The essentials, done properly
Core Accounting
Solid accounting support
Playdough provides core accounting and tax compliance for businesses, individuals, and trusts that need things handled carefully and correctly, without unnecessary complexity.
We are a hands‑on team with real experience helping people through change, growing complexity, and increasing regulatory demands. That experience shapes how we approach the basics.
We know compliance carries weight. Deadlines, shifting rules, evolving structures, and the quiet worry about whether everything is actually in order. Our job is simple. Take responsibility for the essentials, keep things clear and up to date, and give you confidence that nothing is being missed.
We focus on accuracy, practical systems, and advice that makes sense, quietly keeping your financial foundations steady so you can get on with what matters most
Our Accounting Services
Accounting and tax compliance, done properly
We keep the essentials in order, then help you make sense of the numbers.
If you need more support, we can bring in extra capability through our Fractional Services.
Companies - Fast effective compliance and advice
Fast, reliable compliance for businesses that need the essentials handled well. We manage company tax returns, GST, financial statements, and statutory requirements using systems that are simple, accurate, and built to last.
Our focus is accuracy, consistency, and efficiency. We keep you compliant, reduce admin load, and remove the those hassles that slow a business down. The result is a back office that supports the business, scales cleanly, and doesn’t demand constant attention.
We deal with IRD on your behalf, keep you ahead of deadlines, and make sure nothing slips through the cracks.
- GST returns
- Income tax returns
- Financial statements
- Provisional tax management
- Annual company returns and update
Individuals - Solving your financial complexities
Clear, reliable tax support for people with side hustles, multiple income streams, investments, overseas interests, or changing circumstances. We focus on what matters, simplify where we can, and use the right tools to keep things tidy.
We keep your returns compliant, your records clear, and your position protected over time. We deal with IRD on your behalf, stay ahead of deadlines, and make sure nothing gets missed.
- Sole traders
- PAYE with additonal income
- Investments
- Overseas income & Complexity.
Trusts - legally compliant in a complex world
Straightforward support for trusts that need accurate records, compliant returns, and clear guidance. We handle the day‑to‑day requirements, keep your information organised, and make sure the trust meets its obligations without adding unnecessary complexity.
We keep filings up to date, maintain proper records, and deal with IRD on your behalf. Our focus is clarity, consistency, and protecting the trust’s position over time.
- Trust Tax returns
- Beneficiary income and distributions
- Trustee records and documentation
- IRD correspondence and queries
- Compliance with trust obligations
- Long term structuring & efficient tax
Our stories
Real service, real results
Consistent service. Stronger margins. Less firefighting.
We helped a growing hospitality group replace reactive processes with clear systems, creating consistency, protecting margins, and giving owners their headspace back.
Hospitality lives and dies on consistency. The atmosphere sets the mood, but the experience keeps people coming back, and that’s what protects margins.
A group was opening a new venue. Staff were stretched, ordering was reactive, and margins were slipping. Not from lack of care, the systems simply weren’t keeping up.
They needed clearer processes, better tools, and a way to run each site the same way, no matter who was on shift. Using the right New Zealand‑based hospitality platforms, their operational backbone was rebuilt around simple, reliable systems. Ordering and rostering became predictable, procurement supported growth, and workflows were standardised across venues.
The impact was immediate. Service steadied. Margins stabilised. The team felt lighter and more confident. And the Owners finally had the headspace to focus on the guest experience instead of putting out fires
Lower cost. Cleaner systems. Ready to rebuild.
By redesigning their back office and systems, we helped a public-sector provider go through change, reduce staffing needs, stay fully compliant, and set up for future growth.
We believe systems should pay for themselves.
This organisation had just taken a significant revenue hit. Their back office had been built during years of growth, and now it needed to operate differently.
By redesigning their back office around clear processes and fit‑for‑purpose tools, the work became simpler and more predictable. Bookkeeping was streamlined, workflows were documented, and the systems finally matched the scale of the organisation.
The shift was substantial. They moved from needing two full‑time staff to relying on our part‑time support, while staying fully compliant and fully covered. Costs dropped, clarity increased, and the organisation could focus on service delivery instead of internal pressure.
When they choose to bring functions back in‑house, they can do it smoothly and confidently, without disruption or stress.
AI where it matters. Clear value. No hype.
Instead of chasing trends, we helped a client apply AI to one high-impact problem, delivering immediate clarity, real ROI, and less mental load for their team.
This client wanted to “do AI” because everyone else seemed to be doing it. Beneath the excitement was uncertainty: where was the real value?
We brought the conversation back to first principles. No hype. No automation for the sake of it. Just practical problems worth solving.
By mapping their workflows, one high‑impact opportunity stood out: customer feedback scattered across platforms and hard to act on. We built a simple AI‑driven system that collected feedback automatically and delivered it directly to the team, linked to their SOPs and next steps.
The impact was immediate. Better insight. Faster responses. Clear ownership. The team felt back in control, and the value was obvious. They didn’t need AI everywhere, just where it powered real returns, with humans still leading where it mattered, because we know humans trust humans.
Pricing
Sole traders
Sole traders
Overseas Investments
Compliance
Support
Growth
Simple
Complex
Want a clearer picture of where things stand?
Tell us what you’re dealing with and we’ll suggest the simplest next step.
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