By Andrew Edwards
Staff Writer
On Tuesday, November 3, Prattville Axe hosted Chamber of Commerce members, city officials, and friends and family of the recreation facility for a ribbon cutting ceremony, signifying their induction into the Prattville Community.
Although Prattville Axe has only been in the downtown area for a couple of months now, it’s owner, Charles Sanderson, isn’t new to the limelight. He’s also owner of the extremely popular C-Squared Fitness, located right next door.
The idea to become a business owner originally came to him at his last job, where he was an account manager in California and Nevada. There, he found his calling.
“I had to work and be around a lot of different business owners. Just talking to them, I realized they are normal people – just like me. It made me realize that I could do it too,” said Sanderson.
The other motivation for transitioning from employee to employer?
“I really didn’t like other people telling me what to do,” Sanderson said with a grin. “I didn’t want to wait on someone else getting something done. I wanted to get it done on my own.”
But when Sanderson was initially deciding what he wanted to open first, a gym was not on his mind. Instead, he wanted to own a boutique furniture store.
“My cousin was going to order everything, and since I was in the manufacturing industry at the time, it just made sense. But it wasn’t really what I envisioned myself doing for a long period of time. I did know I liked working out, though. So instead, we opened C-Squared and a 24/7 gym that actually used to be here [at the axe throwing site]. Owning both has just been so great,” said Sanderson.
Sanderson wanted to move the 24/7 gym to a different location to make room for Prattville Axe, but ultimately couldn’t find anything that would work.
“We just ended up closing the gym portion down and opening this up. We knew it would be more fun and just better for downtown in general,” Sanderson said.
And the plan to open Prattville Axe started months before the renovations even began.
“My wife and I went to a different Axe Throwing center months back, and the second we walked in we realized we had to do something like this. We waited about 6 months to find a place to move the 24/7 gym, and when we couldn’t, we ended up using that same location downtown for Prattville Axe.”
Since it opened back in October, the reviews and reception for Prattville Axe have been nothing but positive.
“It’s been great so far. On Friday and Saturday, you can’t even get in without a reservation. We have about six or seven Christmas parties for just the upcoming weekend alone. People will either rent out the whole facility, or just half of it. It stays super busy,” Sanderson said.
As busy and popular as it’s been, Sanderson realizes that the solo location in Prattville won’t be enough to satiate the demand for Axe Throwing. In fact, they will be opening a location in Wetumpka in early 2020 and are currently negotiating a lease in Auburn.
“We’ve made some great relationships from both C-Squared and Prattville Axe. We’re going to keep C-Squared central to Prattville, but we want to open up Axe locations all over the state. If we can create such great friendships with our members here, we definitely can do it all across Alabama as well,” Sanderson said.
People want something to do, and Prattville Axe can certainly give you the fun you’ve been looking for. For more information about times to book, pricing, and other axe throwing needs, please visit prattvilleaxe.com
