The Atlanta School of Massage, a longtime fixture in Dunwoody, abruptly closed its doors three weeks ago, reportedly owing its landlord hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid rent.
The business, located at 2 Dunwoody Park Drive in the Georgetown area, touted itself as Georgia’s first licensed massage school. According to Georgia business records, its date of incorporation was 1981. The last time the company renewed its business license was 2019.
The corporation was officially dissolved on Oct. 22, 2020, according to online records, because of its failure to renew its license.
Sources familiar with the closure say that two buildings that were leased by the company were still full of furniture, massage tables and clothing that the property management company, Foundry Commercial, is now trying to clear out.
A visit by a Rough Draft reporter confirmed the chaotic conditions inside and around the building. A dumpster was half filled with clothing, paperwork, filing cabinets and other office furniture.
“They took everything of value and just left the rest,” the source said. “There was no notice given to the employees or customers at all.”
The source also said that customers who had prepaid for services just days or hours before their appointments were shocked when they came to the location.
“We felt sorry for them because many of them were elderly people who looked like they really needed the services,” the source said. “They said they had no warning at all that it had closed.”
Kathy Fries of Dunwoody was one of those customers left in the lurch. She had a $150 gift certificate she was looking forward to using in the next few months.
“It was always a great place to unwind and get an inexpensive massage that was always supervised by an instructor,” she said. “My out-of-town friends always wanted to go there when they would visit me.”
The Atlanta School of Massage buildings have no notice of its closure on the doors of either of the buildings. Its website, phone number and all its social media channels have been shut down.
The Georgia Secretary of State Corporations Division website had listed Leticia Allen as its chief operating officer, secretary and chief financial officer until 2019. Allen’s contact information is not listed in any of the online renewal documents.
Several sources told Rough Draft that Allen sold the business in 2019, but the identity of the new owner or business entity could not be confirmed through searching state tax records.
Rough Draft has filed an open records request with the city of Dunwoody for the name on the school’s business license, and will update the story as more information is known.
On Sept. 23, a post on the Georgia Postsecondary Education Commission said it had been informed that the Atlanta School of Massage had been closed. It provided information to currently enrolled massage therapy students regarding possible financial assistance.
The site said that they had an “understanding” that the school was fulfilling official transcript requests for students who fill out a Google form.
It also said that Atlanta School of Massage has entered into a “teach-out agreement” with the International School of Skin, Nailcare and Massage Therapy in Sandy Springs, which will accept completed hours and waive administration and registration fees.
ISSNMT Campus President Pam Jones confirmed the teach-out agreement and said that the migration of the Atlanta Massage School students is already occurring. In addition, the nearly 40-year-old Sandy Springs school, located at 7840 Roswell Road, will honor any valid Atlanta School of Massage pre-paid package certificates.
“We have the client lists from the Atlanta School of Massage and we are in the process of contacting them,” Jones said.
Rough Draft has contacted Foundry Commercial’s Atlanta office for comment about the future of the property.