KLNB retail brokers lease with wellington market in 6,800 square feet of space in manassas
Grocery store, owned and operated by Eun Hyun, to specailize in ethnic food products to service Latino market
Vienna, VA (November 15, 2007) – Wellington Market, a new ethnic grocery store that specializes in Latino foods and products, has signed a lease for 6800 square feet of space with Richmond Avenue, LLC. The store, which is expected to be operational in first quarter 2008, is located at Wellington Square, a 14,450 square foot shopping center at 9911 Wellington Road in Manassas, VA.
Ben Becker of KLNB Retail represented the landlord and Hyon Bradford of Mirae Realty represented the tenant in this transaction. The grocery store will be owned and operated by Eun Hyun, who most recently managed the Latino Grocery in Northern Virginia and is a long-time veteran of the grocery industry.
Wellington Market will feature a variety of fresh meat, poultry and seafood, but the highlight of the store will be its large selection of produce featuring an international array of fruits and vegetables. Although geared specifically for the Latino customer – of which Prince William County has among the largest population in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan region – the store will also be attractive to the non-Latino marketplace.
“Ethnic grocery stores fill an important niche in the community on several levels,” explained Ben Becker of KLNB Retail. “These markets carry unique and hard-to-find food items that the larger supermarket chains cannot devote proper shelf space to. The specialty chains have employees that can better relate to and help customers due to language and cultural skills. And, this retail segment tends to become immersed in the local community for altruistic reasons and to become more visible among its target audiences,” he added.
Even though the Washington, D.C. and northern Virginia area is well-known for its large, dominant supermarket chains, Becker indicates there will always be a place for these ethnic stores in the marketplace.
“Grocery store competition is fierce but, by nature, these stores primarily appeal to the tastes and interests of the general population,” Becker added. “Marts such as Wellington Market are smaller and easier to navigate and virtually the entire product selection is comprised of items that cannot be easily found in the larger food stores. This sense of intimacy and comfort plays extremely well in the ethnic arena,” he added.
“This is the Hyun’s first venture, but they are well prepared for the challenge based on Eun’s extensive experience with Beltway Market, which is a proven success,” stated Hyon Bradford of Mirae Realty. “Wellington Square is surrounded by a large Latino population and the center provides them with the density and visibility that will be essential to them.
“The store footprint began in the 5300 square foot range but was enlarged by 1500 square feet to accommodate the selection of products and volume that they anticipate doing. The Hyun’s did extensive research in the preparation and design of Wellington Market,” Bradford added.
Founded in 1968, KLNB employs more than 75 full-time real estate brokerage professionals and provides a full range of brokerage, financial and investment services and strategic advisory services to the commercial office, industrial and retail sectors. The company achieved more than $1.5 billion in sales and leasing volume in 2006.
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