Invest Fest returns to the Georgia World Congress Center Aug. 7-9, drawing 20,000 to 25,000 people a day downtown for three days of entrepreneurial education and financial literacy programming. Whether it comes back after that is now an open question.
The event is the marquee property of Earn Your Leisure, the financial education platform built on podcasts, online courses, events and a school curriculum. Speaking on the Breakfast Club, the nationally syndicated New York radio show, EYL co-founders Rashad Bilal and Troy Millings said they were open to moving it. \"Its home has been Atlanta for obviously for six years. We flirted with the idea just because, you know, the lack of support that we've gotten from the city of Atlanta has been something that has been puzzling,\" Millings said.
The frustration has history behind it. Mayor Andre Dickens spoke at Invest Fest in 2022, and in 2024 held a City Hall news conference with Millings, Bilal and others to announce that year's dates. Bilal said that after the 2022 appearance, the mayor and his teams offered support and then talks stalled. \"We were under the impression that we were going to do work with the mayor's office because, you know, we met with them and they were enthusiastic,\" he told the AJC. \"We set up a lot of calls, but nothing came from it. It's a little different when it's communicated that we're going to help and this is going to be a top priority, and then that leads to nothing.\" He said the festival would welcome help with community events, marketing, corporate sponsor connections or direct financial support.
The city's account differs. Michael Smith, deputy chief communications officer for Dickens, said the administration \"did not proactively reach out,\" adding that \"Atlanta is a top destination for conventions and tourism, and we have a long track record of supporting people and organizations who support Atlanta.\" William Pate, president and CEO of the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau, noted the city hosts more than 700 meetings and conventions annually: \"Unfortunately, we are not in a position to provide financial support for every meeting.\"
Dickens responded more pointedly in person. At Hank Stewart's 25th Annual White Linen Affair, he alluded to the radio appearance: \"Somebody said something on the radio in New York about Atlanta. Somebody was talking about support, talking about this and that. You know, people talk a lot.\" He then announced the city was giving Stewart's nonprofit $50,000. \"The city of Atlanta, we will always look out for ours. This is 25 years. Somebody that did something five years, thank you, but 25 years! If you support this city, we support you back! So put that on your podcast!\"
The founders started Invest Fest because they felt the Black business community lacked a dedicated festival, and chose Atlanta despite being based in New York because of the city's standing for Black business and the concentration of EYL's audience here — a little more than half of attendees come from metro Atlanta, Millings said. This year's program includes Serena Williams, Steve Harvey and Nick Cannon among headline speakers, a black-tie gala honoring Keisha Lance Bottoms, Jermaine Dupri and TI, a marketplace with 400 small business vendors, local food trucks, a startup pitch competition, and a first-ever day for young entrepreneurs, with Fulton County students attending and more than 150 students flown down from New York.
After the Breakfast Club segment aired, Bilal said the mayor's chief of staff reached out and communication restarted. There are no specific plans to leave, and the decision may come down to logistics. \"It's not like we're actively looking to have it at a different place,\" Bilal said, \"but we also were never opposed to having it in a different place either.\"
Original reporting: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (2026-07-30)