Altorfer CAT, a heavy equipment sales and service dealership, is expanding and will open four new Illinois locations next year including one at the northeast corner of 88th Avenue and 191st Street in Mokena.
The 55,000-square-foot dealership will anchor a new development known as Mokena Point.
Altorfer CAT is expected to open early in 2021 along with new locations in Naperville, Addison and East Dundee.
As part of its development agreement, Mokena village officials earlier this year agreed to rebate $2 million in sales tax revenues to Altorfer over the next 15 years.
Altorfer was founded in 1957 as the Altorfer Machinery Co. The company has since expanded and now operates 32 locations in 26 cities and employs over 1,100 workers. Its service area includes eastern Iowa, northeast Missouri, northern and central Illinois including the Chicago metropolitan area, and two counties in northwest Indiana.
Lansing printer shuts down
Litho Type, a commercial printing plant operating in Lansing for more than 50 years, shut its doors at 16710 Chicago Ave. for the last time on Oct. 30.
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At its peak, Litho ran three shifts and printed flyers, inserts, college and high school newspapers, special interest publications and community newspapers, including the South West News Herald.
For decades, it was part of local publishing companies and printed the Sun-Journal newspaper in Lansing and The Daily Calumet newspaper on the Southeast Side of Chicago.
The company was co-owned by longtime employees Ed DeWitt and Dan Gouwens.
The company had been for sale before it closed.
Ulta to add shops inside Target stores
Bolingbrook-based Ulta Beauty plans to open shops-in-a-shop in Target stores, the companies announced Tuesday.
Ulta Beauty at Target shops will debut in over 100 Target stores starting next year, with plans to increase that to hundreds more, according to a news release. No specific locations were announced for the Ulta shops.
The Ulta locations in Target will be about 1,000 square feet of retail space next to the Target stores’ existing beauty sections, the release said.
Target employees will staff the new shops, but Ulta employees will train them, according to the release.
The pandemic has slowed foot traffic at retail locations around the country. Both companies are banking on the partnership to expand their customer base, according to the release.
ALDI opens new store in Shorewood
ALDI will open its newest store Thursday, Nov. 12, at 665 Brookforest Ave. in southwest suburban Shorewood.
The new location is part of the company’s national expansion plan to become the third-largest U.S. grocery retailer by store count by the end of 2022.
The store will open at 9 a.m. Thursday and hours will be Monday to Saturday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Chicago Bear Sports Bar shuttered
The Chicago Bear Sports Bar & Grill has closed its doors in the Midway area.
Owners announced last month they would be retiring in November after being open for 36 years at 6335 S. Central Ave.
Bob Bong is a freelance columnist. He can be reached at [email protected].