen explained the process in detail and always checked my understanding which made me comfortable with our decision. I approached Living Business because we needed to upgrade our accounting systems and had been receiving lots of different advice and recommendations. Helen from Living Business really helped me by taking the time to listen to all my concerns and nervousness around changing systems. She helped me to methodically work through what would be the best option and also allowed me time to think and discuss with our accountant before proceeding. Once I had decided to proceed with Xero and WorkflowMax through Living Business, Helen explained the process in detail and always checked my understanding which made me comfortable with our decision. The best part was that Helen worked to our schedules as one of the reasons we needed to upgrade was because we were so far behind with our invoicing and quoting and we were working really long hours. I found the experience challenging at times due to having to re-think the way do things and trying to get my husband’s input due to his very high workload. However Helen was absolutely incredible and was available to us at short notice either by phone or in person to help us with each step. I would highly recommend Living Business to anyone that is contemplating changing their accounting systems or who wishes to get extremely honest and helpful advice. Our only regret is not doing it early. We also know that with Helen on-board we will never be behind in systems again!