Guaranteed Rate wins naming rights for Chicago White Sox’s field
Chicago’s South Side baseball stadium is getting a new name. Mortgage lender Guaranteed Rate acquired naming rights to what is currently known as U.S. Cellular Field. The name will change to Guaranteed Rate Field on Nov. 1 and is part of a 13-year deal that also makes Guaranteed Rate the official mortgage and title company of the White Sox. [Press release]
1871 launches incubator with the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
1871 and the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce are teaming up to help more Hispanic-owned technology companies succeed. A new incubator housed at the entrepreneur center will host around 12 Hispanic- and Latinx-owned technology companies, with educational programming, technical support and access to mentors. 1871’s Manny Ozaeta, formerly the director of membership, will lead the incubator program. [Press release]
Y Combinator brings 3 new Chicago startups into its portfolio
Three Chicago companies are joining the latest cohort at Y Combinator. Airfordable lets customers pay a small up-front fee for airline tickets, then lets them pay for the rest of the ticket over time in smaller payments. The Athletic is a hyperlocal sports media company that operates on a monthly subscription. OneChronos is shaking up the trading world by moving away from algorithms to make trading more accessible. [Built In Chicago]
Cooked acquires Chefmade amid Chicago's food delivery market shakeup
Food-delivery startup Cooked has acquired Chefmade. Both companies deliver pre-made organic, health-conscious meals at the beginning of the week that customers can heat up when they’re hungry. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Chefmade CEO Sarah Arel will stay on as Cooked’s director of creative growth. [Built In Chicago]
4C announces Anupam Gupta as Chief Product Officer
Data science and media company 4C is expanding its executive team, adding Anupam Gupta as chief product officer. As CPO, he’ll build new products on top of the company’s extensive data sets. In his previous leadership roles at Vubiquity and Mixpo, he helped push the envelope with new product strategies to expand business. The addition is part of a series of hires 4C has made in recent months, including a chief revenue officer added last month. [Press release]
Supply chain tech supplier project44 plans to double staff
Project44, a Chicago-based supply chain tech provider, plans to double staff and move into a new office to support a growing product roadmap. The company recently added a chief architect and senior vice president of global sales, and plans to move into a new Loop office later this year. [Press release]
ZipFit Denim adds women’s line
ZipFit Denim helps men find the perfect pair of jeans in a market where sizes and fits can be overwhelming to say the least. Now, they’ve expanded to women’s denim and shorts. The program is now available by appointment at their Chicago shop, and will be coming to online shoppers later this year. [Press release]
Signal announces advisory board led by Tim Suther
Marketing expert Tim Suther will head up a new advisory board for real-time marketer Signal. The board will help shape long-term goals and product planning as the market evolves. Suther previously served as a JPMorgan Chase managing director, and held the chief marketing and strategy officer position at Acxiom. [Press release]
Chance the Rapper launches online platform to get indie music on the radio
Chicago’s Chance the Rapper famously eschewed major labels for his acclaimed hip hop records. His latest project wants to help other artists who’ve staying independent get the same reach as major label acts. Rapper Radio lets fans request songs from indie artists to be played on radio stations across the country. While the requests are just tweets, Chance hopes that a critical mass will convince local rap stations to spin a few more non-mainstream songs. [Chicago Inno]
Nation’s first hempseed exchange gets approval to start in Chicago
SeedCX is bringing hemp seeds to the commodities market. The company will allow investors buy and sell contracts for industrial hemp seeds in the same way they can trade corn, gold or energy commodities for the first time in the U.S. SeedCX got regulatory approval this week and plans to start trading this fall. [Built In Chicago]
Images via Shutterstock, featured companies, LinkedIn, Creative Commons/CRZ-E
Have news to share? Send us a tip or tweet us @BuiltInChicago
