The local, family-owned Petland is closing its final location in Kahala about 80 years after its founder started out selling goldfish in a wheelbarrow up and down Chinatown.
Born and raised in Hawaiʻi, founder Jiro Matsui was a decorated member of the 100th Infantry Battalion/442nd Regimental Combat Team during World War II.
Upon his return and in addition to taking classes at the University of Hawaiʻi, he started breeding and selling goldfish — eventually leading to the first Petland location.
He passed down the business to his son Kenneth Matsui, who has been running the business for about 30 years. Rich Matsui, the third generation Matsui and Kenneth's son, said it was a hard decision for his dad to close the last remaining retail store.
"There's a lot of my childhood, you know, involved in these pet stores. It's a very strange feeling to have this conversation with someone because growing up, I thought I was going to be running this store someday," Rich Matsui said. "Sometimes life doesn't quite take you in that direction."
He said Amazon's new distribution center on Oʻahu, plus other e-commerce options, was one of the factors behind the closure.
"We got through Walmart. We got through Petco. I'm not convinced that we would have been able to survive, especially with the same-day delivery that this Amazon warehouse is going to enable," he said. "I do worry about this generation of remaining local businesses that are trying to hold on here."
"For us, at least, it was made somewhat easier by the fact there was a confluence of two factors. So the first was just the health scare that my father had. So that, of course, being a big one. But the other is really this economic angle," Rich Matsui added.
Though Petland's last retail location is closing, the company will continue operating its wholesale business.
The store is forecast to close in September. Most items in the store are 30% off.
This interview aired on The Conversation on Aug. 15, 2024. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1.
