# Agencies & Software Houses — deliver fixed-price faster Source: https://www.openmercato.com/agencies # Stop selling hours. Start shipping products. Clients want fast, working software they own. Open Mercato enables fixed-price projects on a reusable foundation with sensible margins. ## Same client project. Completely different economics. | A typical CRM/portal project for a mid-market client. Here’s what changes when you stop building from scratch. | svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-8">Without Mercato | svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-8">With Mercato | | --- | --- | --- | | Auth, RBAC, multi-tenancy | 3 weeks | svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-5 [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)]" style="--icon-stroke:1.68"> Included | | CRM core + entities | 4 weeks | svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-5 [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)]" style="--icon-stroke:1.68"> Included | | Design system + UI | 2 weeks | svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-5 [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)]" style="--icon-stroke:1.68"> Included | | Search, events, caching | 2 weeks | svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-5 [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)]" style="--icon-stroke:1.68"> Included | | Client-specific features | 4 weeks | 3 weeks | | Testing & security audit | 2 weeks | 1 week | | Total delivery | 17 weeks | 4 weeks | ### 3× the margin. ## Clone → Overlay → Ship → Repeat. - 01svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-5 [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)]" style="--icon-stroke:1.68"> Clone the baseFork Open Mercato for the new client. Auth, CRM, design system — running in 5 minutes.Day 1 - 02svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-5 [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)]" style="--icon-stroke:1.68"> Overlay their workflowYour team (or AI agents) drops files in src/apps/. Core never modified. Clean separation.Week 1–3 - 03svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-5 [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)]" style="--icon-stroke:1.68"> Ship & handoffClient gets a fully-owned codebase on their infra. No vendor lock-in. No recurring platform fees.Week 4 - 04svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-5 [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)]" style="--icon-stroke:1.68"> Maintain & upsellSell ongoing feature development. Each overlay is scoped — easy to estimate, profitable to deliver.Ongoing ## Mid-level devs ship senior-quality output. The architecture and AI guardrails do the heavy lifting. Your team learns real skills — not workarounds. ### Architecture that enforces quality OCP overlays mean your devs can’t accidentally break core modules. The structure prevents the mistakes before code review catches them. ### AI agents that follow the rules AGENTS.md and .ai/specs/ ship with the repo. Claude, Cursor, Copilot — they all generate code that fits the architecture, not fights it. ### Real AI engineering skills Your team learns spec-driven development and context-first workflows. Skills compound across projects. ### Enterprise security out of the box Field-level encryption, RBAC, audit trails, GDPR. Stop spending 3 weeks on auth for every client. Pass security reviews on day one. ### Reusable across clients Build a logistics overlay once. Use it for 5 clients with minor customization. Your IP compounds. Your margins grow. ### No vendor lock-in (for you or them) MIT licensed. Client gets full source. You’re not reselling someone else’s SaaS — you’re delivering owned software on open infrastructure. ## What changes on your next project. | Dimension | svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-8">T&M / From Scratch | svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-8">With Mercato | | --- | --- | --- | | Pricing model | 3 weeks | Fixed-price packages | | Time to first demo | 4 weeks | Day 1 (clone + run) | | Auth & security | 2 weeks | Pre-built, pre-audited | | Junior dev effectiveness | 2 weeks | Architecture enforces quality | | Client ownership | They own the code | svg]:block [&>svg]:size-full size-5 [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)]" style="--icon-stroke:1.68"> They own the code | | Maintenance revenue | Ad-hoc, hard to scope | Overlay-scoped, predictable | | IP reuse across clients | Start over each time | Overlays reusable across projects | | Typical gross margin | 15–25% | 50–65% | ## Case Studies - ![Senior Care Operations on Open Mercato — manager dashboard demo] ERPMulti-tenancy[Senior Care Operations on Open Mercato](https://www.openmercato.com/case-studies/senior-care-operations)A demo for German non-medical senior care providers — dashboards, scheduling, and signed service-confirmation workflows, built on Open Mercato.Read case studysvg]:block [&>svg]:size-full [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] mt-0.5 size-3" style="--icon-stroke:2.4"> - ![Open Service ticket intake screen] CRM[Open Service](https://www.openmercato.com/case-studies/open-service)A centralized field service platform replacing scattered tickets, spreadsheets, and tribal knowledge with one system for intake, machine history, and technician scheduling.Read case studysvg]:block [&>svg]:size-full [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] mt-0.5 size-3" style="--icon-stroke:2.4"> - ![TraceCore customer orders module with kanban board] ERPEnterprise[MRP System](https://www.openmercato.com/case-studies/tracecore)An on-premise MRP system giving food and pharma manufacturers integrated production, warehouse, and sales operations with native LOT traceability and GMP-ready audit trails.Read case studysvg]:block [&>svg]:size-full [&_[stroke-width]]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] [&>svg]:[stroke-width:var(--icon-stroke)] mt-0.5 size-3" style="--icon-stroke:2.4"> ## Software is about to be built completely differently.