Small Business
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Mendocino Farms restaurant chain opening in Vernon HillsApr 16, 2026 2:59 pm - Mendocino Farms, a fast-casual restaurant known for farm-fresh crafted sandwiches and salads, is opening its first suburban Chicago location Tuesday in Vernon Hills.
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McHenry County friends create bookstore on wheels
Apr 15, 2026 9:04 am - The business idea came to Jacquee McLeod and Cassi Hunn while the two McHenry County women were in a Florida pool. Their families — including their husbands and two children each — were vacationing together, and the two longtime friends were talking about their dream of jointly running a bookstore. On that day last June, mobile bookstore Here for the Plot was born.
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Rohrman boosts its Schaumburg presence with new Kia dealershipApr 14, 2026 1:14 am - Schaumburg is welcoming a new dealership with a new look to its auto row on Golf Road. The 45,000-square-foot Rohrman Schaumburg Kia dealership at 750 E. Golf Road opens this week, and the Rohrman Automotive Group is pulling out the stops with a grand opening celebration from 5 to 8 p.m. to be attended by Chicago sports celebrities.
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‘Works of art’: Hanover Park artisan crafts world-class pool cues that cost up to $10,000Apr 13, 2026 3:08 pm - Thirty years ago, then teenage Tim Prince discovered his passion for pool and his talent for creating Art Deco-inspired custom pool cues which sell for up to $10,000.
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Gurnee invests in art and coffee as new uses for empty spaces on Grand AvenueApr 13, 2026 12:18 pm - Gurnee is investing in the arts and coffee to fill longtime vacancies on Grand Avenue.
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Everything Expo in Lake Zurich offers ‘perfect opportunity’ for small businessesApr 11, 2026 4:48 pm - Live entertainment including dance demonstrations and a reptile show combined with vendors from 60 local business and organizations at the Everything Expo at the Folglia YMCA in Lake Zurich Saturday.
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The Biz Week That Was: Dutch Bros Coffee coming to Elk Grove, soaring gas prices, and Candy Hall of FameApr 11, 2026 11:36 am - ‘Brewing soon’: Elk Grove Village lands one of first Dutch Bros Coffee shops in the suburbs Dutch Bros Coffee — the drive-through West Coast chain popular with young...
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Been there, done that: Starship Travel in South Elgin celebrates 40 yearsApr 09, 2026 12:38 pm - Starship Travel in South Elgin is celebrating its 40th anniversary with a travel expo at the Elgin Country Club Sunday.
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Indoor, early farmers markets blooming in the suburbs through April, May
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Start. Use. Do. Small business marketing philosophy for todayApr 08, 2026 8:28 am - Tennis legend Arthur Ashe motivated himself with a philosophy that seems almost definitional for independent business owners today. “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can,” Ashe famously stated. This mindset is what propelled him to reach for ever-increasing success.