Business in Chicago has long been a driving force behind its prominence in the cultural zeitgeist. A decade of strategic infrastructure development has further certified the Windy City’s position as one of the United States’ major financial, transportation and manufacturing powerhouses. This impressive growth - combined with record-breaking tourism figures, a soaring economy and a distinct cultural individuality - is testament to Chicago’s global business prowess in the modern day.
Indeed, corporate travellers are seeking the tangible benefits of frequent business trips to Chicago en masse, with Chicago O’Hare airport now the seventh busiest in the world. We take a look at how this fascinating metropolis came to be a symbol of enterprise and how business in Chicago has shaped the U.S. economy.
The Founding Years
Since the early 19th century, business in Chicago has been the instigator of the rapid cultural and industrial advancements of the Greater Midwest of the U.S. Set on the western shore of Lake Michigan, Chicago instantly became a desirable destination for European projectors and adventurers seeking to establish a settlement from which they could trade.
These early settlers made use of the advantageous central position that Chicago held; trading fur, farm products and operating military installations. While these forms of commerce remained somewhat rudimentary, business in Chicago had already begun to determine the physical and ideological shape of the fledgling city.
A City in Development
After these settling years, an accelerated period of economic expansion followed. Fuelled by vast, seemingly infinite stocks of natural resources like coal, water and iron ore, the city and surrounds became an area of abundant commercial potential. This potential was pounced upon by both migrant workers and local inhabitants alike. Despite cultural differences, migrants from across America and beyond ingratiated themselves with the values of the early European settlers, and between them were able to take advantage of the emerging steam and steel industries.
Business Begins to Boom
Between the mid-19th and early 20th centuries, business in Chicago saw to it that the city prospered, becoming a desirable destination for opportunistic businessmen and savvy working folk alike. The manufacturing industry had been evolving and Chicago was at the forefront of it. Before long the population had risen such that this modestly-sized settlement had become the youngest city in the United States to surpass a population of 100,000 residents.
Emerging inland transportation networks led to yet more exponential population growth, broadening the diversity and volume of business conducted in and from the area. Chicago had become a globally renowned railroad centre, the United States’ second-largest city and quickly formed one of the most heavily industrialised regions anywhere in the world.
The Swift Fall from Grace
By now a totem of capitalism, the early 20th century saw Chicago convert its industrial prowess to grow its retail, financial and automotive industries. With business in Chicago booming, investment in its inhabitants became a priority. Education and health care took huge leaps forward, and the population became a sophisticated society - with arts, sports and entertainment coming to cultural prominence.
Then came the Great Depression. The stock market crash of 1929 not only led to mass unemployment, but demand for Chicago’s products and exports nosedived. Hit hardest was the manufacturing industry, Chicago’s primary output. It marked a dramatic end to an era of prosperity and growth for the Windy City - and hard times followed.
Between the late 1920s and the early 1930s, around half of the workers in manufacturing had no remaining ties to the industry, and many were desperate for work. The 1930s became a decade of violence, unrest and protests. Indeed, it was not until the Second World War that business in Chicago, paradoxically, made a relatively brief economic recovery. The wholesale manufacture of goods became sought-after again and that played to the strengths of this industrial powerhouse.
The Modern Resurgence
Since then, aside from an economic lull through the 1970s and 1980s - attributed by most economists to the restructuring of Chicago’s primary industries - Chicago has seen nothing but economic growth. A balanced and diverse economy combined with a rich cultural history has ensured the Windy City remains an economically healthy city.
For many major corporations, business trips to Chicago are now the most-booked journeys domestically within the United States. Not only has the city seen an architectural transformation in recent years, it has attracted a record-breaking number of tourists, too. Meticulously managed business objectives and economic preservation has seen the blossoming of the technology industry, seemingly future-proofing the city from those economic lulls which so paralysed this industrial giant at times through its fascinating past.
Planning a business trip to Chicago? Why not check out top 6 things to do in the Windy City or browse our list of the best serviced apartments in Chicago.
Give us a call or make an enquiry and SilverDoor will find you the ideal accommodation for your business trip to this impressive city.
