A California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control filing shows Island Pacific Supermarket is eyeing a 20,980-square-foot space at 8625 Woodman Ave in Arleta, the former home of a 99 Cents Only Store that shut its doors during the discount chain's 2024 collapse. The Filipino grocery chain, which already runs more than 20 stores across California, Nevada, and Washington, has not announced an opening timeline for the Arleta location as of publication.
The site sits on a 2.33-acre lot and was originally built in 1958, according to Realie, which put the property's 2025 assessed value at nearly $2.5 million. Before it went dark, the building operated as a 99 Cents Only Store, one of 371 locations the chain closed nationwide after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April 2024, as first reported by WhatNow.
That bankruptcy freed up roughly 3.8 million square feet of medium-format retail space across Southern California, according to The Real Deal, giving expanding grocers like Island Pacific a rare shot at infill real estate that local brokers say has been in short supply. The Arleta address falls inside ZIP code 91331, per the report, and sits at the center of a neighborhood the U.S. Census Bureau pegs at roughly 30,898 residents, bordered by Pacoima, Panorama City, Mission Hills, and Sun Valley.
A Return To Its San Fernando Valley Roots
Island Pacific's move into Arleta would put a store less than a mile from where the chain got its start. The company traces back to March 2000, when USC accounting graduate Nino Jefferson Lim opened the first Island Pacific location in neighboring Panorama City rather than pursue an accounting career in New York. The Arleta site sits about one mile north on Woodman Avenue from Seafood City, a rival Filipino supermarket chain with a location at 8231 Woodman Ave in Panorama City, creating a concentrated stretch of Filipino grocery competition along the corridor.
The chain now runs 17 existing stores in California, including locations in West Covina, Canoga Park, and Granada Hills, alongside three stores in the Las Vegas area and one in Washington state. Island Pacific is headquartered in City of Industry, according to Wikipedia, and has grown to 21 locations across California, Nevada, and Washington. Since February 2024, the company has been led by CEO Maite Defensor, a University of the Philippines economics graduate and former Harvard student who took the top job after holding senior roles across multiple industries.
PhilHouse And Other In-House Concepts
Many Island Pacific locations pair the grocery floor with PhilHouse, described as a cafe serving authentic home-cooked Filipino meals. The chain's broader in-house brand portfolio also includes San Honoré Panaderia for Filipino pastries, along with Crab Mentality, Chirp & Oink, and Island Pacific Cargo, according to Wikipedia. Whether any of those additional concepts would appear alongside PhilHouse at the Arleta store remains unclear, since the ABC filing confirms only Island Pacific's intent to occupy the space.
Part Of A Larger Multi-State Push
The potential Arleta store would land amid an active stretch of expansion for the company. Island Pacific plans to open a new store in the Las Vegas area later this year, and Hoodline previously reported the chain snagged an ex-99 Ranch spot in Las Vegas, taking over a 29,437-square-foot space formerly occupied by 99 Ranch Market with a reported $450,000 renovation. Hoodline also covered the chain's first Pacific Northwest store opening in Federal Way, Washington, which featured an in-house PhilHouse kitchen and San Honoré bakery.
No construction timeline, build-out budget, or confirmed opening date has surfaced for the Arleta location beyond the ABC filing itself. If it moves forward, the store would mark Island Pacific's return to the immediate stretch of the San Fernando Valley where the company opened its very first location a quarter-century earlier, this time squaring off directly against Seafood City just up Woodman Avenue.
