Nanumi Lolohea Shares His Journey From Football Coach to Entrepreneur
YMM: What was the journey from Football Coach to Entrepreneur like?
Nanumi Lolohea: It’s a bit of a long story. I’ve been a football coach for a while, which is how I met Coach [Jeff Sims]. I’m originally from Tonga, but I was raised my whole life in Concord, California. I’ve also lived in Euless, TX – where I spent my last two years of high school. After that, I received a full football scholarship to New Mexico State University in Las Cruces. After college, I wanted to continue to be involved in sports, so I coached college football in Texas: Abilene, then Jasper. My career in coaching led me to Garden City Community College in Kansas, where I met Coach. I coached with him for two seasons before leaving for the University of Hawaii.
I also coached two seasons at the University of Tennessee, then moved to Kansas City where I lived less than a year, joined You Move Me and now I’m here in Salt Lake City.
YMM: When did you make the decision to join You Move Me?
Nanumi Lolohea: Coach Jeff Sims had reached out to me about how You Move Me is providing opportunities to use the same skills that are specific to coaching, in business, and that fascinated me. When he reached out to me, it was the right time for me to leave athletics. I saw this opportunity had the potential to change my financial situation for the better. I decided to listen and joined You Move Me as a crew member in May 2021. Now in 2022, I am a General Manager for our new Salt Lake City location.
YMM: What has surprised you the most about running your own franchise business?
Nanumi Lolohea: It is no different from coaching, as you are constantly trying to get your team on board with you. You’re still coaching, still teaching, but now it’s not football – it’s business.
YMM: What are the main skills you’ve identified from football and coaching that have helped you in running your own franchise business?
Nanumi Lolohea: I would say, coaching football and coaching a business follows the same structure – what differs is the information we are passing down. Having my own position group in football was great preparation for where I am now, because it taught me to lead a group. In addition, it helps with public speaking and getting a group of people on the same page. Being organized and goal driven has you pushing to reach whatever you set your boundaries to. The correlation between football and business made a huge impact on how we are running and exceeding expectations in Salt Lake City.
YMM: What has been the most rewarding part of running your own franchise business with You Move Me?
Nanumi Lolohea: I am very passionate about sports, and that fuels my passion to perform and coach my team.
YMM: Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Nanumi Lolohea: A big goal of mine is to give back – younger generations are missing an opportunity and I would love to give all my teammates the same opportunity I got at You Move Me. I want to be able to present them with an opportunity that can help them in the long run. I am Polynesian, and here in the US our family and our culture are not known for education. One of only six kids gets to graduate high school while one of nineteen students gets to graduate from college. Hopefully I can set an example for the younger generation – for our young men and women who want to break stereotypes.
YMM: What advice would you give to your younger self?
Nanumi Lolohea: Put the time it takes to learn how to do things. See, I am still learning and putting in the time it takes. I hold a Bachelor’s in Psychology with a Minor in Community Health, I also hold a teaching certificate and a Master’s in Education Administration. Even after all that, I still went back to school again to You Move Me’s entrepreneurship school!
