Our Story
We built Noviabecause we needed it.
Hi — we're Cath & Daan. Novia started the day after our wedding, when we realised just how hard the planning had been. So we built what we wished we'd had.
The day itself
The most beautiful day of our lives.
No exaggeration. Surrounded by every person we love, in a setting we'd dreamed of for years. Speeches that made us cry, dancing that didn't stop, and a sunset that couldn't have been better if we'd ordered it.
We wouldn't change a single thing about that day.
Then there was the planning
Loved planning it. Hated parts of it.
We did most of it ourselves. That part was special — every choice felt personal, every detail meant something. We loved that.
But there was a lot we didn't love. Vendors who wouldn't share prices until after a long phone call. Quotes in different formats from every supplier. Tracking deposits across spreadsheets, WhatsApp threads, and screenshots of bank transfers. Questions we couldn't Google. Suppliers we couldn't verify.
By the time we sat down for our first dance, we had a list of things we'd wished existed.
Things we wished existed
The list we made the morning after.
Real prices, upfront
Not "POA". Not "from R— please enquire". Actual numbers we could compare without three weeks of email tag.
A platform that vetted vendors for us
So we knew who to trust before we sent the deposit, not after.
One place for everything
Quotes, invoices, payments, messages, the guest list — not five apps and a Notes file.
Real protection on payments
Hold deposits in escrow, release after delivery. The way every other industry already works.
Tools built for South African weddings
In ZAR. With our cultural conventions. Not bolted on from a US-first platform.
So we built it
Novia is the platform we wished we'd had.
Every vendor on Novia shows real pricing. Every booking is protected by escrow. Every couple gets the planning toolkit we needed and didn't have.
We're building this for couples like us — couples who want to plan their own day, keep control, but not lose six months to spreadsheet wrangling.
If your wedding is coming up: we hope this saves you the wishlist we wrote.
Your day, your way
Plan with the tools we wished for.
Take 5 minutes with the Dream Builder and we'll match you with vetted venues and vendors that fit your style, budget, and date.