SAN JOSE — A Japanese market that’s poised to offer an unusual array of features is headed to a choice spot in downtown San Jose, a store that could help bolster retail activity in the city’s vacancy-challenged urban core.
Sakura Market has begun to prepare a space along The Paseo de San Antonio next to South First Street near the Spartan Village housing tower for San Jose State University students.
San Jose State University students walk past Sakura Market location in The Paseo de San Antonio between South Market Street and South First Street in downtown San Jose, seen on April 13, 2026. (George Avalos/Bay Area News Group)
The grocery store is being launched by Osaka Marketplace, a Japanese supermarket with locations in Fremont and Foster City, according to the retailer’s website.
The retailer has posted “now hiring” signs at the site where Sakura Market plans to open in The Paseo, which is an important downtown pathway that links SJSU to the rest of the downtown.
Sakura Market location on South First Street in downtown San Jose next to The Paseo de San Antonio, seen on April 13, 2026. (George Avalos/Bay Area News Group)
The market site was once occupied by a 5,000-square-foot Muji store that sold household, apparel and stationery items. After the Muji company went bankrupt in 2020, the downtown San Jose Muji closed its doors.
Sakura Market and Osaka Marketplace envision an array of features for the new store, which is expected to differ significantly from a typical smaller grocery merchant.
“More than just a minimart, it will feature a curated sushi buffet, an interactive instant ramen station, a Japanese sake and beer bar, and a dedicated matcha drink shop,” the retailer states in its hiring post.
Sakura Market is seeking to hire cashiers, customer service workers, stockers, cleaning staff, bartenders and sushi preparers, along with other roles.
Wages are expected to range from $18.45 to $21 an hour for Sakura Market’s future workers, depending on experience. Employee roles will include part-time and full-time positions, the hiring post states.
Downtown San Jose residents must cope with limited grocery store options, especially since Safeway closed a small-format store on South Second Street in 2019. A Whole Foods Market and a Grocery Outlet operate on the edges of the downtown.
It wasn’t immediately clear when the Sakura Market might open.
A new market site could help draw customers and spur commercial activity in downtown San Jose, which is saddled with a brutally high office vacancy rate of roughly 30%, according to Cushman & Wakefield, a commercial real estate firm.