Chicago Industry Trends

As Chicago industries evolve, Chicago is welcoming an expanding variety of new business and real estate development projects. The office leasing market is recovering regardless of the rising cost of construction, as per the BOMA/Chicago Study Tenants place more value on amenities and placemaking, leading them away from lavish new construction to more collaborative areas. This trend can be observed by retrofitting existing buildings to facilitate companies to use them in a variety of ways as they downsize or relocate to smaller spaces.

IT (Information Technology) has quickly become one of the fastest-growing industries in Chicago due to the rise of shared workspace companies such as WeWork and Regus, but also because IT firms profit from Chicago's infrastructure that is strong and its proximity to other talent pools in different sectors. Furthermore, the 1871 incubator has been recognized as the best incubators around the world.

Chicago is among the three most productive cities in the US, boasting concentrations in food, metals and plastics production. Manufacturing companies benefit from Chicago's central location that makes their products easy to transport across the country or around the world. Furthermore, technology in this sector is rapidly progressing and Chicago has many incubators like mHub.

Transportation and logistics remain key economic drivers for the Chicago area, particularly when businesses shift away from traditional retail and move to online sales. Chicago boasts a diverse shipping fleet that includes container ports as well as air cargo hubs, airports, waterways inland and rail yards as well as robust intermodal facilities providing access to the whole US the supply chain.

Chicago is well placed for a long-term economic success with the recent expansion of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange - a international center for trading and processing commodities - taking effect. Union Station serves thousands of Amtrak travelers every day. The port serves as a crucial part of regional commerce by handling containers as well as bulk merchandise.

Tourism in the Chicago region is also seeing expansion, and is expected to return to pre-pandemic levels this summer as a result of several major events such as NASCAR races Lollapalooza celebration, Democratic National Convention and the International Manufacturing Technology Show. O'Hare airport is expected to see increased traffic as more airlines resume service, and the government eases travel restrictions; however consumer confidence could suffer due to the fact that the prices for homes are extremely volatile; real estate professionals can assist buyers with these complexities and ensure informed decisions are made by buyers.