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Every inch of the Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs’ 54,000 square foot space is intentionally designed.
There is no standard ‘Welcome Sign’ at the door. Instead you are greeted by a statue of Herman J. Russell – the Center’s namesake and one of Atlanta’s most prominent entrepreneurs – plastering over a wall of negative sayings and creating a wall of positive ones. It’s a sign, quite literally, of the positive and creative energy you’ll feel while walking around the building off of Northside Drive.
The hallway hosts a mural of Atlanta’s influential entrepreneurs past and present. But it is far from just an artistic piece; it is a call to action. Mirrors are scattered throughout at different eye levels, calling on those who walk by to picture themselves up on the wall alongside the business giants of the city.
The common areas are for “coordinated collisions” and serendipitous interactions. The city’s biggest economic development and investment offices are inside to be closer to entrepreneurs. There are studios for content creation, lounges, classrooms, office spaces, and communal resource centers to help entrepreneurs get help in real time.
Every part of the building echoes a central message that Jay Bailey, the Russell Center’s President and CEO, wants to make clear: This is not your standard startup hub or business incubator. This is a community designed to build Black-owned companies and transform Atlanta’s business ecosystem.
And the center is just getting started, says Bailey.
BUILDING DIFFERENTLY
Six years ago, RICE was a dream and a few renderings of what could be created in Atlanta’s Castleberry Hill neighborhood. Today, it’s the city’s top gathering spot and incubator for Black-owned businesses. More than 80,000 people walk through its doors each year. With 35 full-time employees, RICE currently supports 360 entrepreneurs, known as stakeholders. Those stakeholders are building venture-backed…
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