WISCONSIN — Last year, a Wisconsin native decided he wanted to “work for himself” and launched his own business. Now, he’s using his agency to serve others.
Alex Evans started working at Lucid Light Lounge in Milwaukee as a marketing director in 2016, but after the pandemic tore through Wisconsin, the nightclub was sold in 2021. Evans found himself out of a job.
He spent the months ahead freelancing as he found his footing. He poked around at his options. But that fall, he decided he wanted to make a change, both for himself and for others.
“I have the connections. I have the drive. I have the ambition,” he told himself. “I just want to work for myself… I’m just gonna do this thing myself.”
That, he said, is when Raging Agency was born.
Raging Agency, a digital marketing agency, is based in Miami, Fla. But Evans was raised in Grafton, Wis., and said most of his clients are actually based in Milwaukee — where he went to college at Marquette University and Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. Evans himself said he enjoys traveling and works from various states — or even countries — at any given time.
Evans said running his own agency, ironically, has given him the room to spend more time with his clients.
“Back in the day, working at Lucid, running marketing for a night club is probably the hardest thing you could ever do,” he said. “You can’t track an ROI; you can’t track people you’re bringing into the door. You also have to make the place look fun and busy, but you can’t show too much. It’s so strategic and so creative and so difficult.”
He said now he sits down with business owners — such as his Wisconsin clients: Mad Chicken, Chubby's Cheesesteaks and Detail Doctors — and develops a tailored, comprehensive strategy. He said he also does general consulting and works with some national brands such as Balanced Breed.
“It’s more than just marketing,” he explained. He said he works with business owners to develop an entire business strategy. Evans takes the opportunity with local clients to encourage them to give back.
Detail Doctors, one of his clients, is running a coat drive through Dec. 14. The car detailing business has a bin just inside of its Van Buren St. location. Anyone, customer or not, is welcome to drop off new or gently used coats. Evans said the coats collected will go to Kids Matter, which “helps abused and neglected children heal and thrive,” and Milwaukee Rescue Mission, a Christian-based homeless shelter.
Evans, who hand-picked the two charities, said Milwaukee Rescue Mission is in desperate need of women’s coats and clothing.
Year-round, Detail Doctors is also offering a discount to veterans, active military, teachers and first responders.
Evans said a lot of his clients were excited to give back when he proposed the idea, but weren’t sure how. He said some of these are small businesses with small teams, just trying to survive in the first place. Evans said he undertakes outreach to get the ball rolling and set up his partners for successful charity work.
“It sounds easy to donate, but then if you think about it… does a business really know how to donate? I don’t think they do,” he said.
Mad Chicken, another one of his clients, is starting to phase out styrofoam in all of its locations in an effort to go green and be more sustainable. Evans said Mad Chicken is utilizing more paper products, and projects they could be using paper products at all locations in the next year and a half.
“All it does is go into a landfill; it’s just not good,” he said. Evans said he’s working with new restaurant clients who are also planning to phase out styrofoam.
He said as he’s traveled more and more, he’s taken notice of Milwaukee on his social media newsfeeds. It seems to just keep popping up, Evans said. Those little reminders of home stuck with him.
He recalled the night last May, when more than a dozen people were injured in a shooting outside of the Deer District. He said his eyes were glued to his phone as he tried to track down his friends to make sure everyone was safe. He may be a self-proclaimed digital nomad, but his life, he said, is in Milwaukee.
“Because I’m not there, I feel like I still need to give back,” he said. “I was like, ‘Why don’t I leverage my own client base and my own partners so that way they can do charity work?’ We’re all still giving back, even when I can’t be there.”
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