CHICAGO, IL – Peapod joins major companies Kraft Heinz, Hillshire Brands, and McDonald’s in an exodus from the suburbs to the city. According to a Crain’s report, the online grocery delivery company announced today that it is moving its headquarters to downtown Chicago. The company is looking into occupying one full floor of a recently renovated 1.1 million-square-foot building along the Chicago River.

“Since Peapod was founded in Chicago in 1989 as the country’s first online grocer, we have always considered this city our home,” said Walt Lentz, President, in a statement. “Moving our headquarters downtown will allow us to become a bigger part of the Chicago business community and invest in the city’s diverse pool of talent while also growing our business throughout the country.”

Since being vacated by multiple companies over the past couple of years, the current owners – a group led by investors Joseph Mizrachi and David Werner – have put millions of dollars into renovating Peapod’s potential new home base with a new lobby, outdoor lounge, winter garden, and fitness center. This move could also make Peapod a neighbor of Amazon’s, who is also looking nearby as a possible destination for its second headquarters.

Between its Chicago area headquarters, Peapod has around 300 corporate workers, and Crain’s reports a Peapod executive affirming that the company would be consolidating its corporate workforce into one big office in the city in a move designed to attract and retain talent.

Will Peapod's move reap benefits for the online grocer? AndNowUKnow will continue to report.

Peapod