H Mart, the Korean grocery chain that opened its first Hawaii store in Honolulu two months ago, has inked a lease for its second Oahu store, in a former Foodland space in Pearl City.
H Mart will build out a new store over the next 18 months in the 30,000-square-foot vacant space on the Waimano Home Road side of the Pearl City Shopping Center, next door to Don Quijote, Anthony Provenzano of Cushman & Wakefield ChaneyBrooks, who represents H Mart, told Pacific Business News.
Foodland closed the Pearl City store last fall when it opened a new, larger Foodland Farms store in the former Babies ‘R’ Us space at Pearl City Gateway on Kuala Street.
The Pearl City site will be larger than H Mart’s first Hawaii location, a 22,800-square-foot, two-story store at 458 Keawe St. in Kakaako that opened on May 28. That store includes a second-floor Market Eatery Food Hall with such vendors as Giovanni’s Shrimp Truck, Aloha Aina Café and Left Wing Chicken.
Provenzano said the Pearl City store will have a similar food court concept, only it will all be on one floor.
He also said H Mart is looking at several sites in the Keeaumoku-Ala Moana area for its third store.
Provenzano said H Mart requires between 30,000 and 40,000 square feet for a full-service store, which narrows the choices in Honolulu’s urban neighborhoods.
Two possibilities include another former Foodland store and the former Walgreens flagship store that is directly behind Ala Moana Center.
Foodland Super Market Ltd. closed the 30,996-square-foot store at 1460 S. Beretania St. in Makiki a year ago. The building is owned by Property Reserve Inc., an affiliate of Hawaii Reserves Inc., the real estate arm of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Walgreens closed its two-story store at the corner of Keeaumoku Street and Kapiolani Boulevard in June. That building is owned by a Los Angeles-based Korean investment fund, Haeri Hacienda Plaza LLC, which paid $42.25 million to acquire it three years ago.
H Mart, which had leased half of a 55,000-square-foot warehouse near the first store, also bought a warehouse last year in Kapolei Business Park for $7.85 million.
