Mitsuwa Corporation

Mitsuwa storefront inTorrance, California
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Supermarket Food court Retail
Predecessor	Yaohan USA
Founded	March 1998; 27 years ago (March 1998) inSan Jose, California[1][2]
Headquarters	Torrance, California
Number of locations	13
Area served	California Hawaii Illinois New Jersey Texas
Key people	Takeshi Izuma (President,CEO)
Products	Japanese cuisine
Number of employees	380 (as of January 1, 2023)[3]
Parent	Kamei Corporation [ja][4]
Website	mitsuwa.com

Mitsuwa Corporation,doing business asMitsuwa Marketplace (Japanese:ミツワマーケットプレイス,Hepburn:Mitsuwa Mākettopureisu) and commonly referred asMitsuwa, is an American chain ofJapanese supermarkets headquartered inTorrance, California. It was formed in March 1998 from Wanoba Group Inc.'s acquisition of Yaohan USA after the parent company,Yaohan, filed for bankruptcy.^[5] On December 21, 2012, theKamei Corporation [ja] acquired Wanoba Group Inc.^[6]

Mitsuwa is one of the largest Japanese supermarket chains in the United States, operating 13 store locations inCalifornia,Hawaii,Illinois,New Jersey, andTexas. It features an extensive array of imported Japanese goods and products. In addition to their supermarket, most locations also offer food courts featuring mainly Japanese and other Asian cuisine. Some also host Japanese retail stores and services, such asBooks Kinokuniya,Daiso, andShiseido. Because of this, it is often referred as a mini-mall.

Under President Kazuo Wada's international expansion plans,Yaohan established subsidiary Yaohan USA by opening its first location inFresno in 1979. Yaohan continued opening stores throughout California, such asTorrance andCosta Mesa.^[5][7][8]

In September 1988, Yaohan opened its first East Coast location inEdgewater, New Jersey.^[9] In September 1991, Yaohan expanded toArlington Heights, Illinois, a suburb ofChicago. It opened as the largest Japanese supermarket in the American Midwest.^[10] Both locations planned on constructing hotels with a Japanese communal tub on the rooftop. The purpose of the projects was drawing in local communities from around the areas. However, for reasons unknown, the projects never came to fruition.^[11][12] In 1992, the Torrance store relocated to a larger space in the city's eastern edge to account for increased popularity amongst Japanese-Americans.^[5]

In September 1997, Yaohan declared bankruptcy, citingthe 1997 Asian financial crisis,stagnation of the Japanese retail market, and company debt of ¥171 billion, or $1.42 billion.^[13][14] In March 1998, Yaohan USA executives branched off to form a new company called Wanoba Group, Inc. and acquired the American locations. They used the assets to form a new subsidiary called Mitsuwa Corporation and rebranded the supermarkets as Mitsuwa Marketplace.^[15]

Throughout the 2000s, Mitsuwa continued operations. On January 25, 2009, theLos Angeles location in theLittle Tokyo neighborhood closed due to Korean investors purchasing the property for $35 million.^[16][17] On December 17, 2011, Mitsuwa opened a new location inIrvine, California, their second supermarket inOrange County.^[18][19]

On December 21, 2012, theKamei Corporation [ja], a Japanese trading company, acquired Wanoba Group Inc. for $27.8 million with plans of retaining their management team and keeping business intact.^[6][20][21]

In 2017, Mitsuwa expanded to two U.S. states outside of California. On April 14, 2017, they entered theDallas-Fort Worth metroplex with a store inPlano, Texas, the biggest city inCollin County. It was chosen for their large Asian population and the recently relocated headquarters ofToyota Motor North America from Torrance, California.^[22][23] On May 15, 2017, Mitsuwa opened a new location inWaikīkī, Hawaii, at theInternational Market Place.^[24][25][26]

In 2019, Mitsuwa completed a major infrastructure renovation of the Chicago location with improved lighting, wider aisles, new walls, new flooring, and new restaurants to their food court.^[27] The company also announced it was relocating their Torrance location from Western Avenue to theDel Amo Fashion Center, debuting on February 12, 2020, with a modern, sleek look.^[28] The former building was demolished in 2023 for a new project.^[5]

On January 21, 2023, Mitsuwa opened a new supermarket inNorthridge, California, nearCalifornia State University, Northridge. It is one of only two stores in California that does not host a food court, the other being inSan Gabriel.^[29] On August 22, 2023, Mitsuwa renovated Waikīkī's food court into a food hall called The Japan with six new vendors.^[30][31] On November 1, 2025, Mitsuwa opened a new location inCypress, California, their third supermarket in Orange County.^[32]

Mitsuwa offers a wide variety of imported Japanese products that are not often available in American grocery stores. The store carries a wide variety of ingredients essential inJapanese cuisine, likemiso, rice grains, soy sauce, tea, and a variety of dried noodles (e.g.ramen,udon,soba). They are sold alongside popular Japanese snacks and drinks. For example,Calpis,Pocari Sweat, andPretz. Mitsuwa also pre-packages Japanese convenience food daily, likeonigiri,bento,karaage, and sandwiches. Mitsuwa NAGOMI, the supermarket'ssushi deli, sells a variety of pre-packaged sushi, includinginarizushi,makizushi, andnigirizushi. For non-food items, Mitsuwa provides Japanese cosmetics, kitchenware, and toiletries. They includerice cookers, chopsticks, bento boxes, and Japanese-style dishware.

Mitsuwa is best known for having food courts and specialty retail stores at most locations. The restaurants offer mostly Japanese and other Asian food, such as ramen,katsudon, andtempura. Some locations also offer Japanese specialty retail and services with key stores likeBooks Kinokuniya,Daiso, andShiseido. Others also have stores withBandaiGashapon vending machines, andOne Piece Card Game products and merchandise.

A panorama of Mitsuwa's food court inTorrance, California

At most locations, Mitsuwa hosts a calendar of festivals and fairs. Often, they are sales events to promote deals and discounts on goods using free samples, demonstrations, limited supply, and guest celebrities like Japanese comedianTamura Kenji [ja]. The events have highlighted store brands (i.e.Ito En,Koikeya), specific cuisine (i.e.sake,Berkshire pork), foods fromJapanese prefectures and regions (i.e.Hokkaido,Ishikawa,Tōhoku), and anime (i.e.Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba,Naruto: Shippuden).

The New Jersey location hosts an annual summer festival, ornatsu matsuri, around August. The outdoor event showcases various entertainment filled with music or dance. These includebon odori (spiritual circle dance),taiko (percussion),yosakoi (energetic festival dance),hula dancing, and local band performances. For food, local vendors sell a variety of savory and sweet food, such astakoyaki,okonomiyaki, andkakigōri. They also offer traditional games and activities, likeyo-yo balloons,karaoke, andcosplay contests.^[33][34]

• Santa Clara County
  • San Jose
• Los Angeles County
  • Northridge
  • San Gabriel
  • Santa Monica
  • Torrance
• Orange County
  • Costa Mesa
  • Cypress
  • Irvine
• San Diego County
  • San Diego

• Honolulu County
  • Waikīkī

• Cook County
  • Arlington Heights

• Bergen County
  • Edgewater

• Collin County
  • Plano

• 99 Ranch Market
• H Mart
• Kam Man Food
• Marukai Corporation U.S.A.
• Nijiya Market
• T&T Supermarket

Wikimedia Commons has media related toMitsuwa Marketplace.

• Official Mitsuwa Marketplace Site
• Mitsuwa Marketplace – NJ Store(in Japanese Language) (Archive)

• Supermarkets of the United States
• Companies based in Los Angeles County, California
• Japanese-American culture in California
• Japanese supermarkets

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• Use mdy dates from August 2021
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