Olivia Clarke Homes
Wallet Helps a Small and Forward-Thinking Home Builder Compete with Big Builders
“As a start-up, it’s crucial to offer innovative tools to strengthen our relationship with Suppliers, Subcontractors and Trades and improve efficiencies so we can grow and compete with bigger Builders. We love Hyphen Wallet because it’s a seamless feature in BRIX, includes an array of features we can use as our business grows and eliminates the need to rely on another vendor solution to automate payments.”
– Jennifer Johnson Clarke, Founder and President of Olivia Clarke Homes
Jennifer built a career in land acquisitions and later went on to lead the sales, construction, production, design and purchasing departments at a privately held mid-sized production Builder. Inspired by her 25 years of residential home construction and real estate experience, Jennifer partnered with a land developer to launch Olivia Clarke Homes in January 2021. The start-up company is headquartered in Plano and builds homes in metro Dallas-Fort Worth, most of which are in Collin and Denton counties. Their latest project in partnership with developer Rockhill Capital & Investments, is an intimate 20-home community in a block of the Historical McKinney Square, with designs inspired by the areas’ rich historical architecture.
When Jennifer founded the company in January 2021, she set out to not only build homes, but to create a unique brand that does things differently. The mission of Olivia Clarke Homes is to deliver an elevated, intriguing, unique brand and customer experience. This is reflected in its website, marketing materials, customer service efforts and the innovative tools they rely on every day, like Hyphen’s BRIX alongside Hyphen Wallet.
Despite being the new kid on the block, Olivia Clarke Homes was honored in April with two 2022 McSAM Awards presented by the Dallas Builders Association. Now in its 43rd year, the annual awards program honors Home Builders, Developers and Associates who have made a significant, creative contribution in residential marketing through specific achievements in a given year.
Timely Payments Are Key to Supplier Satisfaction
Getting paid in full and on time is a frequent challenge for Home Builders, Suppliers and Subcontractors in the residential home construction industry. Construction delays, supply chain problems, cash flow shortages, payment fraud and other issues can hinder the timeliness of payments. Paying by check is a time-intensive process, whether you’re a start-up where it’s necessary to wear many hats or a large Builder with staff dedicated to far more specific roles. Many pain points can be prevented by managing payments with Hyphen Wallet, a state-of-the-art payment management system created specifically for residential Home Builders and Suppliers.
The Tightknit Team at Olivia Clarke Homes Leverages Technology to Grow Their Brand
Prior to launching her company, Jennifer spent two years researching different residential construction ERPs with accounting and was impressed with BRIX. Her accounting manager Susan also had experience with BRIX while working at a prior company, while Bill, who is VP of purchasing was unfamiliar with BRIX prior to joining the Olivia Clarke Homes team. “BRIX takes a while to learn in the beginning and it’s such a robust tool, our team is still discovering the full extent of its capabilities. But I can honestly say that from an industry standpoint, BRIX is the best single platform with integrated accounting available on the market today,” said Bill.
Greater Builder and Supplier Gains Come With Use and Familiarity
Jennifer said they didn’t realize Hyphen Wallet was an integrated feature of BRIX until they were well into implementation and started using it more frequently. So, it came as an added benefit to discover additional services included with their Hyphen subscription. “As we worked through the inevitable questions and challenges of implementing and using BRIX and Wallet, the Hyphen team provided one-on-one training and online tutorials that made using it so much easier. As president of the company, I wear many hats, but I’m thankful Wallet took buying stamps, stuffing envelopes and mailing payments off my list of duties!”
“BRIX is a great, great tool for accounting. It takes some time and patience to learn its many features, but one of the biggest benefits is that you can access everything you need on just one or two screens,” said Susan.
“One of the biggest challenges was that some of our Suppliers and Trades were accustomed to receiving checks in the mail or picking them up at our office or job sites. Many younger Suppliers were on board from the start and happy to receive electronic payments, while others took longer to realize the benefits. Not every Builder has the ability to automate payments and I think it’s a value added to our company. This is especially true for Mechanical Trades — they already deal with countless transactions on a daily basis, so automated payments are a huge benefit,” added Bill.
“The time we save is significant, but Wallet also helps put us on the same playing field as big Builders. We’ve made significant strides in a short time and are confident we have the right tools to scale the company thanks in large part to innovative solutions and invaluable support from Hyphen. BRIX provides the automated tools we need in one seamless platform, from CRM to selling, construction and warranty management,” concluded Jennifer.
Hyphen Wallet Offers Seamless Integration in a Single Platform
With Hyphen Wallet, small and big Home Builders alike can eliminate many of the issues associated with legacy bank transfers. Hyphen Wallet eliminates the frustrating and time-intensive task of processing checks manually. With automated payments, you’ll reduce the costs of issuing and processing paper checks. You also won’t have to worry about checks getting lost in the mail or coordinating a time and place for Suppliers and Trades to pick up their checks. The realtime payment system with data and messaging capabilities provides enhanced security, the ability to identify fraudulent charges faster and tracking past and present expenses. Whether you’re a small and innovative start-up Builder like Olivia Clarke Homes or a larger Builder, Hyphen Wallet is designed to grow with your business. Get in touch with a Hyphen expert to learn more about how Hyphen Wallet benefits Builders, Suppliers, Contractors and Trades or schedule a demo.
About Olivia Clarke Homes
Founded in 2021 by industry veteran Jennifer Johnson Clarke, Olivia Clarke Homes is a North Texas home building company focused on designing homes around the unique needs of the modern family. Recognized by the Dallas Builders Association, the award-winning Olivia Clarke Homes team provides an unparalleled homebuyer and customer service experience, while delivering functional and refined homes throughout the highly coveted North Texas region. To learn more about communities now selling and coming soon, visit www.oliviaclarkehomes.com.
- Founded by Jennifer Johnston Clarke in January 2021
- A small Builder with an innovative brand
- Headquartered in Plano, Texas
- Recipient of two 2022 McSAM Awards
- Homes designed to support the busy lifestyles of modern families
