Hey.

Welcome to ATL Grind.

I’m Andrew (your host) who’ll be showing you the best events, news, jobs, and more in Atlanta’s business world. Let’s get started.

Also, our new website is live:

Definitely a big improvement. Check it out to read past editions or to see some new jobs we added to the job board.

AMA Atlanta AMY Awards: March 19 
Atlanta's top marketing talent gets recognized at the Foundry at Puritan Mill. Doors at 5:30 PM. Good room if you're in brand, agency, or growth. Read more here

Georgia Technology Summit: April 30
TAG's flagship event at the Cobb Convention Center. 1,000+ technologists. The "Top 40 Innovative Companies" exhibition is the draw. Read more here

Root Ball 2026: May 14 
Trees Atlanta's annual fundraiser at The Foundry at Puritan Mill. Music, food, good crowd. Early bird tickets available through today. Read more here​

36 years. Three galleries. One of the most important art dealers in the Southeast.

Mark Karelson doesn't look like the kind of guy who'd lecture you about outsider art for two hours straight. But sit down with him at Mason Fine Art on Miami Circle, and that's exactly what'll happen.

In 1990, Mark and his wife Kim opened Modern Primitive Gallery in Virginia Highlands, giving a platform to self-taught and outsider artists who'd been shut out of the mainstream art world for decades. Many of those artists now hang in some of the most important museums on the planet.

The gallery evolved into Mason Murer Fine Art, a 24,000-square-foot space on Armour-Ottley Loop that doubled as one of Atlanta's premier event venues, hosting exhibitions including "Embrace: The Art Fair of The National Black Arts Festival."

After the pandemic, he moved Mason Fine Art to a 9,000-square-foot former auto salon at the end of Miami Circle, sharing the space with Marcia Wood Gallery. The model is leaner, the walls still world-class. He also opened the PATH Museum, a noncollecting museum on the ground floor oan office building at 3399 Peachtree in Buckhead.

Here's what's fascinating: the art gallery business is being completely reshaped. According to the Art Basel & UBS Global Collecting Survey, 51% of gallery purchases are now completed via Instagram without the buyer ever seeing the work in person. One gallery reported online sales jumping from 10% to 37%. The average collector age has dropped to 38. Artists are selling direct. The old gatekeepers are losing leverage.

The future of the gallery is experiential. It's about physical spaces where curators, collectors, and designers can interact in ways a screen can't replicate. It's live exhibitions. He’s bringing in corporate collection consulting for clients like Coca-Cola and Cushman & Wakefield. It's events and cultural programming that give people a reason to show up.

Mason Fine Art is currently running a Solo Exhibition Competition for April 2026, and Mark continues curating "The John Lewis Series" by Benny Andrews, on exhibition at the Madison-Morgan Cultural Center. The gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday at 761-D Miami Circle (great spot by the way).

​Koshu Club

The team behind Michelin-starred MujĹŤ is opening Koshu Club in Buckhead, directly across from The St. Regis Atlanta. Charcoal-grilled seafood and meats, refined small plates, premium sake, and creative cocktails. The space was designed by Atlanta-based Smith Hanes Studio with a Japanese midcentury modern aesthetic. This is your new date night and client dinner spot. Reservations will go fast. Also, very mysterious website (check it out)

Senior Account Manager (Growth & Expansion) at CallRail (Atlanta, Hybrid). CallRail's AI product suite (Voice Assist, Conversation Intelligence) is their fastest-growing revenue driver. This role is a strategic upsell position, not maintenance. Consultative sellers who can move SMBs from basic call tracking to premium AI. Apply here

Inside Sales Representative at CallRail (Atlanta, Hybrid). New listing. Atlanta-HQ'd martech company with real product-market fit. Great entry point into SaaS sales. Apply here

Director, Software Engineering at OneTrust (Atlanta). The $3.5B privacy and AI governance unicorn needs engineering leadership. 85 open roles company-wide. Office-first culture, three days in. Apply here

Corporate Counsel, Commercial at OneTrust (Atlanta). Legal role at one of ATL's biggest private tech companies. Commercial contracts for 14,000+ global customers. Apply here

Senior FP&A Analyst at Calendly (Remote - US). The scheduling platform serving 20M+ users needs finance muscle. Atlanta-founded, remote-friendly. Apply here

Product Manager, Voice Assist at CallRail (Atlanta, Hybrid). Own the roadmap for CallRail's breakout AI product. If you want PM experience on a live, revenue-generating AI feature, this is it. Apply here

Buckhead's most celebrated sushi restaurant is planting a flag in Manhattan.

After 12 years as Atlanta's premier Japanese fine dining destination, UMI is opening a 4,000-square-foot location in NoMad at 63 Madison Avenue, blocks from Eleven Madison Park and The Ned NoMad. Co-owners Farshid Arshid and Charlie Hendon plan a June 2026 soft opening with a full public launch in fall.

The NYC menu will be a retrospective of UMI's greatest hits: uni risotto, wagyu carpaccio, lobster toban-yaki. The space (designed by Gilles & Boissier) will include a main dining room, sushi bar, private dining room, and a separate omakase room. Executive sushi chef Yoshimitsu Yoshida (formerly of Juku in NYC) will run the counter alongside former UMI Atlanta exec chef Kulper.

This is a big deal for Atlanta's food credibility nationally. Usually restaurants open in NYC, then move to Atlanta—this is the opposite. The Buckhead original stays open.

675 W Paces Ferry Rd NW, Unit 10, Buckhead: $4,395,000 

5 beds. 9 baths. 8,450 sq ft on 0.66 acres. Guard-gated Buckhead community. French Country design by Harrison Design. Slate roof, 11-foot ceilings, imported French clay tile, antique mantels, limestone floors. Chef's kitchen with walk-in pantry. Pool with French doors off the keeping room. Elevator to three levels. Listed by Dorsey Alston Realtors.

5 other headlines to snack on:

Coca-Cola's Mr. Pibb relaunch officially hits Georgia stores after the national rollout began late last year. 30% more caffeine. New packaging. Walmart, Dollar General, Five Below, and Piggly Wiggly carrying it. Read more here

Slutty Vegan founder Pinky Cole filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Owes $1.2M to the SBA, $192K in Georgia taxes. Chain went from 14 locations to five. She's also joining Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 17 in April. Read more here

CP Group plans to convert several buildings in Buckhead's largest office complex into medical office space. Smart pivot as traditional office demand softens. Read more here

Gwinnett Burger Week runs March 16–22. Specialty burgers from local restaurants, $12 each. Read more here

Atlanta startups raised $756.5 million in 2025, up 23% year-over-year. Fintech leads at 28% of deal activity, followed by healthtech (22%) and AI/ML (18%). Read more here

That’s it.

What’d you think? Reply and share some thoughts.

See you next week.

Andrew