Client Stories
Testimonials and case notes from Australian SME owners who used Poplar Core for pricing and profitability reviews.
The report showed we were undercharging on call-out fees by nearly forty dollars. Took two weeks to update our price list and the first month already covered the consultation cost.
Helen Marsh — electrical contracting, Western Sydney
Honest about what we could fix quickly versus what needed a longer conversation with our accountant. I appreciated that — some consultants oversell follow-up work.
James Okonkwo — café group, Inner West
Margaret spent a full morning in our workshop looking at material waste and labour hours per unit. The recommended price increase was smaller than I expected, which made it easier to sell to our wholesale buyers.
Sandra Li — furniture maker, Marrickville
Extended case: Riverside Dental Practice
Situation: A three-dentist practice in Parramatta had not revised treatment fees in four years. Health fund rebates had shifted, hygienist hours had increased, but the fee schedule stayed static. The practice manager suspected they were busy but not profitable.
What we did: We mapped every billable procedure against direct costs (materials, lab fees, clinician time at loaded rates) and allocated a fair share of overheads. We compared the results to local competitor published fees and health fund schedules.
Outcome: The practice implemented tiered fee adjustments across twelve procedure codes. Annualised gross margin improved by an estimated $84,000 based on prior-year volumes. The owner noted the process took discipline — staff needed retraining on quoting — but the numbers were unambiguous.
Owner reflection: “I wish we had done this before hiring the fourth admin person. The review made it clear we did not have a staffing problem — we had a pricing problem.” — Dr. Anita Verma
Extended case: North Shore Landscaping
Situation: A landscaping company priced maintenance contracts by square metre, a method inherited from the previous owner. New equipment finance and fuel costs had eroded margins on larger properties.
What we did: On-site visit to two active job sites, review of the last six months of job cards, and rebuild of the square-metre rate from actual crew hours and material usage.
Outcome: New maintenance rates were introduced at contract renewal. Three clients negotiated; seven accepted without pushback once the scope was explained. The owner reported that losing one underpriced contract freed crew capacity for better-margin work.
Owner reflection: “The written report gave me confidence to say no to a job that would have kept us busy and broke.” — Tom Bradley