What "LOCAL" Really Means for Atlanta's Creative Economy

If you've ever made a place cool and then watched someone else profit from it, this one's for you.

That was the thread running through our March event at the Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs, where our speakers, Yamileth Jaramillo and Jarvis Broughton of COLOR Co., came ready to have the real conversation.

"Creativity is the foundation of everything. We're literally living in somebody else's dream," Yami passionately says. "So what do you dream, and why do you not think that it's possible?"

It landed.

Because here's the thing about Atlanta. We have no shortage of creative talent, vision, or culture. What's been in short supply is infrastructure that actually belongs to us.

"One of the biggest problems we've seen growing up in Atlanta, we make a lot of places cool. We make a lot of places high profile, and then they kick us out," Jarvis adds. 

So for these two founders, "Local" is more than an idea. It's a strategy.

Jarvis and Yami have spent seven years building what they call a hybrid hospitality social hub — physical space, a digital layer, and programming that connects creatives, technologists, and developers under one roof.

But the fourth pillar is the one that sets them apart: ownership.

Every membership contribution feeds a treasury. Every real estate asset COLOR Co. acquires, the community owns a piece of. And according to Jarvis, it had to be built here first. "Atlanta is a beta testing city. If it goes in Atlanta, it goes everywhere."

One of the most memorable moments of the morning came when Yami's life-sized passion grew over a chair. Someone designed it. Someone built it. Yet, no one thinks about it once they sit down.

That's exactly the gap COLOR Co. is trying to close by ensuring that creatives have a stake in what their work makes possible. Ten years from now, Jarvis sees multiple COLOR Co. locations — not just across America, but bridging Atlanta and Africa, tapping into what he described as the youngest continent in the world on the edge of massive connectivity. Yami sees sustainable development zones throughout the city. "The same way Miami has Wynwood, we deserve one of those for creators here," she advocates.

At CreativeMornings ATL, we talk a lot about community, but this conversation reminded us that community without ownership is just a good time that someone else can eventually monetize.

So, Local has to mean more than zip code. It has to mean having a stake and building something that can't be easily moved — because the people, the relationships, and yes, the structure , are all in place.

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CreativeMornings ATL gathers monthly to connect Atlanta's creative community around a shared theme. Our next event is April 24 in Decatur — theme: Ember. We'll see you there.