It is hard to miss Axes and Ales’ big red firetruck driving through downtown Raleigh on a Friday night. Music plays and people hang out on the top of the truck as it cruises between different bars and restaurants.
Axes and Ales is a brand new business created by Anthony Battaglia and Ryan Nelson who are both local firefighters. The business took off in June of this year and has been spreading its presence in Raleigh since.
The business says a lot about the background of the two who created it. Battaglia is a firefighter who originally came to Raleigh as minor league hockey player and also won the Amazing Race CBS show with his brother. His brother is one of the owners of Lucky B’s bar which is where the business operates out of. Nelson is also a firefighter, but originally started his career in the U.S. Army. After his service he attended NC State.
Battaglia and Nelson came up with the booze cruise idea and quickly worked to put it into motion. They love the business because it allows people to have fun and spend time with friends.
“We’re both firemen and we had a mutual friend who introduced us and the idea popped into our head,” Battaglia said. “Who doesn’t want to ride the big red firetruck? We thought it was a cool idea because everyone wants to ride the truck, drink some beers and have some fun.”
Another reason for the creation of Axes and Ales is out of necessity. Battaglia and Nelson explained that many firefighters have second jobs. In addition to employing themselves they also employ other firefighters and veterans.
“We want to give back to the guys we work with and former military guys,” Battaglia said. “It fell into place and I think we will keep it like that.”
Both Battaglia and Nelson emphasized that the best part of the business is providing their customers with an enjoyable, memorable experience.
“It’s pretty cool when you drive down the road and see the faces of customers having fun with their friends and the people on the sidewalk are pointing and taking pictures,” Battaglia said. “You can see faces lighting up. It’s fun to see Raleigh enjoying us and what we’re bringing to the city.”
Nelson and Battaglia said they love the customer service aspect of the business. It is clear that starting a business people are receptive to and enjoy is a dream come true to these new businessmen.
“This is both Anthony and I’s first business,” Nelson said. “The whole process of starting a business is the American dream and I enjoy that process thoroughly. I really understand what people mean when they say that now.”
These entrepreneurs are taking every opportunity to gain exposure and grow their business to become a part of Raleigh’s booming local business scene.
“It feels good to be a part of the community and we want to grow into a bigger business than we have now and become a staple of the community,” Battaglia said.
On top of becoming a part of the Raleigh community, Axes and Ales is also becoming a part of NC State’s community. Last Friday the “Party Cat” fire engine was featured in NC State’s homecoming parade.
In addition, NC State has an entrepreneurship clinic that Axes and Ales is working with. They are assigned four interns whose goal is to help them grow their business. At the end of the semester they plan to have marketing strategies and business plans for Battaglia and Nelson. Battaglia explained that he and Nelson are new to the business and benefit from other sets of eyes and ears to bounce ideas off of. He said that they can learn a lot from the interns and vice versa.
Axes and Ales provides Raleigh’s citizens with the opportunity to fulfill their desire to ride around on a firetruck, hang out with friends and drink beer all in one night. More information about booking the Party Cat can be found on the website: http://axesandalesraleigh.com.
