How Xano helped Playmore replace their legacy system within three months

Solutions

With just 2 people in 3 months, Playmore built a new web platform and mobile app powered by Xano that manages 150+ API endpoints. The system automates reservations, payments, notifications, and smart facility management to improve efficiency for both club managers and players.

Complex business logic

Playmore's new system dynamically enforces club policies, managing scheduling, waitlists, membership tiers, and rule adjustments. A multi-channel notification system keeps players and staff informed in real time.

"Getting all of this to work together smoothly was tricky because there were lots of special cases to consider. Xano proved it could handle these complicated rules while staying fast and reliable," Tom said.

Operations automation

Playmore was able to reduce operational overhead while ensuring smooth, contactless customer experiences. It integrated with Loxone building automation systems to unlock doors and adjust court lighting based on booking schedules — and reduce energy consumption by powering down unused facilities. Playmore also completely automated payment processing, integrating with Autopay and Montonio for flexible membership options and court bookings.

Why Xano?

Playmore incorporated AI into their frontend development. But for their backend, they made the deliberate decision to use Xano instead of AI.

"This decision was rooted in the complexity of the legacy system's logic. We needed absolute certainty that all use cases would be handled precisely and reliably," Tom said.

With Xano, Playmore ensured that their core business logic and integrations were fully functional — and their backend could scale without unnecessary complexity or risk.

1. AI lacked the precision and reliability needed for Playmore's business logic, while Xano provided full control and visibility

   • At the time, AI-assisted development still required significant manual revision and testing. Playmore couldn't risk the potential errors. "Although AI demonstrates impressive capabilities in frontend development, backend scenarios require a more careful and controlled approach."

   • Xano gave Playmore complete control over their business logic, from customizing APIs to managing integrations. They knew exactly how their business rules were enforced, ensuring no unexpected behaviors.

   • Real-time collaboration also allows teams to edit APIs together and see changes instantly. "Xano provides comprehensive visibility into all API connections and functions within a secure, collaborative workspace," Tom explained.

2. Unlike AI, Xano ensures transparency and scalability

   • Many AI tools generate backend structures and code without explaining their decisions or ensuring best practices — which can be unpredictable and difficult to maintain at scale. Xano, on the other hand, provides a solid infrastructure that ensures performance.

   • "Xano was my first choice due to its robust logic capabilities combined with a scalable database architecture. This combination would not only facilitate a successful launch but also ensure seamless scaling without additional technical overhead," Tom explained.

   • Xano scales seamlessly up to millions of users — no infrastructure maintenance required. During Playmore's load testing, Xano handled about 600 reservations per minute and 100 simultaneous connections without any issues.

   • "This performance benchmark gives us confidence that we can scale effectively using Xano's Scale plan without concerns about system limitations."

3. Playmore used Xano’s clear documentation and structure to speed up AI-assisted frontend development.

   • Playmore credits Xano's well-defined API endpoints and data structures to making it significantly easier to build and integrate their frontend.

   • They initially experimented with AI-generated mockups to test backend APIs before building their frontend and mobile app. One of Playmore's founders had coding experience, allowing them to carefully validate and refine AI-generated code with Visual Studio Code and Claude 3.5 Sonnet extension.

   • "AI served as a powerful accelerator, but we still needed to handle code quality, complex state scenarios, and performance optimization."

Results

Playmore rebuilt their entire management system within three months, and migrated their first customers within four

"These results exceeded all expectations," Tom said. The backend includes 150+ API endpoints that efficiently manage administrative access, mobile app functionality, and user experience. By automating core operations, Playmore also reduced overhead and improved player experience.

With AI-powered features evolving rapidly on Xano’s roadmap, Tom is hopeful that Playmore will accelerate development even more.

The system processes 600 reservations per minute while maintaining stability

Playmore trusts Xano to scale. The new system is also structured to support any additional services that clubs may offer — effectively future-proofing Playmore's project.

"The system's flexibility made it exceptionally easy to implement changes and updates as business requirements evolved," Tom explained.