A peek inside massive wholesale showroom opening in downtown Atlanta, its local economic impact

ATLANTA — For a Channel 2 Action News exclusive, we looked inside downtown Atlanta’s Americasmart.

 It’s a massive wholesale showroom where store buyers and sellers show off their merchandise, but it also has a significant impact on our local economy.

Channel 2′s Dave Huddleston got a sneak peek.

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Americasmart is three buildings on 7.2 million square feet of marketplace in downtown Atlanta. 

The Peachtree Street exhibit space is where retail shops can see and buy the latest in fashions and gifts and home decor.

Dorothy Belshaw with International Market Centers, the parent company of Americasmart, said, “We do have two floors here in building 3 that are also open to the public.”

Businesses at Americasmart operate six months in advance, so right now summer and resort wear are on full display.

There are more than 8,000 showrooms and exhibit spaces throughout the buildings.

 Brad Rosenkampff owns Total Accessories and has been here for more than 30 years. He said, “We’re selling to retailers all up and down the East Coast, everything east of the Mississippi.”

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Atlanta’s convention and visitor’s bureau told me that in 2020, when COVID wiped out most conventions, Americasmart only scaled back, kept hundreds employed and brought millions of dollars to the local economy. 

Tyler Henritze with Blackstone, the company that oversees Americasmart’s parent company, said right now business is booming.

“Americasmart is one of the biggest economic drivers in the city and the state. We estimate the economic impact of Americasmart is the equivalent of about five Super Bowls annually.”

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