If there is a bright side to this year, it may just be that it has brought families closer together, both figuratively and literally. And as we spend day after day within our homes and yards, well-designed spaces have never been more important. Consumers are willing to invest in home improvement and furnishings to make life a little more comfortable. Fall Design Week at AmericasMart is your chance to restock inventory and source for upcoming design projects to help give your clients and customers the homes they are longing for.
Fall Design Week is a three-day in-person buying event in AmericasMart’s 400+ Open Year Round showrooms which present nearly 2,000 home décor, gift, and apparel lines. Fall Design Week also offers access to AmericasMart’s newly remerchandised home décor collection which features 130+ showrooms with 350+ lighting, accent furniture, rugs, wall décor, casual furniture, and linens brands. International Market Center’s Together Safely protocols—including required use of PPE, temperature screenings, social distancing measures, crowd control efforts, and enhanced cleaning procedures—ensure a safe experience for all.
“Despite the pandemic, great design is still happening in Atlanta and across the Southeast,” said Bob Maricich, International Market Centers (IMC) CEO. “As such, we are committed to continuing to present the hallmark elements of our design events—product discovery, the sharing of great ideas, and the celebration of our local design community—in a modified format this September.”
As part of Fall Design Week, four Atlanta designers will reflect on the impact of design on wellness for Directions in Design, a vignette program which showcases the combined home décor resources of the Southeast’s comprehensive dual-venue design resource—the Atlanta Decorative Arts Center (ADAC) and AmericasMart Atlanta. Tish Mills Kirk of Tish Mills Interiors, Katelyn Rountree of Terracotta Design Build, Chris Socci of C. Socci Inc., and Justin Q. Williams of TradeMark Design Co. will provide valuable insights into living better through a more thoughtful use of space, a focus on simple comforts, and by incorporating healthy products that enhance overall wellness in their designs. This year, in connection with the coordinated DISCOVER ADAC, the program moves online with the four designs showcased virtually via a webinar on September 14, an interactive webpage, and the centers’ social media channels.
“Through Directions in Design 2020 we are tapping some of Atlanta’s talented designers to showcase the best of the ADAC and AmericasMart collections as they create all-new designs that are relevant for this unique time,” said Dorothy Belshaw, IMC chief marketing and digital officer. “While the format has adapted due to the COVID-19 crisis, the program still celebrates the unmatched resources offered by ADAC and AmericasMart and their impact to the southeastern design community.”
Atlanta designer Steve McKenzie—who created the 2019 vignettes—joins the Directions in Design 2020 participants for the unveiling of the virtual showhouse and a discussion of their designs on September 14 at 1 p.m. EST. Registration for the webinar and more information about Directions in Design is available online at AmericasMart.com/markets/Fall-Design-Week.
Fall Design Week runs September 21-23 from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Pre-registration is required and is open now at AmericasMart.com/attend/registration. Appointments are suggested, but not required.
Additionally, DISCOVER ADAC takes place September 22-24 in ADAC’s year-round showrooms with three full days of digital programming for designers and design enthusiasts. For more information visit ADACAtlanta.com/discover-adac/.
