About NickiFit:
Company Size: 12+ employees
Where: Kansas City, Missouri
Client Industry: Fitness and recreation
Joined OnPay: January 2023
HOW IT ALL STARTED
Community fitness reimagined through innovation and partnership
NickiFit isn’t your typical fitness business — it’s personal training that comes to you. Founded in 2010 by Nicki Jones, NickiFit has spent nearly 15 years bringing group exercise directly into neighborhoods, workplaces, and community spaces.
Nicki’s journey has been powered by passion rather than a business plan. “I fell in love with moving my body and exercising. I loved how it made me feel,” she says. What started as a hobby quickly became something more meaningful. After her full-time job, Nicki would gather people she knew for workouts in her church basement on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. “I did not get paid for it,” she explains. “It was just fun!” These sessions were simply about community and wellness. What began as Nicki’s solo venture in 2010 gradually gained recognition throughout 2011 and 2012, eventually becoming an incorporated business in 2014.
Today, NickiFit operates as a mobile fitness business that challenges industry conventions through offerings such as free community-sponsored group fitness programs, corporate workplace personal training sessions, and virtual on-demand fitness memberships through NickiFit On-Demand. The company’s approach centers around partnerships with community organizations that sponsor large-scale fitness programs across Kansas City. The goal? Making wellness accessible to everyone.
With a team of passionate fitness professionals, NickiFit meets people wherever they are: on-site, online, or in unexpected places that make fitness fun and approachable. The business has grown from Nicki’s individual vision into a city-wide movement, fueled by partnerships, creativity, and a belief that health should be within everyone’s reach. As Nicki puts it:
“When you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life. I wanted my own trainer and mentor. So I became that for myself and my community.”
THE CHALLENGE
Finding an affordable payroll provider that delivers results
Working with several different payroll services over the years, none had passed the test for NickiFit. While the platforms weren’t necessarily time-consuming, she was still looking to make payroll less of a headache. As a small business owner without a lot of capital, cost was her primary concern. She began searching for a payroll provider that could meet her budget constraints without sacrificing quality. Though affordability mattered most, she was also seeking a long-term partner rather than a short-term fix. She was looking for:
- An affordable payroll solution to fit her small business budget
- A platform that would make payroll more streamlined
- The flexibility to pay and manage both full-time and part-time staff from one intuitive platform
THE SOLUTION
A crowded field leads to the right fit
Searching online, it was clear that small studio owners like her had many payroll solutions to choose from. Amongst the number of options, one name kept rising to the top: OnPay. Even then, Nicki did her homework, exploring the different providers, reading all the reviews, and picturing how each one would fit into her day-to-day operations. But when she connected with OnPay’s team, all the pieces came together. Their flexibility and understanding of small businesses made all the difference. What could have been a stressful transition turned out to be surprisingly simple.
GYM AND FITNESS REVIEW
“OnPay is the only payroll company that I’ve used that has been so flexible and so understanding. I appreciate the flexibility, and it keeps us rolling and my employees happy because I never have to miss payroll.”
— Nicki J., Owner, NickiFit
THE RESULTS
Payroll went from overwhelming to effortless with OnPay
Since switching to OnPay, payroll has become much less of a workout. The platform includes all her must-haves: affordable, easy-to-use payroll with the flexibility to pay both full-time and part-time instructors. Another plus? Through OnPay’s 401(k) integration, she’s even able to provide her hardworking instructors with access to retirement savings.
For this busy businesswoman, wife, and mother, the switch has brought some balance to an always-packed schedule. This means having more time to focus on what drew her to running a studio in the first place: helping others achieve their fitness goals.
