H Mart

The H Mart chain began in 1982 in Woodside, Queens, in New York City, as a small corner grocery store. The original store was opened by Il Yeon Kwon, an immigrant from South Korea, under the name Han Ah Reum. Subsequent H Marts were operated differently from the original location, which maintained the original name and signage until it was remodeled in 2023.{{cite news |title=The first H Mart ever just reopened in Queens! |url=https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/the-first-h-mart-ever-just-reopened-in-queens-100623 |website=Timeout |access-date=1 December 2023 |last1=Rahmanan |first1=Anna }}{{cite news|last1=Ortutay|first1=Barbara|title=Bucks gets an Asian flavor|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=BURB&p_multi=LBCB&p_theme=burb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=1087D4CB22FA417C&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|access-date=July 27, 2011|work=Bucks County Courier Times|date=February 23, 2005}}{{subscription required}}

From 1982 to 1991, the company added 10 stores, mostly in the Northeastern United States.

In 1997, the company opened its first store in the Washington-Baltimore metropolitan area, in Falls Church, Virginia. On October 19, 1998, the chain opened its current headquarters in Lyndhurst in Bergen County, New Jersey, the U.S. county with the highest Korean population percentage, at 6.9%.{{cite web |title=Timeline |url=http://company.hmart.com/eng/company_timeline.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120317074627/http://company.hmart.com/eng/company_timeline.asp |archive-date=March 17, 2012 |access-date=June 26, 2011 |website=H Mart}}

After its 2001 opening, an H Mart store in northern Virginia gained many Hispanic American employees. After cultural conflicts between Hispanic and Korean American employees in one store, the H Mart headquarters provided an intercultural training program, with translations into Spanish.{{cite news |last1=Kang |first1=Cecilia |title=Koreans, Hispanics Work for Harmony |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/06/AR2007100601389.html |access-date=November 7, 2014 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=October 7, 2007}}

In 2004, the first Super H Mart opened in Duluth, Georgia. By 2005, the chain had 17 stores; by the following March, it had 22, all on the East Coast except for two stores in Denver, Colorado. Its first West Coast location, in Federal Way, Washington, opened in April 2006.{{cite news|last1=Dietrich|first1=Heidi|title=H-Mart grocery chain to make state debut|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2006/03/13story3.html|access-date=June 26, 2011|work=Puget Sound Business Journal|publisher=American City Business Journals|date=March 12, 2006}}

In spring 2017, H Mart opened a {{Convert|43,000|ft2|m2|adj=on}} store in San Jose, California.{{cite web|url=https://www.hmart.com/ourstory/post/grand-opening-hmart-san-jose-oakland-ca/|title=[Grand opening] Hmart San Jose-Oakland, CA|website=hmart.com|access-date=October 31, 2018|archive-date=June 26, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200626190016/https://www.hmart.com/ourstory/post/grand-opening-hmart-san-jose-oakland-ca/|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/04/05/new-asian-market-opens-plans-san-jose-expansion/|title=Hmart opens its first Korean market in NorCal, plans South Bay expansion|date=April 5, 2017|website=eastbaytimes.com|access-date=October 31, 2018}}{{cite web|url=http://www.siliconvalleyhousingpost.com/popular-korean-high-end-grocery-shop-h-mart-n-san-jose-shop-opens/|title=Popular Korean High End Grocery Shop H Mart N San Jose Shop Opens – Silicon Valley Housing Post|website=siliconvalleyhousingpost.com|date=March 10, 2018 |access-date=October 31, 2018}} In summer 2018, H Mart signed a lease for a {{Convert|42,000|ft2|m2|adj=on}} store in San Francisco.{{cite web|url=https://sf.eater.com/2018/8/8/17665180/hmart-opening-san-francisco-ingleside-heights-grocery|title=Beloved Korean Grocer Hmart Coming to San Francisco|website=eater.com|date=August 8, 2018 |access-date=October 31, 2018}}{{cite web|url=http://ielightsf.com/2018/08/15/after-five-year-vacancy-ocean-view-shopping-center-gets-a-fresh-grocery-store/|title=After Five-Year Vacancy, Ocean View Shopping Center Gets a Fresh Grocery Store|website=Ingleside-Excelsior Light|access-date=October 31, 2018|archive-date=May 27, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190527032601/http://ielightsf.com/2018/08/15/after-five-year-vacancy-ocean-view-shopping-center-gets-a-fresh-grocery-store/|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://hoodline.com/2018/08/asian-grocery-chain-hmart-to-open-first-san-francisco-location-in-oceanview-ingleside-heights|title=Asian grocery chain Hmart to open first San Francisco location in Oceanview/Ingleside Heights|website=hoodline.com|date=August 8, 2018 |access-date=October 31, 2018}}

As of 2025, there were 94 H Mart stores in the United States, located in New York, New Jersey, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, and Washington.{{cite web|title=Store Locations|url=https://www.hmart.com/ourstores/|website=H Mart|access-date=August 25, 2018}}

In June 2024, H Mart opened its first store in Utah, which at 100,000 square feet is the chain's largest store.

H Mart began moving into western Canada in December 2003, with its first store in Coquitlam, British Columbia,{{cite web|title=H Mart Canadian History|url=http://www.hmart.ca/main/frame.php?main=10&boardId=13|website=Canadian Store History|publisher=H Mart|access-date=May 23, 2017|archive-date=February 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221125518/http://hmart.ca/main/frame.php?main=10&boardId=13|url-status=dead}} a West Coast location that opened ahead of stores in Seattle, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.{{cite news|title=Korean supermarket chain picks B.C. over U.S. west|url=http://www.canada.com/story_print.html?id=db58cf29-e825-49e4-9968-19bd59852df0&sponsor=|access-date=November 6, 2014|work=The Vancouver Sun|date=October 15, 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160324223806/http://www.canada.com/story_print.html?id=db58cf29-e825-49e4-9968-19bd59852df0&sponsor=|archive-date=March 24, 2016}} In subsequent years, the company opened stores in Downtown Vancouver and Langley in 2006; Richmond{{cite news|last1=Yong|first1=Benjamin|title=H-Mart introduces a taste of Korea|url=http://www.richmond-news.com/news/h-mart-introduces-a-taste-of-korea-1.495157|access-date=November 6, 2014|work=Richmond News|publisher=Glacier Community Media|date=January 12, 2012}} in 2012; and Port Coquitlam in 2016.

In 2013, the company opened its first urban convenience format on Yonge Street and Churchill Avenue in the Toronto-suburb of Willowdale called "M2M–morning to midnight". The two-story, {{convert|4500|sqft|sqm|adj=on}} store is the first one in Canada. There are currently three other M2M stores in the U.S., two in Manhattan and one in Seattle.{{cite news|last1=Kwon|first1=Nancy|title=H-mart opens urban convenience format in Toronto|url=http://www.canadiangrocer.com/top-stories/h-mart-unveils-its-first-urban-convience-format-in-toronto-28579|access-date=November 6, 2014|work=Canadian Grocer|publisher=Rogers Publishing Limited|date=June 27, 2013}}{{cite news|title= M2M: After years of H Mart dreams, Capitol Hill Station's grocery finally arrives |work=Capitol Hill Seattle Blog|url=https://www.capitolhillseattle.com/2022/04/m2m-after-years-of-h-mart-dreams-capitol-hill-stations-grocery-finally-arrives/|access-date=December 31, 2023|date=April 15, 2022}} A larger H Mart opened on Yonge Street in Richmond Hill, with another opening in Downtown Toronto across from Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) in 2017. In July 2019, an H Mart opened in Edmonton, Alberta,{{cite news |author=Lam, Peggy |title=Asian supermarket adds flavour, generates buzz in Edmonton |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/korean-supermarket-h-mart-edmonton-opening-south-park-shopping-centre-1.5209830 |date=July 14, 2019 |website=CBC News |access-date=September 13, 2024 |archive-date=July 15, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190715045243/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/korean-supermarket-h-mart-edmonton-opening-south-park-shopping-centre-1.5209830 |url-status=live}} followed by a second store in Edmonton beside the University of Alberta campus in December 2019{{cite magazine |last=Brunet |first=Robin |date=January–February 2020 |title=Passion, Pageantry, and Pride |url=http://westerngrocer.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Western_Grocer_Magazine-Jan-Feb-2020.pdf |url-status=live |magazine=Western Grocer Magazine |location=Winnipeg |publisher=Mercury Publications |pages=11{{ndash}}15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220619230656/http://westerngrocer.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Western_Grocer_Magazine-Jan-Feb-2020.pdf |archive-date=June 19, 2022 |access-date=September 13, 2024}} and its first location in Calgary in 2020. Another store opened in Calgary in Beacon Hill in October 2023. As of June 21, 2024 H Mart made their entry into the French Canadian province of Quebec by acquiring 3 Jang Teu grocery stores in Montreal.

H Mart Europe Limited was incorporated in 2009,[http://ukdata.com/company/06879552/H-MART-EUROPE-LIMITED Company information for H MART EUROPE LIMITED (06879552) incorporated 16-04-2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181209031350/http://ukdata.com/company/06879552/H-MART-EUROPE-LIMITED |date=December 9, 2018 }}. Ukdata.com. Retrieved June 10, 2013. and in 2011, H Mart opened its first store in Europe, in the New Malden area of London.{{cite web|title=H-Mart UK|url=http://www.hmart.co.uk/|access-date=September 23, 2013}}

H Mart has cultivated a diverse and expanding customer base that mirrors the nation's multicultural landscape. https://retailwire.com/discussion/can-h-mart-become-a-top-contender-in-the-grocery-arena/?utm_source=chatgpt.com Originally established to serve Korean immigrants, H Mart has become a cornerstone for various Asian-American groups, including Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, and Filipino communities.

The store has also extended its appeal beyond Asian-American shoppers, as approximately one-third of its recent customers are now non-Asian. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/11/dining/asian-grocery-stores-america.html#:~:text=Now%2C%20those%20same%20shops%20have,Americans%20to%20gather%20and%20socialize. In terms of gender distribution, 59% are female and 41% are male, and the largest segment of visitors falls within the 25–34 age range. https://www.axios.com/local/salt-lake-city/2024/06/10/h-mart-utah-asian-grocery-west-jordan?utm_source=chatgpt.com In terms of geographic reach, while H Mart has a significant presence in states with large Asian-American populations, such as California, New York, and New Jersey, it has also expanded to areas with relatively smaller Asian communities like Utah and Nevada.

In 2006, a civil suit was filed against H Mart for discrimination against white people when three tenants of the West Willow Shopping Mall in Willowbrook, Canada, which the company had moved into and then bought, filed a complaint with the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal alleging that the company wanted to turn it into an Asian-only market.{{cite news|title=Claim of discrimination against whites dismissed|url=http://www.canada.com/story_print.html?id=f59b9bd2-88cc-4a28-8722-b87ab4422703&sponsor=|access-date=November 6, 2014|work=Langley Advance|agency=canada.com|date=December 18, 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160324222657/http://www.canada.com/story_print.html?id=f59b9bd2-88cc-4a28-8722-b87ab4422703&sponsor=|archive-date=March 24, 2016}} All three tenants made a claim when their leases were not renewed despite being long-term leaseholders within the mall. In late 2007, tribunal member Lindsay Lyster dismissed their complaint on the grounds that it had no reasonable prospect of success and did not merit a hearing. She wrote:

In the end, I have concluded that the complainants' case is based on little more than conjecture based on what they read in the media and H-Mart's reputation as a "Korean market," as seen through the lens of their own unhappiness in being unable to maintain their businesses in the mall.

{{Cite Canadian Court

|litigants= Farrell and Farrell obo others

|decisionyear= 2007

|reporteryear= 1996

|vol=

|reporter= HUMAN RIGHTS CODE R.S.B.C., c. 210

|court= BCHRT

|url= http://www.bchrt.bc.ca/decisions/2007/pdf/jan/48_Farrell_obo_Farrell_and_others_v_Hanahreum_Mart_and_others_2007_BCHRT_48.pdf

}}

In 2012, picketers gathered outside one of the Flushing stores to protest against H{{Nbsp}}Mart's hiring practices. Protest organizer Jim MacDonald said the store, and other H Marts nearby, disproportionately hired Asian people, specifically Korean-Americans.{{cite web |last1=MacDonald |first1=Jim |title=Picket/Protest/Phone H-Mart Supermarket Chain to End Their Racist Hiring Policies |url=https://ny121asil.wordpress.com/2012/07/25/big-store-closing-sale-10-75-off-waldbaums-at-46-40-francis-lewis-blvd-in-queens-nyc/ |access-date=November 6, 2014 |website=ny121asil @ASilva_NY|date=July 25, 2012 }}{{cite news |last1=Chan |first1=Melissa |date=October 24, 2012 |title=Protesters call H-Mart's hiring racist |work=The Queens Courier |publisher=Schneps Publications, Inc. |url=http://queenscourier.com/protesters-call-h-marts-hiring-racist/ |access-date=November 6, 2014 |archive-date=November 7, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141107062526/http://queenscourier.com/protesters-call-h-marts-hiring-racist/ |url-status=dead }} H Mart responded in a statement that the company "does not screen employees by race, but by their capabilities"; for example, the Flushing store hires many Korean speakers to better serve its many customers who do not speak English.

In 2012, Korean news agencies and government agencies{{cite news |last1=Kim |first1=Hyun Cheon |date=2013 |title=H-mart Denies Chun Doo-Hwan's Secret Funding Allegation |publisher=Boston Korea |url=https://www.bostonkorea.com/news.php?code=en&mode=view&num=17871&page=1 |access-date=1 December 2022}} alleged that H Mart laundered money for former South Korean dictator Chun Doo Hwan, who was convicted of embezzling hundreds of millions of dollars during his autocratic rule, and his family.{{Cite news |last=Sang-Hun |first=Choe |date=2013-09-10 |title=Family of Former South Korean Dictator to Pay His Fines |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/11/world/asia/family-of-ex-south-korean-dictator-to-pay-his-fines.html |access-date=2022-12-01 |issn=0362-4331}} In December 2012, Korean news channel, TV Chosun reported that "South Korean prosecutors have traced Chun Doo-Hwan's secret funding to H Mart, as they found suspicious money laundering in an account”. In August 2013, TV Chosun retracted earlier claims as unfounded speculations. The station confirmed that H Mart was not under investigation in relation to overseas funds connect with Chun Doo-Hwan.{{Cite web |date=2013-08-26 |title=[단독] H마트 "경쟁하던 업체에서 유언비어 퍼뜨려" |url=http://news.tvchosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2013/08/26/2013082690325.html |access-date=2023-06-22 |website=news.tvchosun.com |language=ko}}

• Koreatown
• Oseyo
• Wing Yip
• Mitsuwa Marketplace
• 99 Ranch Market
• Marukai Corporation U.S.A.
• Nijiya Market

{{reflist}}

{{Commons category}}

• [http://www.hmart.com H Mart (United States)] {{in lang|en|ko|zh}}
• [http://www.hmartus.com H Mart (Pacific Northwest)]
• [http://www.myhmart.com H Mart (Colorado)]
• [http://www.hmart.ca H Mart (British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario)] {{in lang|en|ko|zh}}
• [http://www.hmartca.com H Mart (Greater Toronto Area)] {{in lang|en|ko}}
• [http://www.hmart.co.uk H Mart (London)] {{in lang|en|ko}}

{{Supermarkets of the United States}}

Category:1982 establishments in New York City

Category:Food manufacturers of the United States

Category:Korean-American organizations

Category:Retail companies established in 1982

Category:Supermarkets of the United States