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Cross-Cultural Connection

Hiller's Markets serve a growing ethnic niche.

ADRIEN CHANDLER
Special to the Jewish News

W

hen Noriko Senda of West
Bloomfield needs to shop
for a little taste of home,
she heads to Hiller's Market in
Commerce Township. The main aisle
in the rear of the supermarket has
become a store within a store, stock-
ing hundreds of imported Japanese
food items.
Senda frequents the store especially
for the Japanese products and for
fresh fish.."Yes, yes. It's very good to
have this here. I hope there will be
even more Japanese food here," she
says.
Because of the enormous selection
of Japanese products, "This is now a
destination store," said James Hiller,
CEO of Southfield-based Hiller's
Markets. "Some of our Japanese cus-
tomers drive 20 or 25 miles to shop
here."
But it's not just the Japanese who
are buying the products; so are
American customers. "We live in a
global society, with the globalization
of food products," Hiller said.
Jewish consumers are easily his sec-
ond largest group of customers for the
Japanese products. "The Japanese
want hot dogs and Cheerios, while

Mieko Inaba of West Bloomfield gets help from Satomi Matsuda, director o
Japanese food for Hiller's Markets. Below: More Japanese products.

Joel H. Kaufman

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Americans see [TV chef] Emeril
Lagasse using panko [Japanese bread
crumbs] in his recipes," Hiller said.
The Japanese section is a matter of
niche marketing, as well as smart
business. A recent article in
Supermarket News reports that grocery
retailers are realizing the importance
of marketing to Asian consumers,
who comprise 3.6 percent of the U.S.
population. The Japanese consulate
said there are approximately 7,000
Japanese living in Metro Detroit.
When the Commerce Township
store opened in 1991, Hiller noticed
the large numbers of Japanese cus-
tomers. They told him they shopped
there because of the quality of the
products, especially the seafood. "So I
hit upon the idea of providing a full
range of foods for Japanese cus-
tomers," he said.
The store started out offering
basics, but Hiller knew he needed
someone to help him develop and
grow this niche market. Satomi
Matsuda was hired in 1998 as Hiller's
director of Japanese foods to develop
a comprehensive plan.
To reach out to the Japanese com-
munity, Hiller's produces a Japanese
language
b b newsletter — introducing
these customers to American food
items and trends. He advertises in

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