If their political careers don’t pan out, some Chicago aldermen might consider going into sales. Turns out a group of them have become excellent pitch-men and women as part of their efforts to bring new retailers and restaurants to their wards.
For the past three years, the city’s Department of Planning and Development has dispatched a contingent of aldermen to the International Council of Shopping Centers trade show in Las Vegas. The plan: Let the aldermen sell retailers on opportunities in Chicago’s neighborhoods where many national chains never venture.
This year, the planning department added the National Restaurant Association convention at McCormick Place to its list. A group of about 20 aldermen descended on the trade show, which was held two weeks ago, with binders chock full of ward-specific demographic information, such as average household net wealth and sale prices of single family homes.
Chicago’s profile at the restaurant show was heightened further by the presence of Mayor Richard M. Daley, who addressed attendees on May 18, and an actual City of Chicago booth at the show manned by planning department staffers.
After 70 scheduled meetings between aldermen and restaurateurs, and scores of spontaneous ones, the city is happy with the outcome. “The investment absolutely paid off,” said Peter Scales, a planning department spokesman.
One alderman who really worked the show was Isaac Carothers (29th), who represents a working-class area on the oft-maligned West Side. Carothers is in the market for more sit-down restaurants for his ward, which has lots of middle-income families but few places for them to dine.
“We don’t have very many restaurants of the caliber I’d like to see,” he says. “When I take people to lunch, I have to go to Oak Park.”
On his wish list–restaurants that serve breakfast in addition to lunch and dinner such as Baker’s Square or IHOP.
Carothers was in luck. Baker’s Square expressed interest and so did Ala Carte Entertainment, which owns 25 Chicago-area eateries and nightclubs, including Magnum’s Prime Steakhouses and Excalibur.
Fast-food chain Subway was so eager to get a foothold in the 29th ward that it already has written a thank-you note for its meeting with Carothers. And a small operator expressed interest in opening a Tastee Freeze outlet to cater to the area’s sweet tooth.
Next year’s show is already on Carothers’ calendar.
Fitting in: The majority of American women now wear a size 14 or larger. Many fashion designers don’t make anything larger than a size 12, and most fashion models are now a size 2 or 0.
Cognitive dissonance in the fashion world? Yes.
A retail opportunity waiting to be exploited? Definitely.
A few savvy operators have noticed. Soon, Chicago-area women of a certain size are going to have a few more choices about where to shop.
Later this summer, Marina Rinaldi, the plus-size chain that is part of Italian fashion house Max Mara, will be opening its first Chicago-area store on Oak Street, filling the space formerly occupied by the Giorgio Armani boutique.
For shoppers on a more moderate budget, the fast-growing chain Avenue is expanding its Chicago-area presence with a new store in Wheaton’s Danada Square West shopping center–its 41st Illinois store.
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Avenue, which offers clothing and lingerie sizes 14 and up, caters to fashion-conscious women who want to buy current styles. Its summer selections include Capri pants, no-waist jeans and wrap shirts.
“Plus-size women are no longer confined to less fashionable selections than their smaller-size counterparts,” says Cinthia Menolascino, head of fashion development at United Retail Group, Avenue’s New Jersey-based parent. “Plus-size fashions finally match women’s attitudes: They are confident and beautiful.”
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