Sara Lee Corp announced earlier this year that it will split into two separate pure-play companies in the first half of calendar year 2012, an International Coffee and Tea business and a North American Meats company. Names for the two companies will be unveiled at a later date.
At the new headquarters, the company will locate at least 500 jobs, and up to 650 total jobs.
Jan Bennink, executive chairman, Sara Lee Corp, said: “Today, we strengthen our long relationship with our hometown, the city of Chicago. This move will put our new company’s headquarters in the heart of one of the world’s business capitals and will be one of the key elements of building our more nimble, creative and innovative culture.”
The new facility will have high sustainability standards, with LEED certification. The company is investing significant money into its headquarters, and will promote significant additional revenue for the city through sales and hotel taxes.
There is hope on the part of Sara Lee that this effort will form a new industry cluster, centred on food-related companies. The company plans to work with the city of Chicago to encourage other food-related companies to relocate to Chicago, from around the surrounding area and throughout the nation.
Source: Sara Lee Corp
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024