Storefronts Are Established Along Atlanta's Beltline For Local, Black Owned Businesses

Black owned businesses in Atlanta are getting prime exposure with some help from the BeltLine and The Village Market.

According to local news station, KESQ News Channel 3, the BeltLine MarketPlace is an inaugural program a part of the BeltLine’s initial small business incubator.

Used as unconventional storefronts, Black business owners will have access to shipping containers and possibly food trucks to host their businesses. Set up along the Westside and Eastside trails, there will be room for up to six businesses at a time.

Atlanta entrepreneur and owner of Mr. Cake Me Happy, Jerard Brown, was excited about the news. Brown sells his pastries and desserts to millions of patrons each year along the popular city trail.

“The BeltLine is of course one place I’d love to open my business,” Brown said. “It’s a lot of customers out here, very busy, that’s why I’m out here today.”

In a press release from the BeltLine, Inc., the mission of this installment of the small business incubator program is to provide space for Black-owned legacy, small, and local businesses to grow and flourish in the Atlanta area.

Based on studies and data compiled by Atlanta BeltLine, Inc., high prices of rent and lack of access to resources are the biggest barriers to the success of Black-owned businesses.

Brown later told local news CBS46, that the emergence of a program like this in Atlanta, GA has been a long time coming.

“It’s Atlanta, Georgia. When you think of Atlanta, no matter what race you are, you think Black,” he said. “Because that’s what is thriving down here.”

Businesses interested in being a part of the program should apply by April 15.