How a 130-year-old Wyoming pharmacy rebuilt its payroll foundation and grew to 34+ employees across 23 states.
Back to Helpside: How a 130-Year-Old Pharmacy Chose Peace of Mind Over a Cheaper Price
How a 130-year-old Wyoming pharmacy returned to Helpside to strengthen payroll administration, simplify multi-state compliance, and support continued growth. City Drug Pharmacy, with a second location at City Drug of Bridger Valley, once moved to a lower-cost payroll provider, only to discover that company wasn’t correctly filing taxes with the IRS, leaving the pharmacy to untangle the fallout. Since returning to Helpside, City Drug has grown from about 6 to 34+ employees across two locations and expanded pharmacy licensing into 23 states.
10+
Hours Saved Per New Hire
completing I-9 Section 2 & E-Verify through Helpside
~40
Hours Saved Annually
client estimate, reclaimed from payroll and HR admin
~6X
Team Growth Supported
from approximately 6 to 34+ employees
Industry
Compounding & HRT Pharmacy
Heritage
130+ years in Evanston, WY
Location
Evanston & Bridger Valley, WY
Solutions Used
Payroll, PTO & Compliance
The Challenge
The Cost of Cutting Corners
A costly provider switch. City Drug once moved to a lower-cost payroll provider, only to discover that company wasn’t correctly filing taxes with the IRS, leaving the pharmacy to untangle the fallout.
Multi-state growth complexity. As City Drug added sales reps and pharmacy licenses across dozens of states, every expansion meant learning a new set of state-specific employment laws.
Manual HR overload. PTO tracking and handbook policies were being managed without a documented system employees could reference themselves, even as headcount kept climbing.
The Solution
The Helpside Difference
A confident return. After experiencing the risks of a lower-cost provider, City Drug returned to Helpside, confident that payroll and compliance would be handled correctly.
Built-in multi-state compliance. Whenever City Drug expanded into a new state, Helpside filled in the gaps, updating the handbook and explaining exactly what the new laws required.
Full audit support. When a government census requested extensive employee documentation, Zach on Helpside’s HR team took it on directly, handling every form and report.
A personal handoff. When City Drug’s Helpside contact, Katherine, moved on, she sent a personal note introducing her replacement before the transition happened, so City Drug never had to wonder who to call next.
The Results
What Changed After Returning to Helpside
✓
Avoided further IRS and tax-compliance risk after a previous provider mishandled payroll tax filings.
✓
Multi-state compliance handled seamlessly, licensed in 23 states, with sales reps active in 3.
✓
A full government employment census was completed entirely by Helpside’s HR team, with no added burden on staff.
✓
PTO tracking modernized, moved from manual tracking to a digital system employees can view themselves.
✓
Onboarding simplified for a fast-growing team, now sized at 34+ employees across 2 locations.
✓
New-hire onboarding sped up further, Kaelyn estimates saving 10+ hours per hire by completing Section 2 of the I-9 and E-Verify directly through Helpside.
130 Years of City Drug Pharmacy — Evanston, WY
Then
Now
Want the full story? Download the two-page City Drug Pharmacy case study.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did City Drug Pharmacy return to Helpside after leaving?
City Drug had moved to a lower-cost payroll provider, only to discover that company wasn’t correctly filing taxes with the IRS. After untangling the fallout, City Drug returned to Helpside, confident that payroll and compliance would be handled correctly.
How does Helpside help a growing pharmacy manage multi-state compliance?
As City Drug expanded across dozens of states through new sales reps and pharmacy licenses, Helpside filled in the gaps for each expansion, updating the handbook and explaining exactly what each state’s employment laws required.
How much time has City Drug Pharmacy saved with Helpside?
By Administrative Assistant Kaelyn Potter’s estimate, City Drug has reclaimed roughly 40 hours a year on payroll and HR administration, plus more than 10 hours per new hire by completing I-9 Section 2 and E-Verify directly through Helpside.
Did Helpside help City Drug Pharmacy with a government employment census?
Yes. When a government census requested extensive employee documentation, a member of Helpside’s HR team took it on directly, handling every form and report so it didn’t fall on City Drug’s staff.
How has City Drug Pharmacy grown since partnering with Helpside?
City Drug has grown from approximately 6 to 34+ employees across two locations, Evanston and Bridger Valley, Wyoming, while expanding pharmacy licensing into 23 states and supporting sales reps active in 3.
What should a small business consider before switching to a lower-cost payroll provider?
City Drug’s experience is a cautionary example. A lower-cost provider failed to correctly file the pharmacy’s payroll taxes, creating a fallout that took time and effort to resolve. Since returning to Helpside, City Drug has avoided further IRS and tax-compliance risk.
Want to see how much your business could save on benefits and HR admin?
JARDINE
A commercial construction company grew fast enough to nearly triple revenue, and Helpside made sure payroll never slowed it down.
SMP Heating & Air
A sheet metal and HVAC company left a costly union insurance plan behind and found a payroll and benefits partner it could rely on.
Gentle Hearts Living Solutions
An RN-owned senior care company reclaimed 15–20 hours a week by replacing a patchwork of vendors with one all-in-one partner.
Gregory Robinson Allstate
Helpside made offering competitive employee benefits easy and affordable creating a positive shift in employee retention and satisfaction.
Hearth and Hill
Brooks Kirchheimer fell in love with the restaurant industry at a young age. When the time was right for him to open his own restaurant, he knew he wanted to do things differently when it came to his employees.
Rocky Mountain Pies
Since 2017, Helpside has partnered with Rocky Mountain Pies to simplify HR, provide safety training, and support a people-first culture—making it easier for their team to focus on baking pies and growing their business.
Komodo Systems
By streamlining payroll, simplifying benefits, and providing dedicated support, Helpside enables Komodo Systems to focus on clients instead of administrative headaches.
TSA Architects
TSA Architects is a healthcare focused architectural firm located in Salt Lake City, Utah. One key to being able to compete for top employee talent is their employee benefits.
Wyoming Humanities Council
Non-profit organizations face additional government oversight and budgetary restrictions. Finding the right partners is key to attracting the right employees to advance the organization’s mission.
MetaStock
As a thriving financial technology company located in Utah, MetaStock attributes much of its success to the ability to find and keep great employees.
Cadence SEO
Spending time researching and answering questions related to benefits, payroll or HR is not an efficient use of time for the company’s owners.