Their first job.
Your account.
A paper round, with a mower. Your teenager quotes, mows, sends the photo and gets paid by real customers on your street. You hold the account, the ABN and the money. Mowie brings the customers, shows the going price and runs the payments.
- ✓ Paid by real customers
- ✓ Parent holds the account
- ✓ Push mowers only, you set the rules
Four standard $110 visits, after Mowie's 10% + GST and card fees. Fortnightly regulars turn one Saturday into a term's income.
Why a mowing round beats a first shift
They set a price, win the job, do it well enough to get a review, and see the money land two days later. That's a whole business in miniature, three streets from home.
What they actually learn
Reading a job brief, quoting from a measured lawn, turning up on time, sending a proper "after" photo, replying to a customer, asking for the regular. Plus what an ABN, GST and a card fee are, because it's all on the statement.
Why it runs through you
Mowie accounts are 18+: the account holder is the person contracting with the customer, holding the ABN and getting paid. For a teenager that's a parent or guardian. You see every job, every message and every dollar.
How it works today
You don't need anything special to start. The account is yours and the mowing is theirs.
- 1
You join as the mower
Five minutes: your date of birth (18+), ABN (free, instant at abr.gov.au), Stripe for payouts (they check your ID), the suburbs you'll cover. Put the family on the profile - 'Ava, 16, with Mum on the first few jobs' wins trust.
- 2
Jobs arrive with the full brief
Every listing shows the measured lawn, photos, gate, dog, slope and a suggested price. You look at it together; they decide what to bid. Bids under your name are binding, so you approve the first ones.
- 3
They mow, you supervise early on
Be there for the first jobs and for any lawn with a dog, a steep section or a customer you haven't met. After that it's their round. Push mowers and a whipper snipper only - no ride-ons.
- 4
Photo, approval, money
They send the after photo from the app; the customer approves; Stripe pays your bank about two days later. You split it however your family does.
- 5
Regulars
The customer taps 'make it regular' and the same lawn comes back every fortnight. A dozen regulars is a real weekend income by summer.
The house rules
Written so nobody has to guess. Customers see them too.
- ■Ages 15–17. Under 15 isn't part of this. Victoria's child employment rules and the gear both say wait. Anyone 18 or over holds their own account.
- ■Push mowers and whipper snippers only. No ride-ons, no chemicals, no ladders. Closed shoes, glasses and ear protection every time.
- ■An adult on the first three jobs, and always where there's a dog, a steep section, or a customer nobody has met.
- ■You own the customer relationship. Messages go through the app under your account; you can read every one.
- ■Insurance is yours to sort. A sole-trader public liability policy costs about a dollar a day. Make sure it covers family members working with you, then upload it for the Insured badge.
- ■School first. Bids default to your working days and hours, so set them to weekends and holidays.
Coming next: the junior profile
We're building a way for the teenager to be the face of the profile - their name, photo and reviews - while the account, contract and payouts stay with you. It lands once insurance and terms are settled for launch. Register below and you'll hear first.
- Now
- Parent joins as the mower; family on the profile in words and photos
- Next
- "Family crew" badge, teen on the profile, parent stays the account holder
Register your family
Tell us who and where. We'll reply personally, help with the ABN and insurance questions, and let you know the day the junior profile opens.