The 11th shop of a chain that started on Maui, Blue Ginger Family has been offering resort wear for about a quarter century. Blue Ginger will keep open its shop in the Kings’ Shops that
BY BOBBY COMMAND
WEST HAWAII TODAY
bcommand@westhawaiitoday.com
It’s a place where the past mixes with the present, the kamaaina with the malihini and the youthful with the mature.
The $200 million Queens’ MarketPlace, which opened Monday at the Waikoloa Resort, is designed with elements of Hawaii’s melting pot society to create what it hopes will be a gathering place for both residents and visitors.
With half of the more than 70 spaces already leased, the 135,000-square-foot Queens’ MarketPlace is still shopping for tenants, although its anchor space, occupied by Island Gourmet Markets, as well as its next three largest spaces, have been filled with restaurants.
But the Queens’ MarketPlace will be more than a shopping mall, said Debbie Parmley, vice president and general manager of commercial real estate for Waikoloa Land Co., which along with CoastWood Capital Group, own the new marketplace. Parmley said she envisions it to be a nightly entertainment center.
With gathering areas such as the Coronation Pavilion in the Queens’ Garden, the 14,205-square-foot enclosed entertainment center known as “The Studio” and the 4,000-person Performance Garden mauka of the shops, the Queens’ MarketPlace should soon attract performances and concerts ranging from not just Hawaiian music and hula, but everything under the hot Gold Coast sun from classical music to rock ‘n’ roll.
“That’s part of what we’re trying to create,” Parmley said. “We want to provide a great environment where a family can find that special item for someone, eat dinner, relax and know what Hawaii is all about.”
Parmley said all the cultures that influenced Hawaii are reflected in the architecture of the marketplace. But beyond buildings looking like they’re influenced by Hawaiian, Chinese, Japanese, missionary and all the other cultures that came to Hawaii, the marketplace features those cultures in performances, displays of artifacts and historical items, and the Waikoloa Cultural Gardens, which will contain landscaping and items special to each ethnic group.
As for shopping, one of the most anticipated features will be the 23,627-square-foot Island Gourmet Markets, a joint venture of KTA and ABC Stores.
“This will be a unique and special offering,” said Parmley. “Shoppers will be able to find a good assortment of meats, fish, cheese and local produce,” she said. “But, yes, if you just need a loaf of bread, they’ll be able to help you, too.”
Parmley said that despite its location in the Waikoloa Resort, the Queens’ MarketPlace will have choices for both visitor and resident.
One of those shops that caters to both crowds is Persimmon, a women’s clothing store owned by Kenya Holmes. Formerly an employee of Roy’s Waikoloa at the Kings’ Shops, Holmes set out on her own seven years ago to start her own business, when she opened Persimmon in Hawi.
Business has been brisk with her offerings of everything from go-go dresses to cocktail dresses. “I’m excited and nervous,” said Holmes about opening of her new store. “It’s like having a baby.”
Actually, it will be more like two babies, since Holmes will keep the Hawi store open. She has also entrusted the success of her business to the seven employees who now work in her two stores.
Another clothing store that will cater to both local and visitor markets is Blue Ginger Family, owned by Becky Erickson and her sister, Jill Mackie.
The 11th shop of a chain that started on Maui, Blue Ginger Family has been offering resort wear for about a quarter century. Blue Ginger will keep open its shop in the Kings’ Shops that