CHICAGO | Economic & Business Development

[Justin_Chicago]

Kellogg opens 50-employee Merchandise Mart office

The maker of breakfast favorites Froot Loops, Pop Tarts and Rice Krispies has opened an office in Chicago's Merchandise Mart, continuing a run of food-related companies leasing new spaces downtown.

Kellogg Co. in February opened a new office in the sprawling River North building, where it plans to have about 50 employees in its global growth and IT departments, the Battle Creek, Mich.-based company said.

Kellogg is consolidating workers who previously were in other, smaller offices downtown, said spokeswoman Kris Charles in an emailed statement. When called with follow-up questions, Kellogg representatives wouldn't say whether the company planned to hire more workers for the office, which opened Feb. 20.

The company has positions posted on job sites, and Charles added that the Mart office "will provide great access to digital, analytic and e-commerce talent pools."

Article: http://www.chicagotribune.com/busine...403-story.html

[the urban politician]

Nielsen moving offices downtown. Hundreds of jobs

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

Nielsen moving offices downtown. Hundreds of jobs

And a huge new lease. CBD commercial space absorption should continue to put up good numbers.

[Justin_Chicago]

The details....

Nielsen to expand downtown office, exit suburbs

Nielsen, the TV ratings firm, is joining the suburbs-to-city trend, cutting a deal to move all of its Chicago-area employees into one Loop office building.

Nielsen has signed a lease for 215,000 square feet in the tower at 200 W. Jackson Blvd., where it already has an office, said Tom Saletta, principal at White Oak Realty Partners, the Chicago-based real estate firm that owns the building.

Nielsen plans to move employees there from offices it has in Schaumburg, Evanston, West Dundee and the Ravenswood neighborhood in Chicago. The company is tripling its space in the Loop building, where it currently occupies about 70,000 square feet.

Article: http://www.chicagobusiness.com/reale...-200-w-jackson

[HowardL]

Originally Posted by Justin_Chicago

Kellogg opens 50-employee Merchandise Mart office

This intrigues me. Kellogg's, despite their oft stated affinity to staying put in Kalamazoo, is a perfect fit for the food processing ecosystem in the Loop. What they do is a thing in Chicago.

Could this simply be their testing the waters?

[the urban politician]

^ Kelloggs is based in Battle Creek not K zoo

[marothisu]

Preliminary labor force statistics are out for February. The unemployment rate of the city dropped 0.7% to 5.5% and the metro area also dropped its unemployment rate 0.7% to 5.3%. That's the lowest rate in the city since March 2007 and the lowest number of unemployed persons since May 2007.


Cities:

* San Francisco: 3%
* Boston: 3.4%
* San Jose: 3.9%
* San Diego: 4%
* Dallas: 4.5%
* Phoenix: 4.5%
* NYC: 4.8%
* Los Angeles: 5.1%
* Miami: 5.1%
* Chicago: 5.5%
* Milwaukee: 5.5%
* Atlanta: 5.6%
* Houston: 5.6%
* Washington DC: 6.1%
* Philadelphia: 6.2%
* Baltimore: 6.6%
* Detroit: 12%

By MSA:
* San Francisco: 3.5%
* San Jose: 3.6%
* Boston: 3.7%
* Washington DC: 3.9%
* San Diego: 4.2%
* Dallas: 4.3%
* Phoenix: 4.4%
* Los Angeles: 4.5%
* MIlwaukee: 4.5%
* Baltimore: 4.7%
* Charlotte: 4.7%
* NYC: 4.7%
* Miami: 4.8%
* Atlanta: 4.9%
* Philadelphia: 4.9%
* Chicago: 5.3%
* Pittsburgh: 5.7%
* Detroit: 5.9%
* Houston: 5.9%

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Preliminary labor force statistics are out for February. The unemployment rate of the city dropped 0.7% to 5.5% and the metro area also dropped its unemployment rate 0.7% to 5.3%. That's the lowest rate in the city since March 2007 and the lowest number of unemployed persons since May 2007.


Cities:

* San Francisco: 3%
* Boston: 3.4%
* San Jose: 3.9%
* San Diego: 4%
* Dallas: 4.5%
* Phoenix: 4.5%
* NYC: 4.8%
* Los Angeles: 5.1%
* Miami: 5.1%
* Chicago: 5.5%
* Milwaukee: 5.5%
* Atlanta: 5.6%
* Houston: 5.6%
* Washington DC: 6.1%
* Philadelphia: 6.2%
* Baltimore: 6.6%
* Detroit: 12%

By MSA:
* San Francisco: 3.5%
* San Jose: 3.6%
* Boston: 3.7%
* Washington DC: 3.9%
* San Diego: 4.2%
* Dallas: 4.3%
* Phoenix: 4.4%
* Los Angeles: 4.5%
* MIlwaukee: 4.5%
* Baltimore: 4.7%
* Charlotte: 4.7%
* NYC: 4.7%
* Miami: 4.8%
* Atlanta: 4.9%
* Philadelphia: 4.9%
* Chicago: 5.3%
* Pittsburgh: 5.7%
* Detroit: 5.9%
* Houston: 5.9%

Thanks for posting. Do you know where to find the non farm payroll numbers by city (not MSA)?

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by Vlajos

Thanks for posting. Do you know where to find the non farm payroll numbers by city (not MSA)?

I don't. The only thing I know remotely close is maybe the QWI (Quarterly Workforce Indicators) from the US Census Dept. They are always very far behind - right now the latest data is Q2 2016.

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by marothisu

I don't. The only thing I know remotely close is maybe the QWI (Quarterly Workforce Indicators) from the US Census Dept. They are always very far behind - right now the latest data is Q2 2016.

Ok, thanks

[Justin_Chicago]

Popular Pays Raises $3M to Connect Brands and Social Media Stars

Popular Pays—a company that connects social media superstars with brands—sounds like a startup destined for Silicon Valley. But with a focus on revenue and growing smartly, Popular Pays has taken a uniquely Chicago-style approach to its business.

Popular Pays, which launched in 2013 by CEO Corbett Drummey, helps social media influencers and content creators earn money by working with brands on ad campaigns. The startup, a graduate of Y Combinator in 2015, has grown to 24 employees and was break even in Q4 last year, Drummey said.

But to help make more long-term decisions, Popular Pays decided to raise some outside capital. On Monday the startup announced it has raised a $5.2 million Series A, which included $3 million in new funding led by GoAhead VC with participation from Pallasite Ventures and Hyde Park Angels, in addition to $2 million it raised after graduating YC.

Popular Pays expects to add another dozen employees this year and remain break even throughout 2017, Drummy said.

“I guess that’s very Chicago of us. If we moved out to the Bay Area, we’d just be focused on losing more money,” Drummy joked.

“Chicago has a large amount of advertisers,” Drummy said. “A lot of our sales comes from agencies and brands in Chicago.”

While a startup working with social media influencers would seem better suited for the coasts, Popular Pays says Chicago's proximity to ad agencies and big brands, plus the cost of living, has made it the ideal headquarters.

Article: http://chicagoinno.streetwise.co/201...l-media-stars/

[IrishIllini]

Originally Posted by Justin_Chicago

Popular Pays Raises $3M to Connect Brands and Social Media Stars

Popular Pays—a company that connects social media superstars with brands—sounds like a startup destined for Silicon Valley. But with a focus on revenue and growing smartly, Popular Pays has taken a uniquely Chicago-style approach to its business.

Popular Pays, which launched in 2013 by CEO Corbett Drummey, helps social media influencers and content creators earn money by working with brands on ad campaigns. The startup, a graduate of Y Combinator in 2015, has grown to 24 employees and was break even in Q4 last year, Drummey said.

But to help make more long-term decisions, Popular Pays decided to raise some outside capital. On Monday the startup announced it has raised a $5.2 million Series A, which included $3 million in new funding led by GoAhead VC with participation from Pallasite Ventures and Hyde Park Angels, in addition to $2 million it raised after graduating YC.

Popular Pays expects to add another dozen employees this year and remain break even throughout 2017, Drummy said.

“I guess that’s very Chicago of us. If we moved out to the Bay Area, we’d just be focused on losing more money,” Drummy joked.

“Chicago has a large amount of advertisers,” Drummy said. “A lot of our sales comes from agencies and brands in Chicago.”

While a startup working with social media influencers would seem better suited for the coasts, Popular Pays says Chicago's proximity to ad agencies and big brands, plus the cost of living, has made it the ideal headquarters.

Article: http://chicagoinno.streetwise.co/201...l-media-stars/

Spread the word!!

[Justin_Chicago]

Chicago-based software company buys rival, looks to hire more than 100 people

Spphera Solutions, a Chicago-based company making software that helps businesses monitor environmental impact and worker safety, has bought a competitor and is looking to hire over 100 more people.

Sphera's name is new but the business dates back to the 1980s. It sells its software largely to Fortune 1,000 companies in oil and gas, chemicals, and life sciences; it lists Abbott, Eli Lilly, Exxon, Boeing and General Motors among its 2,500 customers.

This month, Sphera announced it's acquiring 55-employee Rivo Software, a United Kingdom-based provider that runs a cloud-based competitor. The acquisition will strengthen Sphera's health and safety offerings and help it expand internationally, President and CEO Paul Marushka said.

Sphera says it's keeping Rivo's employees, but it's also hiring at its Randolph-and-Michigan headquarters in Chicago: It has about 20 open positions and plans to add another 100 workers by the end of the year. Sphera had 550 employees before the acquisition, 55 of whom were in Chicago.

Article: http://www.chicagotribune.com/bluesk...411-story.html

[cmmcnam2]

Hello all, long time lurker, first time poster! Not sure how all of this works/correct protocol but this is exciting! Conde Naste and Pitchfork moving to the Merchandise Mart:

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/artic...WS06/170419957

[Justin_Chicago]

Welcome! I think the process is simple. Promote the economic engine of Chicago to show there is a lot of positive news going on.

Inside FinTank, Chicago's Newest Fintech Incubator and Coworking Space

In Chicago, where no one sector occupies more than 12 to 15 percent of the economy, its local fintech economy is thriving. In 2016, the fintech industry, an umbrella term for technology and innovation disrupting trading, banking, insurance and real estate investing, brought in $25.9 billion in gross regional product and employed 123,156 across 8,412 companies, according to World Business Chicago.

With tech pillars like Braintree, Morningstar, Avant, Tastytrade, Trading Technologies, and YCharts, coupled with legacy institutions like CME Group and The Chicago Board Options Exchange, the largest options exchange in the U.S., Chicago has long been a powerhouse in the space.

Complementary to these more established businesses is the ever growing number of startups in the arena. And, recently, a new incubator and coworking space has launched in the Loop to help cultivate and scale the city's fintech startup community.

FinTank, which opened in the Signature office space on the 27th floor of the CNA building, aims "to provide a physical location for fintech startups to convene and market their ideas," including access to mentorship, networking events, investors. Leading these efforts is Dr. George Vukotich, who previously helped recruit over 500 mentors and 400 workshops while serving as VP of education and programming at 1871.

FinTank has recruited five early-stage startups as members and is actively looking for more companies in the space, sponsors, and investors wishing to serve as mentors. The space is filling up its events calendar with meetups focused around blockchain, cybersecurity, big data and business intelligence applications in the financial industry. It hopes to establish a year-long mentorship program where every startup at FinTank would be matched with industry mentors with different areas of expertise who would serve as advisory board members, with monthly check-ins.

Article: http://chicagoinno.streetwise.co/201...working-space/

https://fintank.org/#events

[Justin_Chicago]

MortgageHippo raises $2.25M to help lenders give you a mortgage online

MortgageHippo, a mortgage-technology startup based in Chicago, has raised about $2.25 million in seed funding, the company announced Tuesday.

The company was founded in 2013 as a consumer-focused online mortgage broker. Today, it offers the service as a white-label software platform for lenders who don’t have the resources to build a platform for themselves.

“There’s so much momentum in the mortgage industry with new technology coming in, we want to be at the forefront,” said MortgageHippo co-founder and CEO Valentin Saportas, noting that leading online lender Quicken Loans built its own digital mortgage platform. “It’s putting pressure on every mortgage lender in the country. We’re bridging the technology gap to lenders.”

The funding will go primarily growing MortgageHippo's team, mainly in sales and technology development, Saportas said. He expects to add five employees immediately and possibly more later this year. The company currently has eight employees and operates out of Catapult in Chicago.

Article: http://www.chicagotribune.com/bluesk...418-story.html

[Randomguy34]

Brunswick Group Expands U.S. Footprint with New Office in Chicago

CHICAGO, April 18, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Brunswick Group, a leading corporate advisory firm, today announced the expansion of its U.S. footprint with the opening in Chicago of its fifth American office.

Brunswick's Chicago office will serve as its Midwestern hub, providing senior counsel to the Midwest's leading regional and global companies on critical issues and stakeholder relations, including mergers and acquisitions, IPOs, employee engagement, crisis, litigation, and executive transitions.

Jayne Rosefield, previously a Partner in the New York office, will head up the Chicago office. Rosefield joined Brunswick in 2005 from JP Morgan and has driven the growth of Brunswick's U.S. Consumer Industries offer. Her transaction highlights include AB InBev's $107bn acquisition of SABMiller; Kraft's $20bn acquisition and integration of Cadbury plc and $55bn merger with Heinz to become Kraft Heinz; Burger King's $11bn acquisition of Tim Hortons to become Restaurant Brands International and Sysco's $8.2bn proposed acquisition of U.S. Foods.

Rosefield said: "Chicago's diverse network of global businesses and forward-thinking leaders make it a natural choice in which to establish a Brunswick presence. It is my privilege to open the firm's fifth American office in such a vibrant and important market."

Joining Rosefield in Chicago is Christopher Hannegan, a Partner who heads Brunswick's global employee engagement offer. This specialist offer helps CEOs and board members address people-related critical business issues including leadership, talent, culture, and strategy execution. Hannegan has nearly 25 years of experience, most of it spent in Chicago where he has advised over 100 companies in the Chicagoland and Midwest regions.

Susan Gilchrist, Group Chief Executive Officer, said: "With so many of the world's great companies based in the Midwest, we wanted to have a strong presence here too, supporting our clients on their biggest issues."

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-relea...300440633.html

[left of center]

Caterpillar Inc. announced today it is locating its new global headquarters in north suburban Deerfield.

(CBS) – The earth-moving equipment manufacturer, based in Peoria for decades, says proximity to O’Hare International Airport and access to the Metra passenger rail line were factors.

“This site gives our employees many options to live in either an urban or suburban environment. We know we have to compete for the best talent to grow our company, and this location will appeal to our diverse, global team, today and in the future,” Caterpillar CEO Jim Umpleby said in a news release.

Caterpillar has a multi-year leasing agreement with Corporate 500 office park, the company said. Caterpillar expects about 100 employees to relocate this year, and 300 people will be at the Deerfield site when it is built out by mid-2018.

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2017/04/...for-global-hq/

It's a bit upsetting that they skipped over moving downtown, but still beats them potentially leaving the state. They might open a satellite office in the Loop regardless (or expand on an already existing one). Either way, a win for the metro area.

[marothisu]

Although it sucks they won't be moving to the city, it is still a win for not only the state for having them keep in the state but also the metro area anyway.

[killaviews]

What's the benefit in being in Lake County as opposed to Cook County?

Is there a tax in city or Cook county that sends businesses just across the county line? Lake County is far. I don't get it. Lake County is punching far above it's weight class in terms of Fortune 500 companies. There must be a reason.