Meet Ashley Coffey | NEXUS Owner & Program Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ashley Coffey and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ashley, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
As an athlete and professional dancer, I have seen a lot of injuries. Some from age, some from bad coaching, and some from lack of awareness when it comes to fitness education & technique. Add that with my love for teaching, and passion for community, you get NEXUS. My partner Marielle Hendry (NEXUS Co-Owner & Head Coach) and I saw a problem in the fitness world and took on being a part of the solution. We wanted to contribute to a better, more inclusive fitness community here in Colorado Springs. One day at a time, we built NEXUS from the ground up. Starting your own business is a lot of hard work, late nights, and mental burnout, yet we always came back to the NEXUS vision to keep us going. It paid off! Here we are a year later with a thriving gym, strong community, and educational material that is available to anyone.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
The word NEXUS means connection in many different languages. It was our intention to make every decision from the mindset of what builds connection; whether in fitness, education, or our community. This was not easy. As new business owners, you can get distracted, follow many paths, and can make partnerships with the wrong people when money is being offered. It is much more difficult to remember your bigger goals, stand in integrity, and make decisions from there. What we have learned is that your vision is everything and you must be very intentional with each building block. NEXUS’s vision is to re-establish a true sense of community through fitness, health, and wellness. We believe connection and community spread beyond the four walls of our gym, benefiting Colorado Springs as a collective. We are committed to equality, diversity, and personal growth, alongside all levels of fitness. Making decisions from here has allowed us to create quite a unique gym. Most of all, it constantly reminded us to be the example of what we wanted to create. Owning a business does not make you a leader, it makes you a manager. Self-reflection and practicing self-leadership are what earn you the right to lead others. Through this, we have been able to build The NEXUS Community into what it is today; a place about fitness opportunities for all. With a mission to bring fitness education, body awareness, and injury prevention techniques into each class for each individual, creating a solid fitness foundation for each athlete. Knowing where we stand, making decisions from there, and allowing it to start with us were the game changers for us. Which undoubtedly contributed to why we have been so successful.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
We chose to place NEXUS in downtown Colorado Springs for a reason. Our downtown area is becoming very welcoming, diverse, and cultured which is so needed as we continue to progress as a community. Our strip is called OZ (Opportunity Zone), all thanks to Jesse Scott and Stephanie Hawthorne. We have such a great variety in our community, I never travel far to find good food and good people. Whenever friends or family come to visit, I take them to our part of the downtown neighborhood. Starting the day with Paris Crepe, then doing a dance class with Latisha Hardy, or a group fitness class with NEXUS, to grabbing drinks and dinner at High Grade Jamaican Foods before trying some of the new bars like Epiphany or ICONS just up the street. We even have Greyish Hair Studio if you are looking for some style. Honestly, in my opinion, downtown is where it’s at whether you want to chill or have a good time.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Opening NEXUS wouldn’t have been possible without the help of our amazing community. We would like to take a moment to thank two individuals who had a massive impact on NEXUS reality. Latisha Hardy and Jean Hendry have been our biggest advocates! Latisha partnered with us to train her professional Latisha Hardy Lady Boss Dance Teams from the very beginning. With her partnership in business and our community building, we have built a value no one else has. NEXUS will forever stay grateful for her friendship, faith, and business wisdom as she is truly a one-of-a-kind human.
Jean Hendry supported us like any mother would, in the creation and planning stages of NEXUS. Jean has run her own successful coaching company for years now and shared everything she has learned with us. She even helped us with the down payment because she believed our dream would become a reality. Without her direct questions, guidance, business experience, and powerful input, NEXUS’s vision would have never been manifested. For this, we deeply appreciate her.

These two people stood by us from the beginning and continue to mentor us along the way. Without them, NEXUS wouldn’t be here. So, thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you!

Website: https://thenexuscommunity.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thenexuscommunity

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheNEXUSCommunity

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/nexus-community-fitness-and-performance-training-colorado-springs