Small Business Spotlight: Nicole Jordan’s Catering and Consulting Businesses Show “You Can Be Small But Not Small-Minded”

After a decade working as a consultant, UChicago alum Nicole Jordan, AB ’96, found herself at a crossroads. With a degree in economics and aspirations to be an entrepreneur, Jordan…

Polsky Center Revitalizes Small Business Growth Program with New Funding from JPMorgan Chase

The University of Chicago’s Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation is expanding programming that fuels local small business growth and improves the economic health of communities. Funded by a $400,000…

Small Business Spotlight: Sarah Ware, a Change Agent in Chicago Real Estate

Real estate has historically been a white man’s game, and continues to be so at leadership levels. During its 139-year history, the Chicago Association of REALTORS® (CAR) has had only…

Polsky Exchange to Host Open House to Mark Full Reopening to the Community

The Polsky Exchange, a University of Chicago initiative that offers business education and resources to South and West Side entrepreneurs, has fully reopened to the community after a long pandemic…

Small Business Spotlight: Dinobi Detergent’s Plant-Based Laundry Soap a True Labor of Love

The story of Dinobi Detergent is as much a love story as it is a tale of entrepreneurship and laundry soap. Founded by Augie and Sylvia Emuwa, a Bronzeville couple…

Small Business Spotlight: With Taylor’s Tacos, West Coast Street Food Finds West Side Community

After moving back home to Chicago from California, Taylor Mason missed Los Angeles’ ubiquitous street tacos. She’d get an occasional whiff thanks to a guy who sporadically set up a…

Small Business Spotlight: Larry’s Barber College Stays a Cut Above With New Walmart Shop

Angela Harvey had never cut hair before she enrolled in Larry’s Barber College. Her first time wielding clippers, after months of classroom instruction, “I was shaking like a leaf,” she…

Small Business Spotlight: In the Age of Amazon, Kido’s Key to Retail Success is Knowing Your Community

When Keewa Nurullah, a performing artist, had her first child, she encountered a whole new world of things her son needed – and was disappointed by what she found. Baby…

Celebrating Black in Tech: Insight and Advice from Black Startup Founders

Jasmine Shells, MBA '21, founded her startup in Chicago with the intention of building it in Chicago as well. But when it came time to raise money, the checks…

Small Business Spotlight: With Solo Noir and Zen Soul Apothecary, One Woman Nurtures Outer and Inner Wellness

Andrea Polk always considered herself a spiritual person. But it took time for her to see the deeper meaning when her body suddenly went into revolt. At 38, the…

Small Business Spotlight: OjaExpress, Designed By and For Immigrants, Brings Same-Day Delivery to Ethnic Grocery Stores

When Boyede Sobitan worked as a healthcare consultant, traveling four or five days out of every week, his return home to Chicago was often met with a request from his…

Small Business Spotlight: ReformedSchool’s Handmade Wearable Art Has Something to Say

Peter Gaona didn’t have much money growing up, but he did have a nose for style. So he learned to distress and take apart his clothes, fashioning new items out…

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