| Type | Department store, grocer, former subsidiary of Marukai Corporation |
|---|---|
| Industry | Department stores, market |
| Founded | 1965 (Hawaii) |
| Headquarters | Gardena, California |
| Area served | 12 stores in US |
| Products | Imported Japanese goods |
| Employees | 670 (400 - California, 270 - Hawaii) |
| Subsidiaries | 98cent Plus Markets |
| Website | marukai.com |
Marukai Corporation U.S.A. is an American off-shoot chain of retail markets that imports and sells Japanese goods in American cities started by the Osaka, Japan-based Marukai Corporation, Incorporated. Unlike other Japanese supermarkets, which may carry non-Japanese products based on local diversity, Marukai has Hawaiian products as a core focus in addition to Japanese, not just in Hawaii, but all its stores. Its headquarters are in Gardena, California, in Greater Los Angeles.[1]
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The company was founded in 1965 as Marukai Hawaii . In 1975, The company established Marukai Los Angeles. By 1980, the company changed to its current name and opened Marukai Wholesale Mart in Gardena, California. The company began to emphasize membership-based retail shopping. In 1999, the company opened its first 98cent Plus Store carrying Daiso products, before Daiso had its own stores in US. The company has since expanded to 12 locations in CA with over 400 employees in CA. These stores sell Japanese food and household items. [2]
On March 9, 2006, Marukai agreed to pay a $52,000 fine to the United States Environmental Protection Agency for selling 11 unregistered Japanese pesticide products [3]