Talerico opens retail bakery

Talerico-Martin has opened a retail bakery on 63rd Street in Summit. (Courtesy of Talerico-Martin)

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Summit's Talerico-Martin bakery, which has been selling baked goods wholesale to convenience stores for about three decades, has opened a retail bakery at 7334 W. 63rd St., across the street from Argo High School.

"We have a full line of products," said Gary Willard, assistant general manager. "Doughnuts, cookies, brownies, cakes and pastries."

He said the store would have a full coffee bar as well as offer snacks and juices.

Willard said owner Bob Talerico has spared no expense in opening the retail operation.

"It's a pretty decent setup," he said. "Bob is treating this nice. It's his baby."

"We're going to open the door and see who comes in," he said. "We'll have a grand opening in a month or so. We want to get any kinks worked out first."

Willard said customers would eventually be able to order cakes online and have them made any way they like.

"A customer will be able to have their face on the cake, if they want," he said.

Store hours will be from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 5 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday.

Judging from the amazing smells that emit from the bakery on certain days, the goods should be fantastic.

Willard also said anyone who wants to see how the treats are made can just stop by.

"I'll take anyone on a tour who wants," he said.

For information, visit Talerico Bakery or check out their Facebook page.

Walgreens closes in Calumet City

Walgreens, the international pharmacy company that announced recently that it planned to close 200 stores over the next few years, has closed at least three stores in the south suburbs already this year.

The Deerfield-based chain said the stores slated for closing would be locations that were unprofitable. It said the employees would be offered transfers to other stores. It also said closings would hardly be felt by customers because of other nearby Walgreens. The company also said the closings would be offset by new store openings.

Those closings would be in addition to the closing in January of a Walgreens at 159th Street and Wood Street in Harvey, the closing in February of a store at 127th Street and Western Avenue in Blue Island and the closing recently of a location at 626 River Oaks Drive in Calumet City.

Some other south suburban stores are being demolished, and then rebuilt.

A new Walgreens opened recently at Southwest Highway and 95th Street in Oak Lawn. The new store was built on the same site as an earlier store, but the new version has a drive-through lane that the earlier store was lacking. The new store is about 62,000 square feet.

The new building was just sold for $10.7 million to a Northeast-based family office, according to a release from The Boulder Group, which represented both buyer and seller in the transaction. 

Walgreens probably won't be closing that site anytime soon. The chain has a 20-year lease with 11 five-year renewal options.

Domino's opens in South Chicago Heights

A new Domino's restaurant opened earlier this year at 45 W. Sauk Trail in South Chicago Heights.

The Michigan-based restaurant chain recently dropped the word "pizza" from its name but still specializes in pizza and sandwiches.

Hours at the new location are from 10:30 a.m. to midnight Sunday to Thursday and from 10:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

For information, call 708-441-3338 or visit Domino's.

 

Bobak's closes Archer Avenue company store

Bobak Sausage Co. closed its last company-owned store on Chicago's Southwest Side.

Loyal customers, some coming from as far away as northwest Indiana and Chicago's North Side, trekked to the store at 5275 S. Archer Ave. for the last time just before Easter.

The company, which got its start in 1967 and has operated the store on Archer since 1989, had moved its production to a bigger location last year but left the store open.

According to a letter the company distributed and posted on its Facebook page, a decision was made recently that it no longer made sense to keep the store open. The company said it was time to close the store and sell the building, which was otherwise empty since manufacturing was moved.

The company did hold out some hope for longtime customers by saying it might reopen the store at a future date.

Besides the regular Bobak products, which are carried in stores and markets across the Chicago area, the company store did carry some specialty items not available everywhere, such as its fresh Italian sausage, fresh Polish sausage and bacon sausage.

At one point, the company operated a handful of stores under the Bobak banner, including one in Orland Park. All of those stores were closed by 2007 after a particularly nasty fight between two of the sons of the founder.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.com

Grand Appliance opens store in Southland

Grand Appliance & TV has moved into the former Grant's Appliance store in Orland Park. It is the chain's first store in the southern suburbs. (Photo by Bob Bong)

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy 

It didn't take long for northwest suburban Grand Appliance & TV to pounce once Grant's Appliance finished its liquidation sale earlier this year.

The Zion-based chain quickly moved to take over the space at 14740 S. LaGrange Road in Orland Park.

"The company had been thinking about opening in Orland Park for a while and had had discussions with the plaza owner," said store manager Jeff Serr. "Orland was always Grant's top location. The traffic counts on LaGrange are off the charts."

As soon as Grant's was done for good, Grand swooped in and began renovating the space in February.

The 11,000-square-foot was gutted and renovated and held a soft opening last week under its Grand Appliance banner.

"We took everything down to the concrete," said Serr. "It was a tremendous investment."

It didn't take long for people to notice.

"We had seven people walk in today," said Serr. "We were thrilled."

Serr said the company was not concerned about ongoing construction on LaGrange.

"There is still plenty of traffic," he said. "The construction was not a deterrent."

There will be a grand opening later for the store, which is the chain's 18th location but its first in the southern suburbs. It has eight stores in Illinois, but the majority of stores is in Wisconsin.

Store hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Friday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Grand was founded in 1930 under the name Service Electric and while it sold appliances its main business was electrical supplies and light fixtures. 

After World War II, the company concentrated on home appliances because of the Baby Boom.

In 1966, then owner, Fred Reckling, moved the store to a bigger, more visible location on Grand Avenue in Waukegan. He also changed the name to Grand Appliance to signify the move and change in company focus.

The store in Waukegan remained Grand’s sole location until 1992 when current owner, Mark Reckling, convinced his father, Fred, to open a second location in Kenosha. 

For information, visit Grand Appliance & TV. 

LA Fitness opens in New Lenox

A new LA Fitness center opened recently in New Lenox as part of a six-acre retail center across the street from the Target and Lowe stores at U.S. 30 and Vancina Lane.

The 35,000-square-foot fitness center was the first of three planned buildings in the development. 

Also planned are two additional free-standing retail buildings. A 15,000-square-foot building is set to be built next to the LA Fitness and a 6,450-square-foot building in planned for an outlot parcel.

According to Carolyn Kostelny, InSite Managing Director, two other free-standing retail buildings are currently planned for the site — a 15,000-square-foot building adjacent to LA Fitness and a 6,450 SF two-tenant building on an outlot parcel. 

“This location is ideal for serving the high-growth communities of New Lenox, Mokena and Frankfort,” Carolyn Kostelny, managing director for the developer, InSite Real Estate LLC, said in a release. InSite also has plans to develop an adjacent 10-acre retail site. 

“Our central location and excellent access make New Lenox a natural location for regional shopping, entertainment and hospitality,” Robin Ellis, assistant administrator and community development director for the Village of New Lenox, said in a release.

Cooper's Hawk opens in Oak Lawn

Countryside-based Cooper's Hawk Winery and Restaurant opened its eighth Illinois location last month at 4830 W. 111th St. in Oak Lawn's Stony Creek Promenade shopping center.

The chain opened the 11,000-square-foot Oak Lawn location in the shopping center at 111th and Cicero Avenue.

The new restaurant offers indoor and outdoor seating, and a large private dining room that can accommodate up to 275 guests.

Signature dishes at Cooper's Hawk include Ahi Tuna Tacos, Red Wine Braised Short Ribs, Shrimp Campanelle and Ooey Gooey Butter Cake.

It is the chain's 19th location nationwide. It opened its first location in Orland Park in 2005 and has since expanded to Florida, Indiana, Missouri, Ohio, Virginia and Wisconsin.

 “I’m thrilled to be opening our 19th location in Oak Lawn and feel privileged for the opportunity to extend the Cooper’s Hawk community in an area so close to where I grew up,” founder Tim McEnery, a south suburban native, said in a release.

Hours at the Oak Lawn location are from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to  10:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.com.

TigerDirect to close Orland store

TigerDirect is closing its Orland Park store.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Florida-based electronics retailer TigerDirect has announced it will close its Orland Park store in the Orland Park Place plaza as part of a massive restructuring.

The retailer said it would be closing its four Chicago-area stores including Orland, Hoffman Estates, Naperville and Vernon Hills as well as a distribution center next to the Naperville store. The stores are expected to close by May 9, according to layoff notices the company has filed with the state.

The Orland store is a former CompUSA store.

Gordon Brothers Group has been retained to manage the store closing process, which includes inventory sales and real estate. DJM Real Estate, a division of Gordon Brothers Group, has been retained to dispose of 27 TigerDirect stores in the U.S. and Canada. 

Each store has about 40 employees.

The company said it would retain three locations and its online operation would not be affected by the restructuring.

“We appreciate the continued support of our valued customers over the years and hope they take advantage of the significant discounts during these store sales events.  We also encourage our customers to continue to shop tigerdirect.com for future savings and an outstanding assortment of products,” Adam Shaffer, president of TigerDirect Business, said in a release.

Shea's Bakery now open in Tinley Park

Dan Shea has high hopes to continue the baking tradition started decades ago when Hans Zettlmeier  opened a bakery in Tinley Park.

"We do a little bit of everything," said Shea, who along with his wife, Cathy, have been running the bakery at 17016 S. Oak Park Ave. in downtown Tinley Park since taking over in August.

Shea does his baking at night before the shop opens at 5:30 a.m. Then he heads to his day job as an electrician.

"Cathy is there more than I am," he said of his wife and partner, who tends to the day-to-day business of running a bakery despite owning another business, as well.

Shea said they bought the bakery because it was the right deal at the right time. He said they have made a few changes like new items and some tweaking of old items.

"We brought in a baker with 50 years experience to help with the transition," he said. "We expanded the menu and now we're trying to build our cake business."

Some things he left alone.

"We kept all of the employees from when it was Zettlmeier's," he said adding it seems to be paying off.

"A lot of the old customers have been accepting of the changes," he said. "We have had nothing but positive feedback."

The couple live in Green Garden Township with three kids, who sometimes lend a hand at the shop.

"It's a family business," he said.

Shea's Bakery is open from 5:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday to Friday, from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday and from 6 a.m. to noon on Sunday. The bakery is closed on Monday.

For information, call 708- 444-2253 or visit Shea's Bakery on Facebook. He is working on a website.

First Savings of Hegewisch opens branch in Oak Forest

First Savings Bank of Hegewisch has opened a new branch at 4920 W. 159th St. in Oak Forest.

The 3,400-square-foot branch features two drive-up lanes and is adjacent to the community's Metra commuter train station. The building had been home to PNC Bank, which closed in early 2012.

The Oak Forest facility is the bank's 10th full service location. The Chicago-based institution has been expanding its presence in the southwest suburbs and has other branches in Frankfort and Tinley Park.

The bank announced that Holly Bishop would be branch manager of the new Oak Forest office. She had been with the bank’s Tinley Park branch for two years and brings more than 20 years of financial experience to the position.

“This new office will be a convenience for the many of our customers in the area and given this excellent location we look forward to helping many new customers as well,” she said in a release.

First Savings was founded in 1914 in Chicago’s Hegewisch community and remains a locally owned and managed, independent bank.

Lobby hours will be 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, from 9 a.m. to noon on Wednesday, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. Drive-up hours are from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday and from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. The branch is closed on Sunday.

For more information, call the branch at 708-687-5260 or visit First Savings of Hegewisch. 

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.com