By Kaitlyn Luckoff
Medill Reports

A bright arrangement of pastel mugs, candles, trinkets and decorative flowers creates a springtime garden in the window of one of Foursided’s Lakeview stores. Three miles north, customers are greeted by smiling produce painted above the door of Foursided’s Andersonville location.

Foursided is celebrating, regardless of the season. The business has two gift shops in Lakeview, one in Andersonville and a framing location in each neighborhood. All five of these establishments are in historical buildings – and allow new customers and regular shoppers to admire their changing seasonal window displays. 

“Beautifully framed art is where we began, and then it branched out into really kitschy and cute and collectible vintage,” said Howl Stephens, marketing and design coordinator at Foursided. “In many ways, we’re kind of like a one-stop shop for gifting.”

Foursided began as a framing business in 2002– with six employees and an original investment of $25,000. The funding came from the late founder, Todd “Mack” MacGillivray, who previously owned a framing business in Lansing, Michigan. Alongside his partner, Gino Pinto, the business has steadily expanded on Chicago’s North Side. Pinto said the original framing store also had gifts, but it quickly outgrew the space and they opened a separate gift shop in 2003. 

“We liked the idea of keeping the framing together, with the gifts, but you need a glitter-free workspace for framing, and the gift shops are not glitter-free,” Pinto said. 

Despite selling mostly small products, Stephens said the minor transactions accumulate and help the business reach its profit goals. 

“We’ve had rising costs,” Pinto said. “But our prices are increasing too, based on our vendors and the cost of skilled labor.”

President Donald Trump recently imposed a 10% tariff on imports from all countries. Stephens said they don’t expect this to be a challenge for Foursided because most of their vendors are based in the U.S. 

Foursided’s revenue growth has been around 12% annually for the past 20 years, according to Pinto. Stephens added the revenue goal for 2025 is a 15% increase – and said the store is on track to reach that target. Pinto said the business’s annual revenue is between $3 million and $6 million. 

“One of our philosophies as a business is the small is all,” Stephens said. “A lot of what we sell are these tiny little moments of joy that people pick up on a whim.”

Across all stores, Foursided has just fewer than 40 employees. One of the highlights of expanding to more locations, Pinto said, has been providing opportunities for internal growth and staff promotions. 

All Foursided gift shops offer a unique range of products, but every store is slightly different as each has its own product buyer, Stephens said.

Elise Grinkemeyer, a sales associate at the Andersonville gift shop, said each of the different stores matches its respective neighborhood. 

“We’re a little bit more mature, more eccentric,” Grinkemeyer said about the Andersonville location. “Everybody out here loves their pets, loves having a nice drink or brunch. We try to cater to that stuff.”

Sarah Zidell frequently shops at the Lakeview store on Clark Street, and said they always have great Christmas decorations, especially ornaments. 

“I feel like their products are so unique compared to any other gifty boutique,” Zidell said. 

Real estate agent Kati Catalogna discovered Foursided when she first moved to Lincoln Park seven years ago and said it’s been her “go-to” ever since. 

As someone who is frequently buying gifts for clients and friends, Catalogna said it’s easy to get carried away in the store. Her favorite shopping season is around Valentine’s Day because of the pink and red displays. 

“They have a bunch of different little things that I could get and curate a good gift that feels a little bit more thoughtful and personalized than just going and getting somebody a candle,” Catalogna said.

Foursided continues to thrive despite MacGillivray’s death in January. 

Although Pinto said he’s more focused right now on honoring his husband and business partner’s legacy, Foursided is poised for more growth in the future. Pinto said the Foursided team is concentrating on the creative aspect of MacGillivray’s legacy by trying to create more of their own products.  

“There is maybe a point in the future, I don’t know if it’s in the next five years, maybe the next 10, where we could be in some other communities around the country,” Pinto said.

Kaitlyn Luckoff is a graduate student at Medill specializing in magazine reporting. You can connect with her on Linkedin.