Chase Bets on Magnificent Mile With Two-Story Banking Hub

North Michigan Avenue’s slow motion reset is getting a glossy new tenant — with a vault.

JPMorgan Chase is planting a two-story Chase and JP Morgan banking center in a former Uniqlo store across from the Water Tower, doubling down on the Magnificent Mile. The 11,000-square-foot space at 830 North Michigan Avenue is slated to open next fall, according to the Chicago Tribune. The ground floor will house a standard Chase branch, while the second level will launch Chicago’s first JP Morgan Financial Center, a high-touch concept aimed squarely at customers with at least $1 million in net worth.

Chase is consolidating to make the move work. When the new site opens, the bank will shutter nearby branches at 605 North Michigan Avenue and 875 North Michigan Avenue in the former John Hancock Center, folding those operations into the new flagship. Executives said the closures won’t happen until the new branch is up and running.

The Michigan Avenue outpost will be one of only three co-located Chase and JP Morgan banking centers in the country, with the others in California. The JP Morgan Financial Center model launched last year in New York and San Francisco and has since grown to about 20 locations nationwide, with another 10 planned next year.

JPMorgan’s concept is to pursue what it sees as a fast growing,but underserved slice of the wealth market: households worth between $1 million and $5 million, the outlet reported. The offering sits above Chase Private Client, which targets customers with $150,000 to $1 million, and comes with dedicated advisers and broader access to investment and lending services.

The move also highlights a trend in how big banks use brick and mortar, the publication reported. JPMorgan has pared back its Chicago area branch count by nearly 30 percent since 2015, even as it keeps investing in higher-profile, experience driven locations. The Michigan Avenue buildout will feature upscale finishes, private meeting rooms and what executives describe as a more “club-like” feel than a traditional branch.

The deal is another data point in the Magnificent Mile’s uneven real estate comeback. Uniqlo exited the space in 2021 as pandemic-era vacancies piled up, joining Gap and Macy’s among the notable departures, but it plans to return to the corridor next year. Since then, the corridor has leaned into experiential and nontraditional retail, from the Museum of Ice Cream at Tribune Tower to Hotel Chocolat’s new U.S. flagship next door.

— Eric Weilbacher