Wintrust Business Lunch

Segment 1: Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John Williams to talk about the stock market reaching all-time highs, why he believes the market is fairly priced, what needs to happen to happen for the market to move even higher, when we might see an impact on tariffs, if he expects two […]

Segment 1: Mike Leonard, Executive Vice President, Wintrust Commercial Banking, joins John Williams to talk about Wintrust’s footprint throughout the area, why it’s important to be embedded in neighborhoods, the importance of community involvement, the pride they take in the work they do, and the passion they have about bettering the communities they are in. […]

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute. Three suburban Mariano’s grocery stores will close as part of a plan by parent company Kroger to cut costs and trim operations. 60 locations across the country will close over the next year and a half, including Mariano’s stores in Buffalo […]

Nationally syndicated financial columnist and author Terry Savage joins John Williams to talk about new home sales falling in May, if this means there are buying opportunities, and the latest on Social Security and if you should take benefits earlier. Terry also answers all of your financial questions.

Segment 1: Tom Gimbel, job expert and founder of LaSalle Network, joins John to talk about what you need to know about getting hired in a tough job market. Segment 2: Philippe Weiss, President, Seyfarth at Work, joins John to talk about the benefits of the ‘paint a simple picture’ style of leadership. Segment 3: James Rodriguez, Senior Reporter, […]

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute. Two of the companies that used to be the biggest for online job recruiting and job searching have filed for bankruptcy. CareerBuilder and Monster merged in 2024, and business has been shrinking since the heyday in the 1990’s. It fell off […]

Segment 1: Ilyce Glink, owner of Think Glink Media and Chief Communications Officer and Chief Wellness Officer, Best Money Moves, joins John Williams to talk about selling Best Money Moves and what it means moving forward, the rise of the everyday millionaire, the salary Americans say they now need to earn to live comfortably, Compass suing Zillow over their […]

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute. Berlin Packaging is moving its headquarters from Chicago’s West Loop to the Merchandise Mart. Crain’s says the packaging supplier has signed a lease for the fourth floor of the building. The new location covers 38,554 square feet. It’ll move from 525 […]

Segment 1: Phillip Shaw, CFP, Senior Advisor, Goldstone Financial Group, joins John to talk about the market performance this week, how the conflict between Israel and Iran is impacting the economy, what tariffs might do to the market, how much inflation has come down, if the Fed will cut rates in July, the economy being healthy overall, and […]

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute. One of Chicago’s most well-known gay bars wants to move into O’Hare Airport. Block Club Chicago reports Sidetrack is joining forces with restaurant operator German Gonzalez to bid on a space inside Terminal One. If approved, it would be the first […]

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute. NASCAR is reportedly eyeing another city for an urban street race. The New York Times says NASCAR is nearing a deal for a stock car street race in San Diego and an announcement could come next month. The report comes as […]

Segment 1: Julie Smolyansky, CEO of Lifeway Foods, joins John Williams to talk about National Kefir Day, what they are doing to celebrate 40 years in business, how the company brought Kefir to the United States, the cultural relevancy of Lifeway Kefir, how much the company has grown, the expansion into other products, the health […]

Nationally syndicated financial columnist and author Terry Savage joins John Williams to talk about a new report that shows the Social Security retirement trust fund may be depleted in less than a decade, what needs to be done to fix Social Security, and her thoughts on Fed Chair Powell’s interest rate decision. And as always, Terry answers all […]

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute. Chicago-based Kellanova, the snack company spinoff of Kellogg’s, faces an anti-trust investigation in the European Union. The European Commission, which acts as a watchdog for the 27-country bloc, is concerned about the $36 billion bid by Mars to acquire Kellanova. The […]

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute. There’s a new CEO at Lou Malnati’s. The deep-dish pizza company has hired Julie Younglove-Webb to take the helm. Crain’s reports Younglove-Webb has more than a decade of experience overseeing corporate and restaurant operations, formerly of Auntie Anne’s, Domino’s and Potbelly. […]

Segment 1: Mark Hamrick, Washington Bureau Chief and Senior Economic Analyst for Bankrate.com, joins John to talk about a new survey that shows 65% of Americans think tariffs would be bad for their personal finances. Mark also talks about the resiliency of the market, and the likelihood the Fed keeps interest rates steady. Segment 2: Dennis Rodkin, residential real estate reporter for Crain’s, joins […]

Segment 1: Faron Daugs, CFP, Founder and CEO, Harrison Wallace Financial Group, joins John to talk about the market continuing to weather various storms, the status of President Trump’s tax bill, what we know about Trump’s trade agreements, the consumer feeling pretty good overall, the latest inflation data, and what he expects the Fed to do this […]

Steve Grzanich has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute. Ford has temporarily shut down its south side Chicago factory as it struggles to get rare earth magnet supplies from China. Those components are essential to car production and have been trickling out of China as a result of the trade […]

Ryan Burrow has the business news of the day with the Wintrust Business Minute. This will be a big weekend for conventions and events in Chicago. McCormick Place will host the U.S. Travel Association’s IPW 2025, the largest inbound international travel trade show in the country. Also the HYROX World Championships, a four day sports […]

Segment 1: Tom Fortino, Founder and Principal, Alpha Wealth Group, and host of “The Alpha Wealth Hour” on WGN Radio, joins John to talk about the impact of the Israel-Iran conflict on the U.S. economy, when the Fed will likely cut interest rates, why the market is still holding up despite all of the uncertainty, what […]