From cherished local restaurants and beloved bars to long-running antique stores and historic movie theatres, when something closes in Chicago the city unites in mourning the loss of a once well-loved establishment.
Heck, even the Chicago Rat Hole’s recent transition to Chicago folklore has had people up in arms.
Now another beloved spot will soon bite the dust after Bloomer Chocolate Company announced the imminent closure of its Chicago factory.
Long affiliated with the sweet scents of chocolate that spew from its Kinzie Street location and emanate through the West Loop, the factory first opened back in 1939 as the original manufacturing plant of the Blommer group.
The 5.5-acre facility will now close this coming May after 85 years of operating out of Chicago affecting some 250 jobs.
Blommer cited increasing costs of maintaining the building and “production reliability issues” for its closure while revealing that the company will instead invest $100 million in expanding other production facilities in Canada, Pennsylvania, and California.
“As Blommer continues to evolve their business strategy to provide our customers with great products at a great value, the decision has been made to close the Chicago manufacturing facility” reads a press release at www.blommer.com.
“It was an incredibly challenging yet inevitable decision to close the Chicago plant,” said Mark Okita, Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice President of Commercial at Blommer. “However, in order to propel Blommer to the next level, we must embrace progress, transformation, and elevation. This marks a new chapter for us as Blommer, as well as our customers.”
Though the company may be ceasing its production operations in Chicago, its headquarters will remain at Merchandise Mart and Blommer will soon open a new research and development center.
The new center is expected to open this coming fall and will explore concept testing, processing, and ingredients research, according to officials.
There is no word for now on what will happen to the 5.5-acre site at 600 W. Kinzie St once Blommer has vacated it.