When people think of Chicago startup incubators, they often first think of 1871, the tech hub located in the epicenter of the city's business sector—the Merchandise Mart. But off on the West Side is another kind of incubator, which is home to some of Chicago’s growing startups.
The Industrial Council of Nearwest Chicago’s Make City incubator, otherwise just known as ICNC, focuses on giving small manufacturing companies a place to have both an office and a production base for their businesses.
Originally launched in 1967, ICNC has transformed through the years and now spans across four buildings in West Town. It has about 550 people across 110 companies working out of it, said Steve DeBretto, the incubator’s executive director.
Food and beverage companies make up the majority of ICNC’s tenants, followed by apparel, cosmetic and beauty product businesses. ICNC startups include food companies like Farmer’s Fridge and Elements Bars, as well as hair product makers, such as CurlMix and TGIN.
“This is a place for modern, urban manufacturing,” DeBretto said. “These are small, nimble companies that are either manufacturing, assembling or moving physical product.”
ICNC isn't the only manufacturing incubator in Chicago. mHUB, also located on the West Side, helps physical product entrepreneurs but differs from ICNC in that it's aimed at startups building prototypes of products that are manufactured elsewhere.
Meanwhile at ICNC, startups are sourcing materials, building products and manufacturing them at scale at the facility, which allows ICNC companies to offer jobs to a multitude of jobseekers, not just those with STEM degrees.
“Our challenge is accommodating development or investment in a way that doesn’t push out the kinds of businesses that pay a living-wage to Chicagoans of diverse backgrounds and levels of education,” DeBretto said.
Unlike some other incubators that mainly leave hiring up to their tenant companies, ICNC takes a hands-on approach, helping to match open jobs with people from the community, particularly those residing in the city’s west side neighborhoods.
“We will call a network of local, social service organizations and say, ‘Who’s ready to go in front of an employer tomorrow?’” DeBretto said.
Besides providing work spaces and talent pipelines, ICNC offers mentorship programs, business consulting and technical support, like many other incubators. DeBretto said companies usually stay at ICNC for about three to five years before they outgrow it.
As the neighborhood has become increasingly popular for developers building new residential high rises and corporate companies looking for office space, DeBretto said ICNC’s challenge is making sure their offerings remain affordable for budding businesses. ICNC currently charges its tenants $9 to $12 per square foot.
The incubator is also the co-founder and co-owner of The Hatchery, a food and beverage incubator in East Garfield Park that opened in December. It offers 54 private, production-ready kitchens to new food businesses. Later this year, DeBretto said The Hatchery is launching a culinary program with Chicago chef Rick Bayless, who will mentor aspiring chefs from 16 to 24 years old.
“We’re pretty excited about that,” DeBretto said. “It’s going to be fun.”
