A growing hub of Bronzeville small businesses thrives on an unorthodox retail model: shipping containers. Located off the CTA Green Line station on East 51st Street, Boxville has provided entrepreneurs with space and community support to help cultivate their businesses.
Seventeen shipping containers, which represents enough space to host 20 small businesses, are currently available for commercial use at Boxville.
The utility of shipping containers as a retail space was realized in 2014 with the opening of a bike sales and repair shop, Bronzeville Bike Box, which operated out of a single shipping container. Success quickly followed, and there was a community outpour for more shipping container businesses. In 2017, Boxville was officially born, with four shipping containers and 15 recruited local businesses. While Bronzeville Bike Box no longer provides services, there is a diverse array of stores, ranging from Little Squeeze Lemonade, which sells freshly squeezed bottled lemonade, to Da Book Joint, a book store spotlighting Black authors.
Will Jamison is the founder and co-owner of The Work Spot, which sells custom print apparel, where they use various methods to print logos and designs on premium cotton and polyester t-shirts. As a founding business of Boxville, Jamison’s enterprise opened as part of a “makerspace” for creators to collaborate and hold workshops.
“Prior to working [at Boxville], I was printing out of the basement of my house,” Jamison said. “I was able to fulfill the needs of the makerspace but also start my own business of printing apparel.”
Working from a shipping container is only the beginning for Jamison’s printing business. He seeks to move into a 2000-square-foot warehouse and expand into other locations in the city.
Aside from the creative and financial opportunities of the container lot, Boxville seeks to revitalize the legacy of Bronzeville by uplifting and supporting Black-owned businesses. Resulting from an influx of Black Americans to Chicago during the Great Migration in the early 20th century, Bronzeville has represented the intellectual and artistic contributions of the Chicago Black community. Boxville is part of a recent initiative “Build Bronzeville,” a five-pronged approach to reinvigorating the community. Other initiatives in place include turning Bronzeville Cookin’, a culinary launchpad, and The Forum, a historic retail complex, into permanent brick-and-mortar stores.
“The Work Spot” hopes to similarly contribute to revitalization by opening a school for those interested in creative design. Consistent with his original goal, Jamison hopes to build a creative hub for students to learn printing, designing, branding, and synthesizing these skills towards entrepreneurship. Using the momentum gained from face-to-face interactions with the community, Jamison is optimistic for both his company and the community.
As a longtime resident, Jamison saw firsthand the transformation of Bronzeville. “Businesses like us are able to thrive off the new neighborhoods, and small businesses taking their work seriously can really benefit from what’s happening now.”
