Skokie Beverage Business Bags First Round Of 'Made In Illinois' Grants

SKOKIE, IL — A local business is one of the first recipients of a new grant program for small and medium manufacturers in Illinois.

Boombox Beverage has been awarded a $47,420 matching grant as part of the Made In Illinois Grant program.

The Skokie-based nonalcoholic drinkmaker is one of 40 Illinois manufacturers selected by state officials to receive a total of $1.7 million in grant funding.

After beginning in 2019 at the Hatchery business incubator in Chicago, Boombox Beverage moved into its current, 18,000-square-foot facility at 7415 St. Louis Ave. in 2020, according to founder and CEO Paul Seeman.

"We love being part of the Skokie community," Seeman told Patch. "It's a great place to be, for sure."

Boombox has 15 employees and primarily makes coffee and tea lattes, with clients ranging from private labels to launching national brands, according to Seeman. The CEO said non-disclosure agreement prevented him from disclosing the number or names of its clients.

The Made In Illinois Grant program is funded through the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity, or DCEO, and implemented by the Illinois Manufacturing Excellence Center, or IMEC.

"Illinois is a globally recognized manufacturing leader," DCEO Director Kristin Richards said in a statement, "and small and medium-sized manufacturers are a critical part of our state's manufacturing sector and economy."

The program was initially allocated $1 million, but an additional $700,000 in funding was added in response to "resounding interest," according to the office of Gov. J.B. Pritzker. Applications in February and closed at the end of March.

Pritzker said Illinois manufacturing industry is growing faster than ever. He credited the IMEC with helping manufacturers expand in the state.

"This is possible because of a talented local workforce and the coordination of state and local officials creating policies that result in job creation and growth," Pritzker said, announcing the program.

Grant recipients plan to use the money to acquire machinery, work on late-stage product testing and scale their businesses.

According to the governor's office, the grant program promotes the integration of new technology to keep innovating while effectively managing costs.

Grantees are set to invest in automation to enhance product quality, use new technologies to train workers, gain a competitive edge by adopting advanced technologies, improve their adaptability to shifts in the market and reduce their operational risks.

Another recipient of the first round of Made In Illinois grants, Kurt Wagner, CEO of Wagner Machine in Champaign, said in a statement that it can be costly to stay current in the rapidly evolving business of manufacturing.

"Over the past five years, there's been significant investment in new equipment. Automating processes has been a critical strategic move and seeking assistance has proved highly advantageous during this transition period," Wagner said. "Automation has enabled the workforce to focus on higher-value tasks, enhancing efficiency, and quality improvements. This has led to continued job creation and an increase in machinist wages."