Page 5 - Downtown Beaverton

Thursday, January 16, 2014
| DOWNTOWN BEAVERTON 5

International local grocery store

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years,” Ayers laughs.
and media, but also — according to Ayers — by The first Uwajimaya location opened

the recent food cart craze.
in Seattle more than 80 years ago, but the
Though the trend has struggled to establish successful chain — its Seattle location alone

itself in Beaverton, where city regulations was valued at $106.5 million last year — is
are comparatively prohibitive, neighboring small, with locations in Bellevue and Renton.
Beaverton remains its sole Oregon store
Portland boasts more than 600 mobile
restaurants, many of them Asian. Huch says after plans for a fifth location in Portland’s
the store has noticed an uptick in demand for Chinatown neighborhood were scrapped in

Korean products, and interest in Korean food, 2011, with Uwajimaya representatives citing a
in the past couple years.
sluggish economy.

“That’s spread a lot of culinary awareness But the Beaverton location, which employs
in an affordable manner,” Ayers says. “It 85 people, is thriving.

made ethnic food a part of people’s daily lives, Aside from its reputation as a well run
in an affordable way. So for us, people want to store with an exhaustive offering of products,

replicate it as much as possible. What we’ve Uwajimaya is also known for being retail
tried to do, and will continually try to do, is be therapy. The colorful store offers up a
responsive to those changes.”
selection of popular Asian candy, whimsical

Ayers and Huch have worked at Uwajimaya gifts and novel children’s toys that have made
since it opened in the Westside in 1998, with it an attraction in Beaverton.

Ayers starting in the seafood department as “We try to make it fun,” Ayers says with a
a fish cutter and Huch beginning behind the smile.

register.
For more information about Uwajimaya,
“We made the way up the chain through the
visit: uwajimaya.com/stores/beaverton.

Uwajimaya employee Jannelle Swayze helps a customer in one of the store’s colorfully designed aisles.

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