TransLoop, a technology-enabled freight brokerage, said it will triple the size of its Chicago headquarters and hire more than 100 people to staff it.
The company said it has leased 17,000 square feet at 1 S. Wacker Drive. It has operated from about 5,000 square feet at 343 W. Erie St., said Jordin Wilson, the company’s marketing and brand manager.
Wilson said the hiring, which is underway, will bring the company’s headcount in Chicago to about 150. She said the move to Wacker Drive is expected around Nov. 7.
TransLoop was founded in Chicago in 2019 and has reported fast growth. As a center for the trucking and rail businesses, Chicago has been a hotbed for logistics companies that help shippers fill loads to capacity.
The company said the move to modern space in the center of the business district will help it attract talent. To draw tenants in a market deeply affected by the pandemic, the 1 S. Wacker building has added features such as an indoor-outdoor tenant lounge, a health club and “nap pods.”
CBRE, the real estate firm that represented TransLoop in the lease negotiations, said the deal is typical of a recent trend in the market. It said companies that have relocated are upgrading their space and selecting buildings that are new or have been renovated in the last 5 years.
Wilson said TransLoop is taking space formerly occupied by Gemini, a cryptocurrency exchange. TechCrunch reported Gemini has laid off workers because of turmoil in cryptocurrency trading.
Wilson said TransLoop has about 100 workers. Besides Chicago, it has offices in Nashville, Tennessee; Birmingham, Alabama; Columbus, Ohio; and Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Office vacancy rates downtown rose sharply during the pandemic and many tenants, adjusting to a remote workforce, have reduced their space allotments. But CBRE said downtown vacancy rates for the most modern properties, known as Class A, have declined for three straight quarters to an average of 14.7%.
