Popular business review site Yelp will open its new Chicago office in the city's Merchandise Mart Thursday.
Yelp announced plans to bring its new 60,000-square foot office to the Merchandise Mart last summer and said the company hopes to hire up to 400 people, mostly for sales positions.
"Yelp is an exciting company that has become globally recognized for supporting local business, the backbone of Chicago's economy, and we welcome them to the city," Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in a statement.
Yelp chose Merchandise Mart because its location -- given the proximity near the CTA train and the Chicago River -- may be good for commuters, local businesses and restaurants.
The San Francisco-based company currently has offices in New York; London; Hamburg, Germany; Scottsdale, Ariz.; and Dublin, Ireland. Merchandise Mart also houses other tech companies like 1871 and Razorfish.
"Chicago’s history as a leader in innovation and supporter of small business and tech industry growth fits seamlessly with Yelp’s initiatives, and we are excited to build a home here with Yelp’s seventh office,” Jeremy Stoppelman, Yelp's co-founder and CEO, said in a statement.
The company had a monthly average of 138 million unique visitors in the 2014 second quarter.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced Thursday that Yelp has also partnered with Skills for Chicagoland's Future to find new employees for the Chicago location.
“Yelp is a globally-recognized company and their decision to open a new Chicago office, creating hundreds of new jobs, speaks to the talent we have today and the economic future we are building for tomorrow,” Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in a statement.
