FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Holiday Artisan and Small Business Popup at Urbanspace Chicago Food Hall

Collaboration aligns with seasonal retail festivities bolstering Loop and State Street shopping
Chicago – Urbanspace Chicago, a food hall located at 15 W. Washington St., is collaborating
with handmade goods artisans and microbusinesses for a holiday gifts popup. In addition to
enjoying multicultural culinary offerings, diners will have the opportunity to explore uniquely-
crafted gift items for a bit of one-stop shopping, starting Thursday, Nov. 17, from 11 am-6 pm.

The Urbanspace Chicago holiday popup will continue for four weeks, culminating on Friday,
Dec. 16. Following the Nov. 17 soft launch, vendors will be on site from 11 am-6 pm, Tuesday
through Friday, as well as on Small Business Saturday (Nov. 26).

“Come grab a falafel, lobster roll or a savory plant-based dish and shop for fun gifts in one fell
swoop,” said Kate Meyers, Urbanspace Chicago director of leasing and curation. “Our vendors
will have handmade jewelry, homewares, books for kids and adults, games, puzzles, and more.”

Urbanspace Chicago opened last year in September, just months ahead of the holiday season.
Headquartered in New York City, Urbanspace has its genesis in popup markets having served as
producer of the city’s most iconic outdoor food and holiday markets for over 25 years.

“We have the maker and small business community in our DNA,” Meyers said. “They have played a big part in the company’s history, dating back to our origins in London in the 1970s. Hosting a small collective of guest vendors from that community here in Chicago is truly reconnecting with our roots.”

The Loop, State Street shopping district and surrounding areas will be aglow with festivities and
shopping opportunities aligning traditional retail with small makers and microbusinesses,
including the Urbanspace Chicago holiday collective, the Chicago Loop Alliance Holiday Market
(in the former Designer Shoe Warehouse location), and the annual Christkindlemarket at Daley
Plaza.

“It’s fun to do something different with our space in this season of celebration, including
supporting the city’s emerging businesses,” Meyers said. “Micro and handmade businesses of
today can scale to become the retail storefront businesses of tomorrow, perhaps right here in
the Loop and State Street shopping district. We ourselves scaled from similar humble
beginnings—outdoor markets in London.”

Urbanspace Chicago’s line-up of restaurants also features small businesses, including Happy
Lobster, Bhoomi Modern Indian Grill, Plant Junkie, Sushi Dokku, Spanglish and others. 

The holiday popup will feature two main vendors: Jean Williams Studio (jewelry and
homewares) and Bookish Chicago (books, games, and puzzles), and a rotating assortment of
others.

“I am a regular customer at Urbanspace Chicago, and I dig its eclectic vibe,” said Jean Williams
of Jean Williams Studio. “It’s not just in the great food choices but in the mood and convivial
energy I sense every time I’m there. It felt natural to approach them about a holiday vendor
popup collective, and it was a serendipitous as they were already like-minded on the topic and
in discussions to make it happen.”

“Popups are our business model,” said Tara Baldridge of Bookish Chicago. “Presenting our
diverse selection of books and toys at Urbanspace is a match made in holiday heaven.” 

Bookish Chicago co-owner Angela Sherrill adds, “Our specialty is listening and matching books
with readers, and being able to connect with customers for book gift-giving at Urbanspace is
directly in line with our mission.”

For more information about Urbanspace Chicago and its holiday popup, contact Juliana
Pesavento at 847-910-7416, or juliana@middlenamecommunications.com.

To learn more about Urbanspace, visit https://www.urbanspacenyc.com.

Also see: Instagram: @urbanspacechi