A company that helps commercial landlords purchase power for their buildings is significantly expanding the size of its Chicago headquarters as it moves from a low-rise structure into one of the city’s largest office buildings.
Energy CX in January moved into just over 25,000 square feet on the second floor of the sprawling former Montgomery Ward warehouse at 600 W. Chicago Ave. along the Chicago River in a short-term lease, co-CEO Miles Rice told CoStar News.
That is a big step up from about 9,000 square feet that the energy broker previously occupied within a single-story building at 370 N. Carpenter St., where the company moved in late 2023 on a flexible, short-term deal as a transition to further growth.
Energy CX’s deal in that building continued a tradition by Chicago landlord Sterling Bay of using the squat Fulton Market structure, near Google’s 1KFulton building, as short-term space for tenants that want to grow into bigger offices within Sterling Bay’s portfolio. Previous short-term inhabitants of the Carpenter building have included Uber, Glassdoor and Flexport.
But Sterling Bay now has zoning approval to replace the low-rise structure with a 390-unit apartment tower on the site, and the development site went on the market for sale last year.
Meanwhile, Energy CX’s space became too small as the firm added 30 employees in the past year, up to 70 now.
“People were using my office as conference space,” Rice said. “That’s when I knew we needed to move.”
Energy CX plans to grow to 110 employees by the end of this year, he said. The new space can accommodate 225 workers, a capacity the firm expects to reach by the time its lease expires in 2 ½ years, Rice said.
Employees are in the office four days per week, with the option of working from home on Fridays, Rice said.
The company previously had planned to move from Fulton Market to Sterling Bay’s mixed-use Lincoln Yards development farther north along the river. But with that project stalled and Sterling Bay seeking new investors for the sprawling site along Lincoln Park and Bucktown, Energy CX instead worked with the landlord to stay within its portfolio elsewhere.
Energy CX still may wind up at Lincoln Yards in the coming years, Rice said.
“We wanted to stay with Sterling Bay,” Rice said. “We trust them, and we wanted to stay loyal. They’ve taken the time to really get to know us as a smaller tenant. I want to partner with a landlord that’s as innovative and think-big as we are.”
The move to 600 W. Chicago came as Sterling Bay and investment partner J.P. Morgan Chase Investment Management took a big loss on the sale of 600 W. Chicago. Arizona-based investor 3Edgewood bought the approximately 1.6 million-square-foot building last month for just under $88.7 million, a fraction of the $510 million it sold for in 2018.
Department-store giant Montgomery Ward opened the building in 1908 as the Catalog House, a massive warehouse from which mail-in orders were shipped to customers' homes. It was converted into offices in recent years, and tenants now include Echo Global Logistics, Tempus, the Big Ten Network and Jump Trading.
Sterling Bay is maintaining leasing and management of the building under new ownership.
“We got them comfortable that we were staying involved at 600 W. Chicago, and that the upgrades we’ve made and 3Edgewood plans to make will fit the culture of the company,” Sterling Bay broker Austin Lusson said of Energy CX.
Energy CX’s revenue grew 60% in 2024, and the company expects approximately 75% annual growth yearly over the next three years, Rice said.
Sterling Bay is among Energy CX’s clients throughout the country, a list that also includes New York-based Related Cos. and Chicago-based firms Heitman and JDL Development.
The new Energy CX office is designed to emphasize creativity and wellness, Rice said. It includes a 30-foot-long putting green and other games, meditation room, library, nature-inspired room and murals throughout the space designed by local artist Mac Blackout.
For the record
The tenant was represented by JLL broker Clark Evans and Kevin Morgan. The landlord was represented by Sterling Bay broker Austin Lusson.