Legatus Blog
Special to the Message
Editor’s Note: This article, which was originally published on the Legatus blog, was reprinted with permission. For more information, visit https://legatus.org/blog/nix.
Matthew and Lindsey Nix have built their lives around family, faith and business. As leaders of Nix Companies, they are helping guide a fifth-generation family business while expanding into new ventures, but their definition of success has evolved along the way. For the Nixes, business is not simply about growth or the next big opportunity. It is an opportunity to serve others, strengthen families and put their Catholic faith into action. Their journey with Legatus has helped them see that vocation more clearly, both in their business and in their marriage.
From ‘Catholic Business Group’ to a community for life
Matthew first discovered Legatus while searching for something he felt was missing from other business organizations. After being invited to join YPO, he began looking for a community that would bring his professional life and Catholic faith together. He simply googled “Catholic business group” and found Legatus.
After discovering Legatus, Matthew and Lindsey attended their first chapter meeting in Louisville and quickly realized they had found something different. Here, they found a community centered on faith, friendship and a shared desire to become better spouses, parents and leaders.
“It has been one of the greatest blessings of our lives,” Matthew says.
That blessing is especially evident in the friendships they have formed.
“Some of the richest, most meaningful friendships in my life are a result of Legatus,” he says.
Legatus has also strengthened their marriage, giving them a monthly opportunity to step away from the demands of work and family and intentionally make space for their faith and one another.
Building a business that invests in people
That same intentionality has shaped the way Matthew and Lindsey lead their business.
Nix Companies, founded by the couple in 2017, includes Nix Industrial, a fifth-generation fabrication and industrial maintenance company founded in 1902, as well as Fleet Service Partners, a growing platform focused on commercial and industrial fleet services.
But the Nixes are increasingly focused on a question that goes beyond growth: What impact can this business have on the people entrusted to us?
They have created a dedicated leadership role focused on team member impact and have invested in leadership development, financial wellness programs and resources designed to help employees and their families thrive both inside and outside the workplace.
For Matthew and Lindsey, that work flows directly from their Catholic understanding of human dignity.
“If God has given us the opportunity to lead a business and employ hundreds of people,” they explain, “then we also have a responsibility to care about the whole person.”
This has fundamentally changed how they define success. “What excites me most about our business isn’t winning the next big job anymore,” Lindsey says. “It’s watching the people on our team succeed, professionally and personally.”
Whether it is seeing an employee step into leadership, gain confidence, provide more for their family, or accomplish something they once thought impossible, those moments have become some of the most meaningful measures of success.
The Catholic faith belongs in every part of life
Matthew emphasizes that Catholicism has provided a foundation of “truth” and stability in his life. Growing up around Catholic men and business leaders, including his grandfather, he saw firsthand how faith could be lived simply, humbly and practically. Legatus has reinforced that example and given him the confidence to do the same.
Legatus has “normalized” living out the faith as an authentic Catholic leader and has given him the confidence to live it “more boldly.”
“Legatus has shown us that we can be ambitious about building a great business while also viewing that business as something God has entrusted to us,” Lindsey says, “and asking ourselves how we can use it to serve others and be a witness for Christ.”
That perspective continues to shape the Nixes as they lead, grow their businesses and invest in the people around them. Their story is a reminder that the most meaningful measure of a business may not be what it builds on a balance sheet, but what it builds in the lives of the people it touches.
For Matthew and Lindsey, faith and business are not competing priorities. They are deeply connected parts of their vocation. Through Legatus, they have found both the friendships and the encouragement to live that vocation more fully. And as they look toward the future, they are striving to use what God has given them not simply to build a successful business, but to make a lasting difference in the lives of others.