Method will open first U.S. manufacturing plant in Chicago

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Click here for the full article on Next City’s website

Excerpt from the article:

Method, the eco-friendly cleaning supply company, is opening its first U.S. manufacturing plant, and residents of Chicago’s South Side can look out for the 150,000-square-foot, LEEDs-certified soap production facility next year.

The San Francisco-based company, which Belgian company Ecover acquired last year, will set up shop in on the site of the old Ryerson steel mill as part of the Pullman Park redevelopment project. Pullman is a 174-acre mixed-use development that will need a zoning change for Method, as it had not initially planned for a factory as part of the project. The developer, Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives, is expected to apply for about $10 million in TIF subsidies, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Ecover will receive $1.1 million in tax credits over the next decade for creating roughly 100 jobs. Overall, the city and state are shelling out roughly one-third of the $30 million for the project, CBS Chicago reported.

Method is jumping into the market at a time when American consumers are more eager for American-made products. Just like the organic food movement before it, many shoppers have begun looking for the stars and stripes on labels when they buy anything from bikes to t-shirts.