Illinois: The best place to make money in the Midwest

If you want to live in the Midwest, Illinois is your best bet for making the highest salary. The average worker here makes $52,588 per year. In fact, the state ranks head and shoulders above most of its neighbors. Only in Illinois and Minnesota does the average worker bring in more than $50,000 per year.

Even when compared to the whole nation, Illinois comes off well, with the 8^th best pay in the United States.

Illinois comes out even better when you consider the state’s very reasonable cost of living.

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Chicago named #1 meeting, event destination

Convenient, centrally located and affordable: Chicago is the #1 destination in the U.S. for meetings and events. Cvent, a tech company whose web-based software allows companies and associations to plan events, recently announced Chicago overtook Orlando and Las Vegas to take the top spot.

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Illinois’ pumpkin harvest leads nation

There is a good chance the pumpkins you carve, use as ornamental fall decorations or as pie filling for your holiday treats came from Central Illinois. 

Illinois leads the nation in pumpkin production, with a swath of land near Peoria producing most of the state’s pumpkin crop. Morton, Illinois is commonly referred to as the “Pumpkin Capital of the World”, hosting the annual Morton Pumpkin Festival and home to a Libby's pumpkin processing plant.

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Kozy’s Cyclery: Illinois’ 2014 Retailer of the Year

• Cycling
• Kozy's Cyclery
• Illinois Retail Merchant's Association
• Retailer of the Year

Any Economics 101 student knows business is driven by supply and demand. It’s not often a company succeeds in creating demand for its products – and changing the way people live in the process. Kozy’s Cyclery has done just that, and this year its owners have received the Illinois Retail Merchants Association’s “Retailer of the Year” award.

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