FORMER TARGET SITE TO BECOME DISCOVER CUSTOMER CARE CENTER
Juatise Gathings is the regional operations manager for Discover. She will be the manager of Discover’s new customer care center located in Chatham. Photo provided by Jessica Bee
Discover will turn the former site of Target, located at 86th and Cottage Grove, into a 100,000 square foot customer care center. It is expected to bring around 1,000 full time jobs to the
community by 2024.
Juatise Gathings will be the center’s operator.
meaningful employment.
Gathings said having the customer care center located in Chatham allows its residents to work in the community where they live, watch businesses thrive and be attracted to Chatham and its surrounding communities. “Providing opportunity for employment is great, and it’s one thing, but I think we’re
mostly excited about what it means for the city and for the members of the community,” she said. Gathings said it is not lost on Discover that when Target left the community it did something to the community’s residents.
“I think when we think about having something back in the community, it’s not just that we have something that people can go and spend their money, but people can go and make money now,” she said. “And, making money allows them to then turn it around and put it back in the communities in which they live because they’re not traveling outside of their local area.”
Gathings said having the customer care center in Chatham strengthens the ecosystem in Black and brown communities. She said there are active jobs posted for leadership positions
on Discover’s website. It is their hope those leaders can start on May 3.
Discover is committed to hiring people from the community. One hundred percent of the leaders will come from the community and 80 percent of the account manager positions will be people from within a five square mile radius of the center. In April, leadership positions for Discover’s inaugural class of agents will be listed. People hired for those positions will start in June.
“Discover and its employees are committed to helping people achieve brighter financial futures, which we can
best achieve in Chicago by bringing jobs to the area and having direct and long-term involvement with the city,”
Roger Hochschild, CEO and president of Discover, said in a press release. “We fully support Mayor Lightfoot’s call to
action for Chicago companies to bring quality jobs directly to communities that need them. Discover recognizes that traditional corporate site selection has contributed to issues of unequal opportunity in our society, and we want to be part of the solution. We hope our commitment to Chatham will serve as a springboard for further economic development in the area; and we’re excited to work with residents and community leaders and add to our award-winning customer service team.”
Gathings said Discover will work with community organizations that are already doing work in Chatham. In
addition to the customer care center, there will be a 5,000 square foot space that will be available for community- based organizations to use.
“It’s important for us that we can find some of those partnerships and really focus on helping them further some of
their goals, through Discover’s charitable giving, but also having a space for community members to come and use
our facility,” she said. “Discover, with us being a financial service organization, we are looking for ways to extend the
work we do, as well, whether that’s with financial literacy courses, providing resources to 501c3’s. We’re excited about
all the opportunities we’re going to have, as we listen and learn from the community on what they really need to make sure the South Side is thriving.”
For more information on employment opportunities, visit www.discover. com/shinebright.
Latest Stories
- Comcast Launches NOW – a New Brand and Product Portfolio that Redefines Low-Cost Internet, Mobile, and TV
- Wards365 Announces Summer50 Fest on Saturday, May 18 at United Center City-Wide Resource Festival focused on Summer Activities for Youth and Families
- The Magic Of Alvin Ailey Comes To The Auditorium Theater
- BOSS Impact Funds Gives Black Women Entrepreneurs Access To Capital
- Closing the Black Maternal Health Gap Is At The Center Of Organization’s Work
- Praize Productions’ Production Shows That ‘Black Love Reigns Supreme’
- Chicago Public Schools Announces 2024-25 Preschool Application Launch
- State Treasurer Michael Frerichs Pushes to Reunite Residents with Unclaimed Property, Missing Money
- Gov. Pritzker Announces New Illinois Grocery Initiative Grant Opportunity
- MAYOR JOHNSON ANNOUNCES NEW APPOINTMENTS TO CITY COLLEGES OF CHICAGO BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Latest Podcast
Sydney Blaylock-The local skater with national experience
