The Town of Wake Forest is no longer your run-of-the-mill suburb. In its new promotional video showcasing the local energy and culture of the community, the Wake Forest Business & Industry Partnership illustrates what it means to have both big-city energy and small-town charm.
Once dubbed a bedroom community, Wake Forest has grown leaps and bounds in recent years while also maintaining its idyllic local culture and community-oriented appeal. Following suit with the growth and demographics of the region at-large, the town is both a breeding ground for technological innovation and a launching pad for start-ups and other businesses. Additionally, the quality of life in Wake Forest is unmatched.
With globally-recognized technological resources like the Wireless Research Center, a booming downtown bursting with local flavors and culture, and a greenway system that makes getting outdoors a breeze, Wake Forest has uniquely distinguished itself from other municipalities in the region. It’s not often that you get the best of both worlds, but energized places like Wake Forest prove embodying big-city energy and small-town charm is possible.
“We’re in a uniquely positive position. We’re part of a much larger geographical region that enables many opportunities,” said Dino Radosta, president and owner of downtown Wake Forest staple White Street Brewing Company. “At the same time, Wake Forest has its own identity. There is truly a sense of, ‘We’re in Wake Forest.’ It’s exactly why I wanted to build what I wanted to build.”
Radosta moved to Wake Forest in 1997, and after two decades, considers himself a local. Having previously lived all over the United States, Radosta had always had an affinity for North Carolina and chose to settle in Wake Forest for the land (he lives on 10 acres) and because he thought it would be a great place to raise a family.
Over the years, not only has Wake Forest proven to be the family-oriented city he’d hoped it to be, but it’s also the place where his business was born.
When Radosta opened White Street Brewing in 2012, his mission was to bring relevance back to the downtown corridor. It’s something that the town’s economic development team, the Wake Forest Business & Industry Partnership and stakeholders like Radosta have all been working on — intentional growth without sacrificing local allure.
Though Radosta had no brewing experience, he did have entrepreneurial experience and had operated several successful businesses before. The intention of White Street Brewing was and is as much about creating a place for the community to congregate as it is about the brew.
“After my being successful in my previous businesses, I wound up having some free time and money. I got very involved in the civic side of the development of downtown Wake Forest,” Radosta said. “I started buying real estate — buildings that I thought were being underutilized. I wanted to make them nice again and bring vibrancy to the downtown. I’ve always loved downtowns. I love historic buildings.”
Originally from New Orleans, Radosta believes a thriving downtown truly contributes to a town’s sense of identity and he wanted to be a part of it. Radosta wound up with what he described as “a really horrible building” and at first, wanted someone else to turn it into something usable. He figured that “someone” could be him and White Street Brewing was born.
Built into a 1930s car dealership, “it was conceived as a gathering place for the community during the town’s renaissance,” as described on the brewery’s website.
White Street Brewing is arguably one of the anchors of downtown Wake Forest and has brought Radosta’s vision to life. Radosta himself is a living embodiment of Wake Forest’s appeal to both family-focused and business-aspiring people alike.
One of the hallmarks of Wake Forest is it uniquely maintains a vibrant local culture, atmosphere and sense of community reminiscent of a small town, but also has the energy, access, resources, business and tech scene of a larger city.
Wake Forest is burgeoning with opportunities for businesses and entrepreneurs. Phil Radford would know.
As the founder and CEO of Radeas Labs, a clinical lab processing company that produces more than 15 million tests per year, Radford is one of many entrepreneurs who have chosen Wake Forest as their personal and professional home.
Originally headquartered in a 6,000-square-foot space in Wake Forest, Radeas Labs recently moved to a larger 25,000-square-foot building in the Gateway Commons subdivision to accommodate for growth and expansion.
“We have just loved being in Wake Forest,” Radford said. “A lot of people told me that I needed to be in one of the larger Triangle cities to have a technical company, but that’s not true. I have loved everything about Wake Forest. I can’t speak highly enough about why I’m so glad we are located here.”
Radford noted the large number of scientists and technical talent living in the area as being assets to the Wake Forest workforce. He also said the town’s attractive lifestyle makes people want to work where they live and live where they work.
“We have more and more businesses opening here. It’s a very compelling city and there are a lot of very smart and intelligent people in the Triangle who chose Wake Forest as their home,” he said.
Wake Forest has one of the most educated populations in the region with 54 percent of residents having a bachelor’s degree or higher. “From a live perspective, it’s also really beautiful.”
Beyond the business opportunities offered in Wake Forest, there’s also the quality of life aspect referenced by Radford. Radford, who moved to Wake Forest in 2013, instantly took the natural landscapes, greenways and outdoor opportunities the city has to offer.
“It’s a great place to bring people. It’s a great place to be able to live and walk to work — that doesn’t happen in a lot of suburban places, but here you can walk to work, a grocery store and restaurants. There’s also a lot of greenways where you can get on a bike,” he said. “It’s just a family-oriented place. If you want to raise your family here, it’s a tough place to beat.”
Additionally, Radford emphasized there’s a connectivity to be found and a sense of community in Wake Forest that makes “a real difference.”
One of Radford’s favorite activities is Friday Night on White, a monthly festival of food, beer and music on White Street in downtown Wake Forest. It’s the type of gathering that Radosta dreamt of and, as a downtown business owner, is proud to be a part of.
Wake Forest has no doubt come a long way in the past decade. In addition to its growing downtown landscape, recent years have brought nationally-recognized coffee roasters; a multitude of humanitarian and green-focused tech companies; and a progressive, strategic plan for the blossoming future of the community. It’s a place where 200 years of history meets tech, innovation, ingenuity, adventure, improvement and vision.
“People like Wake Forest because of what it represents,” Radosta said. “You’re going to have all of the things that you would need out of your community. That’s the ‘big city’ part. The ‘small town’ part is the soul — our people.”
