Uwajimaya is returning to Tacoma at the former site of Hobby Lobby on 23rd street. Denise Morguchi, president and CEO of Uwajimaya, responded to questions and confirmed they signed a lease for a new location in Tacoma.
While the store won’t open until 2027, an $8 million dollar building improvement project is expected to start in July.
Originally founded in Tacoma by Fujimatsu and Sadako Morguchi, the two were interned after the U.S. entered into World War II. While Tacoma had an internment camp on the site of the Puyallup fairgrounds, the Morguchi’s were brought to Tule Lake, California.
After their release they relocated the store to Seattle and opened locations in Bellevue, Renton, and Beaverton, Oregon.
One of the owners of the property, Josh Parnell said in a statement to the News Tribune “Uwajimaya locating a store in Tacoma Central makes perfect sense to serve the entire Pierce County market. There will be an enthusiastic reception when they open.”