Lee Lee International Supermarkets, known for bringing Asian flavors to Arizona, has now been seasoned with a California twist. The chain, comprising three stores located in Peoria, Chandler, and Tucson, has been bought by Maison Solutions Inc., a Southern California specialty grocery firm. Maison has grabbed the Arizona market by its shopping baskets in a $22.2 million cash-and-note deal, according to a recent report from the abc15.
The acquisition spreads Maison's presence to an area ripe with Asian and ethnic communities. John Xu, the president and CEO of Maison, claimed the brand alignment was spot-on, "Lee Lee International Supermarkets has an established brand presence in Arizona, and is a perfect fit for Maison," he said, per the Business Journal. Maison plans to use the existing supermarket wheels to steer further into Arizona's growing market spaces.
Lee Lee's flagships span over sizable square footage, featuring a mix of Vietnamese restaurants, a bakery, boba tea shops, BBQ restaurants, and even jewelry and clothing stores. With such a large footprint on Arizona's grocery terrain, the Asian grocery chain has nourished locals for over three decades, serving up an annual revenue upwards of $70 million.
As Maison takes the driver’s seat, the company is also steering through fiscal bumps. Despite a dip in their last quarterly earnings, they pin their hopes on this new venture doubling their current size. "The strategic acquisition is expected to add approximately $70 million in annual revenue for us, effectively doubling our current size," Xu said, which should be welcome news for shareholders alarmed by last quarter's loss exceeding half a million bucks, and a nine-month loss of $470,802. The losses, attributed to increased selling, general, and administrative expenses, Maison's execs are banking on new market opportunities to stabilize their financials.
Lee Lee's change of ownership is more than just a matter of dollars and cents, it resonates with a demographic shift in Phoenix. As the city's semiconductor industry blooms, drawing numerous tech immigrants from Taiwan, the hunger for Asian products and services has spiked. This appetite has been noted by city officials and business leaders who are keen on expanding Asian retail spaces, and Lee Lee's takeover offers just the kind of market meat Maison Solutions was looking to carve into.
