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From R18k to R200k: 5 powerful finance lessons from Rosebank Primary School

By
Karri Team

June 4, 2025

Lesson 1: When school fees are paid upfront, everything changes

At Rosebank Primary School, Karri has become the school's most predictable income stream. Bridget Motsoane, Finance Manager, explains:

"One month, our principal was stressed about paying salaries on time. I said: 'Don't worry. Karri has this covered.'"

Most schools spend too much time chasing payments and too little time actually growing their cash balances.

At Rosebank Primary, their financial outlook fundamentally changed when parents started paying for school fees upfront on the Karri app.

Because the app is simple to use, offers multiple payment methods, and sends automated reminders, payments started coming in not just faster, but reliably and consistently. As a result, Rosebank Primary have grown their school fee collections on Karri from R18,000 to R200,000 in just 3 years.

Today, Rosebank uses Karri collections alone to pay staff salaries (including birthday bonuses). That's because Karri is their most predictable, consistent income stream.

As a result, Bridget spends less time worrying about what’s coming in, and more time growing their cash balances.

Growth in school fees collected on Karri over 3 years

Lesson 2: The person who shouts the loudest gets paid

"With past experience as a debt collector, I can honestly say that the person who shouts the loudest gets paid. So the more notifications you send, the more payments you get."

No human can send the amount of reminders that Karri can.

This is key to getting parents to pay on time and upfront. It also lessens the need for awkward conversations with parents who haven't paid school fees.

"...Because parents want to get you out of their hair, right?"

Lesson 3: "I could take medical leave because Karri ran itself"

When Bridget had to undergo major surgery, she preloaded 12 months' worth of school fee collections on Karri.

"Even if one collection closed at midnight, the next one opened at 12:01"

This is what automation should feel like. It meant no disruption to payments, which is proof that Karri isn't just easy for parents, it's a lifeline for staff.

Lesson 4: Think like a busy parent

Bridget makes sure that Karri is a success because she converts every skeptic that walks through her door into a fan. And it doesn't take much effort to achieve this.

She understands that parents are wary about new apps that are connected to their bank account. So she eases their mind by explaining:

  • Karri is a registered FSP with bank-grade payments security
  • If they double-pay by mistake, Bridget can refund them straight away
  • Karri is budget-friendly: top up your Karri wallet on pay day and you're sorted

"Parents are incredibly busy people. They don't have the time to fumble around with an EFT. They want three clicks and done. You only get that with Karri."

Lesson 5: Lean on Karri as a marketing tool

"Our pizza days are sold out before the posters go up. With Karri, we made 15 pizza sales in 3 minutes without advertising a thing."

Parents end up using Karri as a calendar for school events throughout the year. They rely heavily on the app to organise their family's life.

This means our push notifications double up as a marketing tool, taking huge strain off a school's internal marketing team.

One month, our principal was stressed about paying salaries on time. I said: 'Don't worry. Karri has this covered.'

Bridget Motsoane

Rosebank Primary School

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