The Axe Academy, the family-friendly axe-throwing spot tucked inside downtown Tacoma's Opera Alley, will shut its doors for good on July 31, ending a three-year run that brought birthdays, bachelorette parties, and kids as young as 8 into the throwing bays.

Owners Josh and Victoria Buck opened the venue three years ago, moving into a space previously occupied by Bullseye Lane Axe Throwing.

They built the business around accessibility: children 8 and older could throw for $20 an hour, adults for $28. The Bucks also constructed a mobile axe-throwing trailer they hauled to community events around Pierce County.

The couple announced the closure on Instagram on Wednesday, July 9, inviting customers to visit during their final month.

First-time owners, hard lessons

Josh Buck told the Tacoma News Tribune that early mistakes sealed the business's fate.

"This is our first business that we've ever run," he said. "There was definitely a big learning curve, and just a lot of mistakes that we made up front that we were never able to fully recover from."

He did not specify the nature of those mistakes. Victoria Buck told the News Tribune the couple plans to re-enter the business world at some point, whether in axe throwing or another venture.

Looking back, Victoria Buck said the relationships made the work worthwhile. S

he described sharing in customers' anniversaries, birthdays, and bachelor and bachelorette parties over three years, and said the community they built is hard to let go.

"I was just gonna say, if we can publicly thank Tacoma, Pierce County for allowing us to be here, and giving us such a great three years," she told the News Tribune.

What's left for axe throwers

The closure leaves Tacoma with two remaining axe-throwing options. Tacoma Axe Throwing opened in 2025 at 5419 S. Tacoma Way, near Joint Base Lewis-McChord, and offers a 15 percent military and first-responder discount. Brainy Actz Escape Rooms, located downtown, offers knife and axe throwing alongside escape rooms and rage rooms.

Opera Alley itself still houses Over the Moon Cafe, Devils Reef, and the Rusty Goat. No replacement tenant for the Axe Academy space has been announced.