T&T to open first store in California
Asian grocery retailer T&T Supermarket Inc. is set to open its first store in California.
The 55,000 square-foot supermarket, slated to open next fall, will be located at the Westgate Center in San Jose—the site of a former Walmart store.
With two stores in the works in Washington, this marks the Loblaw-owned grocer’s third store announcement stateside.
Bay Area shoppers can expect a BBQ counter, noodle station, dim sum and a street food section at the store, as well as a hot food bar and made-to-order Chinese crepe station.
It will also feature an in-store bakery with offerings such as mochi puffs, egg tarts, Hong Kong-style pastries and customized cake.
The chain’s private label products—such as pineapple cakes, Taiwanese sausages and green onion pancakes—will be available to purchase
T&T’s first California store will be situated at 1600 Saratoga Ave at the intersection of Saratoga Avenue and Prospect Road.
“We aim to create a destination,” said Tina Lee, CEO of T&T Supermarkets, in a release. “It’s a place for discovery, innovation, and bringing people together through food. We want to evolve our grocery store beyond the functional—we want to be the place where people want to go, not just need to go. We can’t wait to share that with the people of the Bay Area… San Jose is a very special place to me… My aunt lives in Saratoga, and I have spent many summers there. It brings back great memories. This store is for her.”
The company currently operates more than 33 stores in Canada.
"The first time I visited a T&T, it blew my mind,” stated Jeff Kreshek, western region president of Federal Realty, developer of Westgate Center. “I came back from Canada thinking, ‘We have to make this happen.’ People don't know what they are missing. T&T is a dynamic concept that caters to the eclectic interests and preferences of our community. To take the T&T experience and put it into Westgate Center—it’ll be a force multiplier.”
T&T said the store will create close to 200 jobs for the local community.
In November, the company announced it had hired Chris Pine as its new head of real estate to oversee T&T's expansion into the U.S. market.
