Eleven years ago when Louise Bruce needed to have some pin-on badges made, she found it so difficult to source the badges, she decided to make them herself.

This prompted her to start her own business. She purchased a manual press and began making small volumes of badges.

She then stumbled on a method of production that enabled her to produce badges at up to half the price of her competitors. This she says is a secret and has given her a significant competitive edge.

Today, Badges Unlimited produces thousands of badges a month, each colourfully designed by Louise, which she says is her area of expertise and the part of her job she likes.

She is outspoken about her dislike for accounting. My passion is with creating badge designs whether it is for a primary school or corporate event, she says.

I have no bookkeeping knowledge and didnt know the difference between a debit and a credit. I kept my accounting records manually and would send a box of papers to my bookkeeper once a year who would do my accounts.

After installing EconoAccounting I was amazed at how easy and logical it was. I found I could in fact do my accounts myself. Everything is flexible, and user-driven, even the charts of accounts.

Downloading transactions from my bank statements on the Internet is easy and saves an enormous amount of time. The transactions are automatically allocated and its as simple as pushing a button. I spend no more than five minutes a day doing my accounts. If I can do it, anyone can.

Louise says previously she would not know the status of her business until her bookkeeper presented the financials once a year.

Now I can, on a daily basis, see what Ive spent on raw materials, enquire as to which are the most popular badges and find out what Im spending on materials, even down to the level of pins.

I can produce an income statement and balance sheet every day if necessary. The software produces invoices, about 60 per month, and there is no need any longer to use an accountant.

It is a product I highly recommend. As my business has grown, without EconoAccounting I could have of lost control over the financials. Alternatively, the cost to outsource the work to a bookkeeper or accountant would have escalated. Realistically, the software has probably paid for itself in a few months.

For more information on badges contact Louise Bruce at 012 998 5096 or This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it