Today we’d like to introduce you to Payton Donnell.
Hi Payton, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Well my dad has a Martial Arts School in Sioux Falls South Dakota that I helped him start when I was in High School. For the last 15 years or so he has been a top 10% performer in our organization! I watched him grow it from virtually nothing to what it is today saw how much hard work and dedication that took!
I went to college unsure if I wanted to work as hard as my dad did or if I even could! After I graduated with a degree in Math and a Physics minor I moved to Kansas City to work for a martial arts supply company to help design new products! It wasn’t until I met my wife that I realized together we can live up to and surpass my dad’s work ethic!
Since we opened in 2023 we have been the fastest growing martial arts academy in Kansas City and one of the fastest in our organization as well! I have been able to apply the valuable lessons I learned helping at my family’s academy in Sioux Falls and could apply them to our business to really give us the best of the best in terms of culture and results on the mat! My wife and I have grown closer as a couple because if it, and families have loved training with us because of it!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Everything always looks good on the surface. In fact, I have had a few other people that said they want the life that my wife and I have built. Married, have our own academy, start a family, ect. Don’t get me wrong it is certainly a great, but like anything that it worth it, it takes time, preparation, hard work, and opportunity. Luck is when opportunity meets preparation and we have been preparing for this opportunity our whole lives! My wife was a manager of another location here for 5 years and grossly underpaid. Didn’t make enough to even pay taxes for multiple years and I was supporting her for the longest time! She kept grinding and I kept my faith in us and an opportunity presented itself for us to partner with someone that saw our value and decided to open a location with us. Even today, I am working 7am – 9pm during the week and 8am – 3pm every Saturday to ensure that our members are taken care of, and we can continue growing. Having a 4 month old at home has really put that under a pressure test haha. When we see the smiling faces of our students and watch them become leaders and jr. instructors after being too shy to step on that mat the first time it makes it all worth it!
We’ve been impressed with Tiger-Rock Martial Arts of North Overland Park, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Tiger-Rock is the largest Martial Arts franchise in the world! Tiger-Rock has a propriety system that was and continues to be studied by kinesiologist, nutritionist, and sports scientist to ensure what we are teaching works first of all, keeps us safe, and is easy to learn. Our teaching methods and curriculum are changed and modified on a yearly basis by the top people in the industry.
We don’t just stop at defending yourself. Tiger-Rock’s mission is community > consumption. We expect our students to leave a positive impression on the community and those around them. Tiger-Rock has partnered with Big Brother Big Sister to make an impact in their community as well. Locally our North Overland Park Locations supports local schools by sponsoring and donating for events, host Free Women Self Defense Classes for the public (since we are a women owned business), offer a scholarship program, have been a champion of LLS and MOCSA, and support countless other charity events in our local community!
What we are most proud of though, is the individual impact we are able to leave on the students that train with us. The unwavering confidence that is shown from the kid that was too shy to step on the mat just a few year ago. The focus and improvement at home from students who couldn’t follow the rules on their first day. The leadership improvement that teachers are telling us about when we send the students to school with our Rising Star sheet. We are making an impact one life at a time, and nothing is more powerful than that!
Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
Oh sheesh, thats a tough one. I would say my favorite childhood memory was getting my first gold medal at 12 years old. I was never very athletic and have not passed my belt testings 10 times. A gold medal for me was a pipedream. When I was 12 though I got my first gold medal at a National Event that had over 1500 competitors. Man what a feeling, I never looked back since!
Pricing:
- $139/month – unlimited lessons (single membership)
- $209/month – unlimited lessons (double membership)
- $259/month – unlimited lessons (triple membership)
- $209/month – unlimited lessons (4+ members)
Contact Info:
- Website: https://KCTigerrock.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tigerrocknop/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TigerRockNorthOP
