The import and export industry is a booming industry. Every year, billions of tons of products pass through every major seaport all around the world. Chicago is the third largest city in the United States and is a busy, industrial and commercial centre. Chicago has been an economic powerhouse of the Midwestern United States that despite the numerous upheavals of the 70s and 80s, has managed to grow and develop at a fast pace. Starting an apparel import business in Chicago requires a lot of research and market analysis. This article will show  you some tips for starting an apparel import business in Chicago:

It will be necessary to do extensive market research and competitive analysis to start an apparel import business in Chicago. Research is required to find out if the products that you choose to import have a market in Chicago and to make certain that there are no restrictions or trade embargos against the country from where you choose to import. Competitive analysis will help improve your range of products as well as giving you a clear idea if you will benefit by choosing a niche to specialize in. you could consult the country’s consulate to get more information about importing from the country of your choice.

It will be necessary to find out all you can about any licenses and permits that are necessary to legally begin operations. It will increase your businesses credibility if you choose to give it a legal structure seeking guidance from an experienced attorney. Select and register an appropriate, unique business name formed in compliance with applicable State laws. Get adequate insurance cover to protect your business.

Draft a business plan carefully and implement it carefully. Business plans are essential assessment tools as well as blueprints of the business operations. They will help convince loan officers to grant your loan required to fund the start up. Make sure you establish good relationship with your bank and find out about Letter Of Credit, which is the most common payment mode of international trade as well as being safe; as the bank will not pay unless goods have been received by you and they satisfy the quality standards expected by you.

Find a good customs broker to assist you with your paper work until you are confident of doing it on your own. You could start the business from your home or lease a commercial retail space, make sure the location and area are appropriate and that the attorney studies the lease agreement before you sign it. There has to be adequate place to display the goods as well as store them. Hire necessary staff and make sure that they are courteous and polite to customers, as happy customers will return to purchase again.

Advertise in the local newspaper, radio and TV using infomercials to improve sales and develop your business. It may work if you give fliers with the local paper and use effective advertisements that convey the right message to the target audience. Consistent ads will surely improve business and sales. You could use the services of the various firms that sell services as well as products to help run a successful business.

Cheesecake is one of the most common and popular desserts in the world today. It is also one of the oldest made from a dairy product other than milk. Cheesecakes can be made of ricotta cheese, havarti, quark, or more usually, cream cheese. Other ingredients such as sugar, eggs, cream and fruit are often mixed in, too. This is the reason why there are so many types of cheesecakes because the number of recipes you can come up with are virtually unlimited. New York cheesecake is cheesecake that is as pure as it gets with no fancy ingredients added either to the cheesecake or placed on top of it. It is made with pure cream cheese, cream, eggs, and sugar. Everybody has his or her own ideas and visions of New York Style Cheesecake. If you ask New Yorkers, only the great cheesecake makers are located in New York, and the only people who really know what a good cheesecake is are also in New York.

In the 1900s, cheesecakes were all the rage in New York. Every restaurant had their special recipe. The actual name “New York Cheesecake” came from the fact that New Yorkers referred to the cheesecakes made in New York as “New York Cheesecake.” If you’re a New Yorker, your motto is that “If it’s not a cheesecake made in New York, then it’s not a cheesecake.” There are probably many who will disagree with that. In 1929, a gentleman by the name of Arnold Reuben, owner of the legendary Turf Restaurant at 49th and Broadway in New York City, claimed that his family developed the first cream -cheese cake recipe. While there is no actual proof that this is true, nobody has stepped forward as of yet to refute that claim. All the other bakeries used cottage cheese. The legend of cream cheese cake goes something like this.

Reuben was served a cheese pie in a private home and he just fell in love with the dessert. He used the recipe for the pie and some ingredients that he provided and began to work on his own recipe for the perfect cream cheese cake. In time, he began to serve this cake at his restaurant at 49th and Broadway. In no time this cheesecake became popular with everyone who went to his restaurant and eventually word of this wonderful dessert spread all over New York. Well, at least that’s what the legend says. But how is it that we were even able to make a cake out of cream cheese? Well, to answer that question you have to go back to the year 1872. American dairymen made an amazing breakthrough that brought about the Modern Age of cheesecakes. In attempting to duplicate the popular Neufchatel cheese of France, they came up with a formula for an un-ripened cheese that was even richer and creamier. They decided on the name, cream cheese. The method for producing cream cheese was actually discovered by William Lawrence of Chester, New York.

It wasn’t until 1880 however, that the biggest manufacturer of cream cheese ever, Kraft, got into the business of producing what was called Philadelphia Brand Cream Cheese for a distributor in New York by the name of Reynolds. In 1912, James Kraft came up with a method to pasteurize cream cheese and soon after that other manufacturers began to make dairy products with this new kind of cream cheese, including cheesecake. Wherever the New York cheesecake recipe came from, and whatever person or family we have to thank for it, it has become a landmark on our culinary landscape and one of the cornerstones of what we now call American cuisine.