Product
Booka: venue management software for stadiums
Booka is the venue booking and event management platform every stadium in the Venues NSW network runs on, including Allianz Stadium, CommBank Stadium and McDonald Jones Stadium. We built it, we run it, and it is available to license for other stadiums and large venues.
- 2018
- building since
- 70+
- designers, engineers and product people
- Sydney
- headquarters with team members across several countries
- 4,000+
- commits on Booka and over 130 database migrations, still being extended
What Booka does
Bookings that match how space is sold
Venue sales rarely go straight from enquiry to confirmed. Booka models tiered provisional holds, so a space can be held with a clear signal of how firm the interest is, and the strongest commercial intent wins the slot. Spaces that need sign-off go through approvals as part of the booking, not in an email thread beside it.
Conflict detection across the whole venue
A stadium contains concourses, which contain rooms, which can be combined or subdivided. Booking one space implicitly books others. Booka understands those relationships and refuses to double-book, instead of leaving it to whoever notices.
The event, not just the slot
Reusable staffing templates become per-event rosters, and run sheets turn an event day into a time-ordered checklist. The information that used to live in a spreadsheet beside the booking system lives with the event.
Built for a venue network
Role-based access runs per venue, so each team manages its own venues without seeing everything else, and a separate permission set controls who can see contact details. Every consequential action is written to an audit log, because a public body has to be able to show what changed and who changed it.
Connected to the building
At Venues NSW, single sign-on runs through the organisation's Microsoft identity, so there is no separate account to manage, and an external API gives the building management system event and space data, which it uses to schedule HVAC, lighting and security around what is actually on.
Why venues choose Booka
Enterprise venue suites are built to cover everything a venue might do, from ticketing to catering and finance, and venues pay for that breadth in configuration, training and clicks. Booka does the job a stadium sales and events team does every day, modelled on how venue space is actually sold, and it keeps being extended: more than 4,000 commits and over 130 database migrations to date.
It is narrower on purpose: Booka sells the space, ticketing sells admission, and the two work better connected than merged.
What a stadium needs
Provisional holds, space hierarchies, approvals and the downstream systems that depend on the booking. What a venue booking system actually needs.
How it compares
Momentus, Priava, iVvy, EventPro or a platform built for stadiums: venue management software in Australia, and what each is built for.
Moving to Booka
Venues do not stop trading while the booking system changes. We move venue by venue rather than in one cutover, with both systems kept in step through each transition until the last one is done.
Licensed, and set up for your venues
Booka is licensed to each venue or venue group, and configured around your spaces, holds and approval rules before your team uses it.
NSW Government buyers
Shakewell is a Registered supplier under the NSW Government ICT Services Scheme.
One team, building and running it
The team that built Booka for Venues NSW runs and extends it. The full story is in the Booka case study.
The proof
Work we have shipped, not a capability deck.
Common questions
Can other venues use Booka?
Yes. Booka was built for Venues NSW, where every stadium in the network runs on it, and it is available to license for other stadiums and large venues. We configure it around your spaces, holds and approval rules before your team starts using it.
How is Booka different from Momentus, Priava or other venue management suites?
Momentus, which now includes the products formerly sold as Ungerboeck, VenueOps and Priava, is a broad suite covering venue sales, events, operations and more. Booka is narrower: booking and event operations for stadiums and venue networks, modelled on tiered provisional holds, space hierarchies and approvals. If your venue uses most of a suite's modules, a suite may suit you better. If your team works around the system to run bookings, Booka is worth a look. We compare the options in venue management software in Australia.
Can we move to Booka from our current system?
Yes. We plan the move venue by venue, with both systems kept in step through each transition, so you keep trading while it happens.
Does Booka handle ticketing?
No. Booka sells the space; ticketing sells admission. A booking has an owner, an allocation and an approval trail, a ticket has a holder, a gate and a scan. They meet at the event, so Booka connects to the systems around it rather than replacing your ticketing provider.
Is Shakewell on the NSW Government ICT Services Scheme?
Yes. Shakewell is a Registered supplier under the NSW Government ICT Services Scheme, which NSW agencies use to buy ICT services. Your procurement team will confirm the right contracting route for the size of the engagement.
Can venues outside NSW license Booka?
Yes. Booka is available to license for stadiums and large venues outside NSW too. It is a web platform, so where the venue is does not change how it is set up or supported.
Engagement models
How we work
Four straightforward ways to engage us. Pick the one that fits, or mix them as your needs change.
Staff Augmentation
Add experienced Shakewell developers, designers or specialists directly to your own team. Engagements typically run three to twelve months, but can be as short or long as you need, you get the skills without the commitment and cost of hiring full-time.
About staff augmentationFixed-Scope Projects
Have a defined outcome in mind? We scope it, price it and deliver it as a project, a clear timeline, agreed milestones and a single point of accountability from kickoff to handover.
Embedded Delivery Teams
For larger or longer-running work, a cross-functional Shakewell team (development, design and delivery management) plugs in as your delivery arm, working to your priorities and your reporting cadence.
Support & Maintenance
Already live? We keep websites, stores and apps secure, updated and performing through ongoing retainers, business-hours support as standard, with 24/7 coverage available for critical issues.
About support & maintenance