Amy Fillpot – Elevate Dance Studio & Simply Soda
BY HAILEY MINTON
The growth at times was draining and purely overwhelming. For a time Amy was running most aspects of the business and it was just too much. “My husband gave me a blessing and I realized this business is not about me, it’s about the girls. I needed to look at it as what it can do for others.”
Elevate Dance Studio, which has been recently rebranded from Simply Posh Dance, hosts dance classes along with a myriad of other classes. “I let people rent space in the studio for exercise classes, music classes, preschool, private lessons, or cheer.” There are a lot of students and families coming and going so they recently opened Simply Soda, a snack and soda shop, in their building when they remodeled in December 2020.
Not only has Amy influenced the lives of thousands of girls who have danced in her studio, but the business has provided jobs and experience for so many. “Once the students are 12, they can participate in the assisting program which helps pay for their class fees.” Amy loves her dancers and teachers and she loves surrounding herself with such amazing people. A lot of her dancers get hired to help with the soda shop or as dance teachers.
The business has also added so much to their nuclear family. Her oldest son, who is 18, runs the soda shop and he cuts music for the studio which paved the way for his DJ business. Amy’s daughters teach dance and tumbling while her sister teaches dance and works the soda shop. Amy’s husband is her business partner and her mother and mother-in-law work at the soda shop. She also has a sister-in-law who is the baker for the soda shop. “It’s quite the family affair!”
It all began with her children in mind when she opened her basement to students. She was concerned for her 18-month-old daughter’s health and she knew helping her get more active would help. Amy grew up dancing and taught at a studio in South Ogden but stopped when their family started growing. She volunteered at her children’s school and for Halloween one year she taught the kids the monster mash. One of the dads approached her and told her she should open her own studio. That ignited the journey and the following January she held her first class in their freshly created basement studio. They have only grown since. All of her students are an extension of her family and she recently started coaching drill at Weber High. “I get to keep my dance babies for longer now,” she said with tears in her eyes. “I get to have the example and influence of all those girls in my life. It is a family to me. I’m grateful I didn’t give up in the beginning.”