We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Hope Grier a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hope, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?

My husband owned and operated a landscaping company and we had been looking for a property to buy in town for his employees to be able to meet and somewhere to store his equipment, etc. My husband found this property and it was in rough shape. It had two buildings on it. One we could use for the landscaping business and one that we had no clue what we would do with. The buildings were built in 1969 and had not been used much since 1984. The building had been built and used as the local distribution center for Biltmore Dairy Milk. You can imagine the mess after being abandoned that long. In fact, I thought my husband at the time was crazy for wanting to buy them and fix them up. But I trusted my husband’s vision and we bought the property in 2016. We renovated the upper shop for the landscaping business and then sat down and brainstormed ideas for how to use the large lower building. Axe throwing was becoming more and more popular in the United States, so we decided to research more into it. I researched for weeks and then made a business plan. We knew it would be a big undertaking and a big risk for our family. We prayed about it and decided to move forward with the new business. The city took some convincing to approve our new business idea. I made a power point presentation for the city board and thankfully got the axe throwing business approved. From there we invested everything we had and took out a large construction loan. My husband worked for 16 months and completely renovated that old building into what it is today. We made so many sacrifices to make it all happen. We finally opened our doors on July 12, 2019. It started out slow but by December it was doing really well. We thought “our risk is FINALLY paying off!”. Then COVID hit in March. We had to shut our doors for 3 months. We reopened in June, but our business was minimal for months. It was terrifying. We didn’t know if we were going to make it. But we kept pushing and kept making sacrifices to keep the doors open. We didn’t give up and for that we are very thankful. Owning a small business is extremely difficult. It has so many ups and downs and requires you to invest your all into it, all of the time. We have now been open 4.5 years and love what we do. We have met so many incredible people and been a part of so many special moments. We hope to be able to continue providing a fun place for people in Hendersonville to come to for many, many more years.

Hope, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Jeff and I grew up in Hendersonville, NC and wanted to bring a new, fun activity to our area. We have built a unique venue that gives off cabin vibes and provides a beautiful space to try the activity of axe throwing. We have trained staff that coach and teach our guests everything they need to know. There are fun games to play, and it can be quite competitive if you want it to be. We have a bar with alcoholic and non-alcoholic options available to purchase. And yes, it is SAFE. We hear all the time “Axes and alcohol, that doesn’t seem like a good combination?”, but we ensure you it is. We carefully monitor our guests and their consumption. We also have a large, covered patio for our guests to enjoy after throwing with lots of other activities to enjoy like corn hole, air hockey, and more. We host so many different events: birthday parties, anniversary parties, engagement parties, team building events, family events, etc. Whether a big event or a couple just wanting an exciting date night, we are a fun, local option!

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

I am involved with every part of our business. High involvement makes a difference as a leader. My team sees me work hard, right along beside them. I try to always lead by example and always encourage my staff to give their best in all they do. I also invest in them and their lives. They are treated like family and regularly shown appreciation for their hard work. I believe when you take care of your staff well that they will return the favor to you by performing well at their jobs.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

As the saying goes, word of mouth is the most powerful form of marketing for a business. We know that every experience matters. We strive to provide a great time for all of our customers. Something small that we always do is we offer to take a picture of our customers on their phone for them so that they can all be in the photo and capture the moment. That also gives them something they can share on social media to let others know they are at our place. But overall, the most important thing is just making sure everyone has FUN. When you have fun, you want to come back. And you want to bring others. We have built a reputation of being kind to our guests and for providing a really fun experience and that’s what brings people back.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.timberaxethrowing.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/timberaxethrowing/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/timberaxethrowing/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/timber-axe-throwing-hendersonville
• Other: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g49206-d20051225-Reviews-Timber_Axe_Throwing-Hendersonville_North_Carolina.html

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