Location, location, location: Choosing correct customer base is as important as real estate

摘要

Grand Mart International Food specializes in seafood, particularly tila-pia, squid and shrimp, for the Hispanic and Asian customers it caters to. Seafood departments typically account for 15 percent of overall gross store sales, says Young Lee, general manager of the Washington, D.C., supermarket chain. With 18 stores in metro D.C. and Atlanta, the chain plans to open eight more in greater Chicago this year. The first opened in mid-December in Bedford Park, 111. The next was scheduled to open in January in Melrose Park, 111., and one is slated to open later this year in Naperville, a picturesque suburb 30 miles west of Chicago. The area is an underserved market, says Lee, with few competitors carrying Asian and Hispanic foods.