Oakland Community Fitness

The Opportunity

Oakland Community Fitness opened its first location in 2005, providing CrossFit classes, bootcamps, Olympic weightlifting, and seminars. In 2013, owners Mike Minium and Robyn Alazraqui then opened a second location along with Tamara Holmes. Across the two locations, they were now managing four full-time employees and eight contractors with more than 35 classes each week for over 425 clients.

To manage their two gyms, the partners used a desktop-based business management software, augmented with separate reporting software and a third-party mobile app. Having a mobile business was critically important to Oakland Community Fitness and their clients, so it was a blow when their software stopped supporting the third-party mobile app.

The Solution

When Robyn heard about Pike13, the choice was a no-brainer. The biggest seller for the team was the mobile capabilities of Pike13—not just for managing the business, but also for their clients to manage their profiles and schedules.

“We got a quick demo of Pike13 and knew immediately it was what we wanted. The bonus was being able to work with people we liked and respected.”

Mike, Robyn and Tamara agree that happy clients are their number one goal—and rightly so! By giving clients a way to check the schedule and sign up and pay for classes beforehand online increases business while cutting down on admin time.

The Results

Prior to class, instructors sign clients in on Pike13 on their smartphones rather than on paper they way that they used to. The CrossFit Oakland team says this new, real-time check in process is so critical to their business, they don’t know how they lived without it.

“When checking in a client, I know immediately if there's an issue with their account since every detail is right in front of me. It's so much more efficient to have a conversation in person rather than to send an email or a letter to that client.”

By notifying coaches at the time of check in if there are any issues on the client’s account—like whether a payment is needed or their card will expire soon—they can ask for a new form of payment right then and there, avoiding problems later.

Pike13 gives Oakland Community Fitness a much more professional presence that has enhanced the entire organization. Clients constantly comment on how much they like using Pike13 and how easy it is for them to sign up for classes on their phones.

"Pike13 has put us on the cutting edge, and that’s right where we like to be.”