Evanston business Chykalophia made the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s list celebrating the top 100 small businesses in the country Sept. 5.

The list, known as the CO—100, honors small and mid-sized businesses in America that have made remarkable contributions in driving innovation, growth and ingenuity both locally and globally.

Chykalophia, a woman- and minority-owned web design and solutions agency based in Evanston, was chosen from a pool of over 14,000 applicants, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Chykalophia was one of 10 honorees in the CO—100’s Culture Champions category, which recognizes vibrant and rewarding company cultures.

“The culture champions are really a unique group,” the spokesperson said. “Because while the other categories are more focused on innovation, cutting edge technology, growth and revenue, the culture champions are focused on their employees and their people first and foremost.” 

For the first six years, there were only two people behind the business: Ari Krzyzek and her husband Peter Krzyzek. 

When they got married in 2011, Ari Krzyzek moved in with her husband in the Chicago suburbs from Bali, Indonesia, where she was born and raised. Peter Krzyzek was freelancing as a web developer and she was freelancing as a web designer. Eventually, they decided to join forces.

“We were newlyweds, and we didn’t know how to build a business yet,” Ari Krzyzek said. “We were just figuring things out on the fly. What I didn’t know is that you need money to fund your business.”

She continued to freelance while working on the company, which Peter Krzyzek managed full time, until she became a mother. That was the moment when Ari Krzyzek realized something had to give, she said. She decided to go all in with the company, and hasn’t looked back since.

Pretty soon after, Chykalophia grew past the “you and me against the world” phase, Ari Krzyzek said. The agency, which is based in their home in Evanston but runs remotely, began hiring employees, primarily in Indonesia and the Philippines, in 2017.

To be eligible for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s CO—100, a business must have fewer than 250 employees. Currently, Chykalophia has 17.

Ashley Leavy, a Chykalophia client, said the company’s team was a big draw for her when choosing an agency to redesign the website for her spirituality school.

“Ari really lets her values shine through in her business, and that filters down to the entire team,” Leavy said. “They’re better than anybody else in the tech space I’ve ever worked with. As a woman-owned business in a nontraditional niche, I was looking for a company I could really trust.”

When Ari Krzyzek first moved to the U.S., she didn’t have anyone beyond her husband and his circle of friends. But the community of women entrepreneurs in the area welcomed her with open arms, she said.

Now, Ari Krzyzek uses Chykalophia to mostly help women-led brands in brand-to-brand tech fast forward their business, she said.

“The more I get to know businesses here in the U.S., especially here in the Chicagoland area, the more I realize I want to work with local businesses,” Ari Krzyzek said. 

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