A Food Retail Morning

 

6/12/25 TJ's in Greenwood

Two popular chains opened new stores on the west side of the city – H Mart (an Asian food store) in Ballard and Trader Joe’s in Greenwood. Each chain has a store in the U-District, which is much closer to my ‘hood, but those are both small and have non-existent or difficult parking areas. Excited to welcome it, I’d already shopped at the new TJ’s a few weeks ago, but H Mart had just opened the prior week. I decided to hit both last Thursday morning and sketch them from their respective parking lots.

TJ’s has a somewhat unusual enclosed shopping cart area outside the store that people can’t see as they use the street-front entrance. A cheerful staff member was stationed near the carts to remind people to grab one before entering. She was also very helpful in retrieving carts after people loaded their cars. Inside, the equally helpful staff were as chatty and friendly as they usually are at TJ’s. It’s one reason I like to shop there (and now this better Greenwood location will make me want to shop there even more).

H Mart in Ballard

H Mart still had a festive red and white balloon arch from their grand opening in front of the entrance. That was the extent of their friendliness, however; the staff seemed dour and overworked, even though the store wasn’t crowded at all. Still, I enjoyed leisurely walking up and down each aisle to see the offerings, listening to K-pop music (a nice break from the ‘70s or contemporary pop music I typically hear at most food stores). I don’t need many things from H Mart, but it’s nice to know how close and easy it is to shop there now when I do need them.