H Mart, the large Asian grocery chain, is welcoming customers in Dallas with some offerings you won’t find at just any store.
The chain, which has a couple of other spots in North Texas, officially opened on Thursday at a sizable spot that covers over 140,000 square feet, according to a release. It’s located between I-35E and Harry Hines Boulevard on Royal Lane.
The lineup includes green papaya, taro, durian and red bananas, along with seafood in large tanks that cover everything from live Korean octopus and abalone to crab. There are staples and specialty items and much more.
But it’s not just the food that’s atypical of some grocers. Large screens play music videos above the items, including the produce area, with it recently featuring A20 May, a Chinese girl pop band. An area with several restaurants offers Korean fried chicken, Korean tofu and barbecue offerings and Japanese katsu, among others.
D-FW Retail News
The food hall also features a stage with a giant screen announcing an H Mart grand opening music festival over the coming weeks. There’s even a lineup of games featuring mini cranes for plucking prizes.
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H Mart is part of the growing number of retailers offering grocery items in the Dallas-Fort Worth area that serve the expanding communities that come from other parts of the world. For example, the region is adding several sites that cater to the South Asian community, including India Bazaar.
Plano and Carrollton are home to H Mart stores, and another is slated for the Fort Worth area. The new store in Dallas is tapping into a healthy customer base that goes beyond its existing locations, according to Brian Kwon, president of the chain.
The company’s customer base is diversifying with about 60% being Asian, indicating the wide appeal it has for all shoppers, Kwon said.
“There’s no question about how well the store will do here, just because (of) the demand we’re seeing from our customers, the response we’re seeing from the local community,” Kwon said in an interview.
H Mart started during the 1980s in the New York City area and has since grown to more than 100 stores across over 15 states.
At the new store in Dallas, shoppers will find rice and sweet treats along with snacks for different backgrounds, including Korean, Indian and Chinese. There is also kimchi, marinated chicken and raspberry wine.
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