Noon Business Lunch

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute.

Forever 21 has filed for bankruptcy and will wind down its U.S. operations. That means it will close stores across the country, including in the Chicago area. It currently operates stores in Chicago’s Water Tower Place, in Northbrook, Schaumburg, Chicago Ridge and Skokie among others. The company was founded in 1984 and is popular with young shoppers looking for stylish but affordable clothing. At its peak it employed more than 40,000 employees and 800 stores globally. When it filed for bankruptcy, Forever 21 had $1.8 billion in debt after losing more than $400 million over the last three years.

Also, there’s an expansion to report at Chicago’s Fulton Labs. Listen for more below:

Segment 1: Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John Williams to talk about the Dow being up today, why he’s still optimistic about the health of the economy, the tariff chaos that could impact inflation, when he expects to see the market recover, what he’s telling clients to do with their money right now, and the reasons he doesn’t believe we will see a recession.

Segment 2: Laura Ellis, chief strategy officer, executive vice president and president of residential sales, Baird & Warner, tells John what we can expect from the spring housing market.

Segment 3: Trevor Wagener, Chief Economist and Director of the Research Center at the Computer & Communications Industry Association, tells John how AI startup struggles can impact you.

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute.

Planning is moving forward for a boutique hotel in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood that would cater to the LGBTQ+ community. Developers are focused on a plot of land at 3257 N. Halsted. That’s where Yoshi’s Cafe was located before it closed back in 2021. Right now, the plans call for a 51-room hotel and the building will a rainbow-striped facade. The hotel will also feature a restaurant, speakeasy type lounge and rooftop pool. Construction should start next year.  

Also, Chicago’s getting another popular chicken chain restaurant. Listen for more below:

Segment 1: Jack Ablin, Chief Investment Officer and Founding Partner, Cresset Capital, talks to John about the escalating trade war, why he believes the stock market losses will be regained, what he’s noticed about the bond market, and the economy overall still being in pretty good shape.

Segment 2: Bree Fowler, Senior Writer, CNET, joins John Williams to talk about French publishers and authors taking Meta to court, accusing the social media company of using their works without permission to train its artificial intelligence model, and the Trump administration cutting millions of dollars in federal funding from two cybersecurity initiatives.

Segment 3: Brian Chernett, Vice President – leasing and acquisitions at Friedman Properties, tells John about some of the properties in their portfolio, how the market has been the last six months, the health of the market in general, how return to work mandates have increased people coming back to the city, the amenities that attract workers to offices, the renovations done to the Reid Murdoch Building, and the new David Byrne immersive experience coming to one of their properties in River North.

Segment 4: Sarah Cox, Curator of Exhibits, Elmhurst History Museum, joins John to tell us everything we should know about their new exhibit, “Acre by Acre: Our Farming Heritage“

Nationally syndicated financial columnist and author Terry Savage joins John Williams to talk about inflation data being released today, how the back and forth about tariffs has been impacting the markets, and the bad news on Social Security clawbacks.

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute.

A new plan is circulating in Springfield to provide property tax relief in Illinois. The bill would exempt homeowners from paying real estate taxes, if they’ve continuously owned and occupied their primary residence for 30 years. The measure is sponsored by Republican downstate State Senator Neil Anderson. The bill has four co-sponsors, who are also downstate republicans. Anderson says the state has notoriously high property taxes and homeowners need relief.

Also, a lunch spot popular in Chicago’s Loop is expanding. Listen for more below:

Segment 1: Tom Gimbel, job expert and founder of LaSalle Network, joins John to talk about his recent piece in LinkedIn about the opportunities you miss out on if you are working from home, his thoughts on Friday’s labor report, and his take on DOGE’s cuts to the federal government.

Segment 2: Dennis Rodkin, residential real estate reporter for Crain’s, joins John to talk about the newest trend in Chicago area real estate, a Gold Coast condo selling for $10.1 million, Winnetka real estate having a hot week, the Michael Jordan house being available for March Madness, and an Illinois legislator proposing ‘30 years and you’re done‘ property tax law.

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute.

More than a dozen Chicago-area hospitals are included among the nation’s top 10% of hospitals providing safe patient care. Crain’s says the list, compiled by Healthgrades, includes several hospitals owned by Endeavor Health and Northwestern Medicine. Of the 13, nine hospitals are among the top 5% of facilities. Central DuPage, Lake Forest and McHenry hospitals are among the suburban hospitals highlighted. Rush University Medical Center in Chicago was the only hospital in the City of Chicago to rank in the top 10%. Healthgrades is a Denver-based consumer marketplace for finding doctors and health care. It analyzes inpatient data and measures clinical performance among multiple safety indicators. 

Also, an iconic Chicago hot dog chain is opening its first location outside the city. Listen for more below:

Segment 1: Phillip Shaw, CFP, Senior Advisor, Goldstone Financial Group, tells John about the long-term market trend, why he doesn’t believe we are in a true bear market, the likelihood we see a recession, what he expects the Fed to do with interest rates, the importance of keeping your long-term goals in mind, and what he’s suggesting people do with their money right now.

Segment 2: Jim Dallke, Director of Communications, TechNexus Venture Collaborative, tells John about Stripe doubling its footprint in Chicago with an expanded space in River North, funding for female-founded startups taking a hit last year, and an AI startup focused on safety and ethics raising $16M.

Segment 3: Grace Fuller, General Manager, City Cruises, tells John about all the dining and sightseeing cruises that are planned for St. Patrick’s Day weekend!

Segment 1: Jane Oates, Senior Policy Advisor and recent President, WorkingNation, joins John Williams to break down the latest labor report. What were Jane’s big takeaways from the numbers? And what will happen next month when we see the impact of government layoffs?

Segment 2: Andy DeMoss, Senior Managing Director with Bradford Allen, tells John about Bradford Allen’s Q4 Downtown Office Report. Andy talks about downtown office expansion, what’s causing leasing activity to improve, and what we can expect from Chicago’s office market moving forward.

Segment 3: Meg Buchanan, Executive Director of the Irish American Heritage Center, joins John to tell us everything that the IAHC has planned for March and the events leading up to St. Patrick’s Day.