Picture your best friend. she has your back at all times. She is unwaveringly supportive during the good times and the bad, invests time in deepening the relationship and helps you overcome the obstacles life throws your way. She’s the dependable go-to person who always answers the phone when you call for help while giving you the total freedom to be yourself.
For those designers who practice in the Metro Atlanta area, Atlanta Design Group (ADG) is that best friend who also is the neighbor down the street. Since 1976, ADG has been operating as the largest to-the-trade showroom in the Southeast, but there’s much more going on within the walls of this 30,000-foot-showroom. With nine different divisions that provide the full spectrum of services and furnishings, ADG is the one-stop resource that interior designers use to run the back offices of their firms.
Over the years, ADG evolved into a multifaceted company with a specific goal of serving small designers. “We partner with designers to help them run their businesses more efficiently and effectively,” ADG president and CEO Mark Darnell says. “Atlanta Design Group is a support company for the design trade. We provide turnkey services and furnishings for designers to plan, deliver and install their designs in their clients’ homes and offices. They rely on ADG’s employees, services and facilities—showrooms, workrooms and meeting spaces—to conduct client meetings and presentations and to avoid hiring additional staff.”
While designers who use the services and products that ADG provides are considered members, there is never a fee for membership. Designers simply walk in the showroom door, sign the registry and use the services of any one of the nine divisions, drawing on the assistance of ADG’s 40 employees who help designers grow and manage their businesses every day. “We work closely to support designers and ensure no question goes unanswered,” Darnell adds. Absolutely anything designers need for their businesses and their clients is available at ADG—from case goods, custom furniture, appliances, tile, hardware and accessories to services such as delivery, installation and professional development workshops.
One of ADG’s most valuable resources for designers is ADG Studio, where interior designers collaborate with other professionals at all phases of the design process. Under the leadership of internationally acclaimed and award-winning designer Michael Schluetter—recipient of two German Design Awards and a Good Design Award—the Studio offers cutting-edge expertise in modern European styling, traditional and transitional design.
ADG Studio currently is expanding to add an exclusive range of modern European products, elevating the design experience for Atlanta’s professionals. “We’re bringing in curated collections that redefine modern European living for the American market,” says Schluetter, who is director of ADG Studio. The new offerings feature customizable modular kitchens, sleek bath designs and contemporary furniture, all crafted with precision and luxury materials.
ADG Home is one of the most beloved features of the ADG experience. It includes a sprawling showroom encompassing all types of interior and outdoor living furnishings, a kitchen and bath design center with two full kitchens on display, including high-end appliance brands such as JennAir and Miele, and specialty vignettes such as a lamp gallery. Designers are free to bring their clients to sit-test chairs and sectionals in the high-end showroom, choose and customize furniture for any room of the house, and design custom furnishings such as rugs via interactive displays. Scattered throughout the showroom are monitors where designers can work with their clients one-on-one to customize furniture brands, such as Century and Vanguard, and immediately see the final product replicated on screen with a retail price. Tucked away on the outskirts of the showroom are the Resource Room, where designers can pull fabric and finish swatches to show their clients, and a conference room for client meetings. An accessories section, organized by colorway, is a must-have for designers who need a last-minute addition to finish their installations. Accessories, like all of the furniture, are available for cash-and-carry off the showroom floor.
Nearby, the Patrick Allen Fine Art & Mirrors division allows designers to choose fresh art or custom frame existing artwork and mirrors for an updated look. Like the other divisions, a cash-and-carry inventory provides an opportunity to pick up framed artwork at the eleventh hour to complete a room. Another division, ADG Lighting & Controls, carries lighting solutions for new construction and LED renovation retrofits.
“Designers enjoy bringing their clients into a stylish, high-end showroom where they can introduce them to the latest furnishings and customize them on-site,” Darnell says. “We rotate and refresh furniture displays twice per month, so there is always something new to see. We continuously build out the showroom with new furniture and accessories in a variety of design styles.”
In addition to shopping and ordering furnishings from ADG, designers also receive help transporting and installing their purchases in their clients’ homes from another ADG division, TriMarc Installation. TriMarc staff members deliver and install any furnishings or samples ordered from ADG to clients’ residences. “There’s no more schlepping accessories or furniture to and from homes; our employees handle that for designers,” Darnell explains.
Other divisions, such as ADG Procurement and ADG Marketing, provide valuable back-office services, including dedicated solutions for buying goods at the best prices and managing business functions such as cost reporting, scheduling, project management, social media marketing and web design. ADG Renovations provides to-the-trade renovation project solutions, such as closet design and installation.
Many clients are not aware of ADG Construction, a division that provides general contractors and property management companies with turnkey bathroom fixtures and furnishings for multifamily complexes, including products such as shower doors, framed mirrors and hardware. Known as Division 10 specialty products in the industry, ADG Construction’s comprehensive products and services for these types of projects cover the Southeastern, Midwestern and Southwestern regions of the country.
If all of these services aren’t enough, ADG provides regular instructional workshops and professional development opportunities for designers. Lunch-and-learn events feature industry vendors who provide the latest product information, in-house workshops teach design skills, and boot camps provide in-depth training. “We also are planning a huge Christmas masquerade gala for our clients this year. Many designers work alone and don’t have the opportunity to attend fun events to celebrate their wins for the year while networking with like-minded professionals. We want to do all we can to be the go-to resource supporting the trade,” Darnell says.
Designer Mimi Harris of Mimi Harris Interiors has been using ADG’s products and services for almost three years. “ADG is a true partner and now a crucial part of my business success,” Harris says. “As designers, we are fortunate to live in a city that has many resources; however, I decided to start working smarter and narrowed down my resources to become more effective and efficient. ADG’s extensive product lines provide the quality and variety to satisfy my client base. My three favorite services are ADG Home for furniture and accessories, TriMarc for receiving and white glove delivery, and Patrick Allen for art and mirrors. I truly enjoy the ADG employees, from the staff in the showroom to customer service and the drivers at TriMarc. I love that I can bring my clients into the beautiful showroom, whether to sit-test furniture, select fabrics or choose art and frames.”
Darnell’s hard-charging, no-nonsense work style makes his company a perfect partner for designers. He often goes to bat to help solve designers’ pain points. For example, when shipping container costs suddenly increased on overseas furniture shipments, he fought back on behalf of his designers. When he realized designers were struggling with furniture repairs, he added ADG services to provide a solution for them. “I’m all about expediting the money to our designers and helping them with whatever issues arise, whether that’s the logistics of furniture movement or a QuickBooks tutorial for running accounting processes,” Darnell says.
ADG is a dynamic company that is constantly expanding its product and service lines based on feedback from designers. It currently is enhancing its ADG Studio capabilities by adding an international designer, adding more interactive studio displays to make it easier for designers to show their clients customization possibilities, and opening an ADG Nashville showroom next year. Darnell says, “We are and will continue to be the muscle for designers.” *
Dana W. Todd is a professional writer specializing in interior design, real estate, luxury homebuilding, landscape design, architecture and art.
