CUPERTINO — A Japanese grocery store described as a blend of a supermarket and mini department store has signed a lease for a South Bay building that Sprouts once occupied.
Hashi Market, which offers Japanese food, will occupy a former Sprouts site at 20558 Stevens Creek Blvd. in Cupertino, according to the company and a broker who handled the transaction.
“This is a very nice location for us,” said Ava Liu, head of operations for Hashi Market. “It is the tech center of the United States. There is a large Asian population in this area.”
Hashi Market leased 20,900 square feet at 20558 Stevens Creek Blvd. in Cupertino, according to David Taxin, a partner with Meacham Oppenheimer, a commercial real estate firm. Taxin was the broker for the deal.
“They are going to do great at this location,” Taxin said. “It’s a high-profile, very busy intersection with high traffic counts.” The store is at the corner of Stevens Creek Boulevard and South De Anza Boulevard.
Hashi Market’s grocery store locations are all in the New York City borough of Manhattan.
“The Cupertino store is our first on the West Coast,” Liu said.
A store the size that Hashi Market is planning in Cupertino would typically employ 40 to 50 workers, Liu estimated. The new Cupertino store should be open in about three to four months, she added.
Sprouts closed its store at the Cupertino site in 2023, ending a run at that location of about seven years after the healthy foods supermarket opened in 2016.
Hashi Market is talking a unique approach to its grocery store, according to the company and Taxin.
“We are North America’s first blend of fresh food supermarket, mini department store, and catering service,” Hashi Market states on its website.
The new Hashi Market, like the existing ones, will feature Japanese cuisine, fresh fruits and vegetables and snacks and drinks. It also will provide small household items as part of the mini department store component.
“Offering a wide range of fresh foods, international cuisines, daily essentials, and more, we’re dedicated to enhancing your lifestyle with quality and convenience,” Hashi Market states on its website.
How that Hashi Market has found the site of its first West Coast store, in the Bay Area, the grocery company is eyeing significant expansions. Its website lists a third Manhattan store in the “coming soon” category. More stores are on the way, however.
“We are working on finding more stores in the San Jose area and in Irvine,” Liu said. She elaborated that these areas refer to the city of San Jose and nearby communities and the Orange County city of Irvine.