From Michelin Stars to Italian Beef: Where to Eat in Chicago

©iStock/Anthony Mance

The New York Times staff at the food desk, food journalists and a Chicago restaurant critic scouted Chicago's vast food scene, from renowned Italian beefs to tavern-style pizza to Michelin-starred tasting menus. (And they want your comments.)

Some favorite restaurants in Chicago.

From Bootstrapping to Scaling: What It Really Takes to Build a Brand From the Ground Up (wegginar® 10/7/26)

©2026 Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global®.  All rights reserved.

Every founder dreams of scale. Few talk honestly about what it demands behind the scenes: the margin math, the customer acquisition costs that creep up overnight, the inventory decisions that can make or break a quarter.

That's exactly why I'm excited about our next wegginar.

Meet Isabel De Sousa, founder of Akalia

Isabel launched Akalia, a fashion and lifestyle brand, as a self-funded venture. Today it's an established e-commerce and retail business. Along the way, she has worked through nearly every stage of building and running a product-based brand, and she's ready to share what she learned.

What you'll learn

• How to take a fashion or product idea from concept to a functioning, revenue-generating business
• How to build a diversified sales strategy across your own e-commerce store, retail, social commerce, and platforms
• How to work effectively with influencers and creators, including gifting, affiliate commissions, margins, and partnerships that can actually drive sales
• How to think about profitability when scaling
• How to stay adaptable as a founder

If you're selling a product, or planning to take one global, this session will give you a clear-eyed view of the operational realities that separate brands that scale from those that stall.

Event details

📅 Wednesday, October 7, 2026

🕚 11:00 AM CT (one hour)

🎤 "From Bootstrapping to Scaling: Building a Brand From the Ground Up"

Registration is free, thanks to the generous sponsors of Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global®, but you must register to get access.

👉 Register here: https://womenentrepreneursgrowglobal.org/2026/09/02/from-bootstrapping-to-scaling-building-a-brand-from-the-ground-up/

Join the wegg® team and our community of raving fans for an hour of real-world lessons you can put to work right away.

I'll [Laurel Delaney, founder of Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global] see you there!

Today in Global Small Business: Learn How to Export

©2026 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Learn how to export.  And wait, there's more.
• Your roadmap to international success in 2026.  And wait, there's still more 😉 !
• Register for the Global Small Business Forum 10/23 at 9:00 AM CT to learn about AI-powered exports and ecommerce. Discover how to create extra value at your global small business (free of charge). Sign up here. I [Laurel Delaney] will be there!
• Quote of the week:  "Exporting is imperative." – Laurel J. Delaney, founder of Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global and author of Exporting:  The Definitive Guide To Selling Abroad Profitably
• A beginner's guide to exporting.
• Export readiness starts here (food and agricultural-related).
• The bible on exporting.

Note:  The Global Small Business Blog has been in operation since 2004 and is ranked number one in the world for entrepreneurs and small businesses interested in going global.  As of May, 2026, we average between 700,000-900,000 readers a month.  Thank you for your engagement!    

Friendliest Flower

©2026 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"Don't you think daisies are the friendliest flower?" – Kathleen Kelly, from the film You've Got Mail

Make China Great Again (MCGA)

©iStock/rudall30

President Trump is hosting China's President Xi Jinping at the White House for a summit featuring three hours of meetings and elaborate ceremony, yet it may yield little progress on the issues dividing the two countries. 

On one side stands MAGA (Make America Great Again); on the other, what might be called MCGA (Make China Great Again), two rival national ambitions competing in the most cordial of manners.

Is the Federal Government Limiting Growth Opportunities for Genuine Small Businesses?

©iStock/boggy22

Small businesses are used to competing against larger companies. They do it every day. But they should not have to compete against those same companies for contracts specifically intended for small businesses.

That could happen under a new rule proposed by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The proposal would significantly change the standards used to determine which companies qualify as small businesses. In many industries, companies considered mid-sized today would become small businesses tomorrow.

Is the federal government inadvertently limiting growth opportunities for genuine small businesses?

Innovation Without Limits

©iStock/KanawatTH

In Michigan, 75-year-old General Fasteners has watched its business grow rapidly, covering more ground in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Now branded as GF, the company needed to update its cybersecurity infrastructure to fit its new global footprint and stay ahead of modern threats; ultimately, it adopted platformization as a long-term, scalable solution. 

How to adopt a growth mindset and purposefully choose the right mix of solutions to meet our customer's needs – now and for the future – and unlock innovation.  Discover innovation without limits.

Who Is Writing the Rules on AI?

©iStock/nicoletaionescu

Who is writing the rules on AI?

With President Trump downplaying the risk of AI spiraling out of control, Times Opinion asked six people – including a tech founder, a former OpenAI board member, a former national security adviser, and a constitutional lawyer – to fill the gap.

Here's what they proposed.

Note:  The Global Small Business Blog has been in operation since 2004 and is ranked number one in the world for entrepreneurs and small businesses interested in going global.  As of May, 2026, we average between 700,000-900,000 readers a month.  Thank you for your engagement!

Today in Global Small Business: TradeStats Express by State (USA)

©iStock/chuanchai

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Explore trade by state, partner, and products – TradeStats Express. 
• International Trade (U.S. Census Bureau) is the official source for U.S. export and import statistics and responsible for issuing regulations governing the reporting of all export shipments from the United States.
• Register for the Global Small Business Forum 10/23 at 9:00 AM CT to learn about AI-powered exports and ecommerce. Discover how to create extra value at your global small business (free of charge). Sign up here. I [Laurel Delaney] will be there!
• Quote of the week:  "The global trading system is in the midst of the most severe period of disruption in 80 years, according to WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
• Navigate the economics of AI (Deloitte).
• U.S. pressures Mexico to box out China’s AI hardware exports.

Note:  The Global Small Business Blog has been in operation since 2004 and is ranked number one in the world for entrepreneurs and small businesses interested in going global.  As of May, 2026, we average between 700,000-900,000 readers a month.  Thank you for your engagement!     

Goodwill Cannot Undersell or Destroy

©2026 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"Goodwill is the only asset that competition cannot undersell or destroy." – Marshall Field

Living Her Best Life

©iStock/Elena Zolotova

Forever Twiggy.  The face of London in the 1960s is living her best life at the age of 77.  

The World's Oldest Hotel

©iStock/takafumi99

In 2011, the Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan (Japanese: 西山温泉慶雲館) was recognized by Guinness World Records as the oldest hotel in the world despite the hotel facilities on site being only a few decades old.

Keiunkan lies at the foot of the Akaishi Mountains. Since its founding, the onsen has had all its hot water sourced directly from the local Hakuho Springs.

Efficiency Over Scale

©iStock/Sandwish

In 2026, SMEs are prioritizing efficiency over scale. Growth is no longer about expanding as quickly as possible, it's about expanding intelligently.

Read how SMEs are planning for growth in 2026 (despite uncertainty).

Anthropic Co-Founder and CEO Dario Amodei: We Must Pace the Frontier

©iStock/Andrey Suslov

On Saturday, September 12, 2026, Anthropic co-founder and CEO Dario Amodei published a major 3,800-word essay titled "We Must Pace the Frontier." In the post, he explicitly called for the artificial intelligence (AI)  industry to deliberately slow down the pace of improving AI model capabilities so that safety measures have time to catch up. 

Today in Global Small Business: wegg® Young Professional Board (YPB) Event at Uvae in Chicago 9/23/26

©2026 Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global®.  All rights reserved.

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Join the wegg® Young Professional Board event on Wednesday, September 23 at 6 PM CT in Chicago.  To learn more and to buy a ticket, visit: https://womenentrepreneursgrowglobal.org/about/young-professional-board/  
• "What-me-worry?" says Trump about AI.  Government paralysis.
• No, we aren’t doomed [on AI], but the models are advancing more quickly than our understanding of them.
• Quote of the week: “AI isn't the solution to everything, but even amidst this challenging environment, I hope our community can hold together... [T]axing imports of solar panels, wind turbines, and other power-generation and -distribution equipment will diminish the ability to provide power to U.S. data centers," wrote AI expert Andrew Ng regarding how infrastructure tariffs threaten AI progress.
• Tax planning essentials for small businesses entering global markets.
• How SMEs are navigating growth, tariffs and AI (DHL findings).

Note:  The Global Small Business Blog has been in operation since 2004 and is ranked number one in the world for entrepreneurs and small businesses interested in going global.  As of May, 2026, we average between 700,000-900,000 readers a month.  Thank you for your engagement!     

Life Finds a Way

©2026 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"Life finds a way" originates from the character Dr. Ian Malcolm in Michael Crichton's novel Jurassic Park and its 1993 film adaptation.

Reflecting on 9/11

Surprise and Shine: Apple's New iPhone Duo

©2026 Laurel Delaney.  All rights reserved.

A new era unfolded at Apple on Wednesday with its new CEO unveiling an iPhone the size of a passport that, well, folds.

The device, called iPhone Duo, represents the most radical physical change to the iconic iPhone since Apple introduced the minimalist glass slab to the world nearly 20 years ago, kicking off the smartphone era.

The iPhone Duo opens like a book, with a 5.4-inch outer screen when folded, and a 7.6-inch internal screen when unfolded. It will start at $1,999 — $700 more than the entry-level iPhone 18 Pro, which the company also announced on Wednesday, September 9, 2026. It will be available starting October 23.

Read the full story here.

wegg® Young Professional Board (YPB) Uvae Event 9/23 in Chicago!

©2026 Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global®.  All rights reserved.

Hit those drums! 🥁 Today Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global® (wegg®) officially launched its new wegg® Young Professional Board – and their first official program under their watch. 

The wegg YPB helps build wegg®'s brand awareness through advocacy, fundraising, event planning, and networking in support of wegg's mission.

Join Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global® on September 23rd, 6–8 PM CT, for a cozy evening in Andersonville at Uvae Kitchen and Wine Bar – one of Chicago's most beloved wine destinations. Enjoy networking, wine, and delicious bites (cheese & charcuterie to mini lobster cakes and meatballs), plus a conversation with Uvae owner, sommelier, and entrepreneur Lindsey Anderson-Perez.

Proceeds benefit wegg®'s mission to help women business owners expand their enterprises internationally. Event is powered by Wintrust Bank Chicago

Event Co-Chairs: Isabella Kifer and Alexandria Kifer

Learn more and register:

https://womenentrepreneursgrowglobal.org/about/young-professional-board/ (scroll to the bottom to see all YPB members)

Only 30 seats available – register early to reserve your spot. I [Laurel Delaney] will see you there!

The World Trade Center Today Is Now a Part of Daily Life

©iStock/Jehan-Jehan

25 years after the September 11th attacks, lower Manhattan is thriving.  Its population has tripled while media and tech firms have moved in, making the Financial District the envy of other U.S. downtowns.

In 2001, lower Manhattan was shattered. The Sept. 11 terrorist attacks killed close to 3,000 people and reduced the World Trade Center to rubble. The Twin Towers’ shocking collapse inflicted such trauma that many wondered if the Financial District could ever recover.

Now we approach the 25th anniversary of this tragic event.  The World Trade Center today is now a part of daily life.

Today in Global Small Business: Reset on Labor Day 2026

©iStock/Rowr

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Labor Day was built so you can rest.  Why don't you?  Have a good one everyone 😊!
• Treat yourself to a spa on Labor Day 2026.
• Get out from your mobile screen and start connecting with your loved ones this Labor Day 2026.
• Quote of the week:  Gloria Steinem does not have a specific quote dedicated directly to the holiday of Labor Day, but her life's work focused heavily on redefining labor, challenging workplace inequality, and recognizing invisible work.  After her death on 9/2/26, may she finally RIP.
• The end of summer can bring new ideas to your business.
• This Labor Day, take inspiration from the holiday’s original meaning and inject fun with celebration ideas just right for the office.

Note:  The Global Small Business Blog has been in operation since 2004 and is ranked number one in the world for entrepreneurs and small businesses interested in going global.  As of May, 2026, we average between 700,000-900,000 readers a month.  Thank you for your engagement!     

I Love the Region Around Lake Geneva

©2026 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"I love the region around Lake Geneva. The landscape is beautiful, very peaceful, and such a nice place to relax and spend time outdoors. It's always a pleasure to come back home." – Stan Wawrinka

Fierce Feminist Gloria Steinem Dies at 92

©iStock/klyaksun

Gloria Steinem was the personification of the feminist movement, an American journalist and a social movement activist.  She died Thursday, September 3, 2026 at 92.

Learn about the life she lived here.

The US Dollar's Status As the World's Reserve Currency

©iStock/breeze393

Is the world giving up on the US dollar?  America’s national debt recently hit a new milestone of $40 trillion. It is estimated that interest payments on the national debt are now the second largest expense in the US government budget, trailing only social security. 

How was the US able to borrow so much and for so long? 

One answer, according Harvard economist Kenneth Rogoff, is the US dollar’s status as the world’s reserve currency.

A Global Sell-Off in Government Bonds Pushes Borrowing Costs in Some of the World's Largest Economies

©iStock/Tatsuya Ozaki

A global sell-off in government bonds intensified on Tuesday (9/1/26), pushing borrowing costs in some of the world’s largest economies to the highest levels in decades. The moves threaten to ripple through a wide range of debt, including business loans and mortgages for already-stretched consumers.

A combination of factors are prompting investors to demand higher returns to hold government debt: a flood of borrowing by the world’s richest nations, expanding budget deficits, persistent inflation and few signs that countries are able or willing to take steps to improve these conditions.

Read the entire article here.

Growing Global Markets for Women’s Handmade Craft With Susan Hull Walker (9/2/26)

©2026 Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global®.  All rights reserved.

Have you ever wondered how to build a global brand without sacrificing authenticity; why purpose-driven businesses have a competitive advantage; and the importance of trust-based partnerships in global business?

Then this is the wegginar® for you.

Susan Hull Walker, Founder and Creative Director, Ibu Movement, will present, "Growing Global Markets for Women’s Handmade Craft," and will discuss all of the above and more.  

To learn more and to register free of charge thanks to wegg's sponsors, visit: https://womenentrepreneursgrowglobal.org/2026/08/18/growing-global-markets-for-womens-handmade-craft/.

Discover practical strategies for scaling a mission-led business and how women entrepreneurs are reshaping the future of luxury.