Shams El-Mutwalli Dubai

Speciality market 1004 Gourmet is building bridges between Japan and the UAE by sourcing products from East Asia, including Japan following a surge in demand.

The store was founded by Chairman Mr. Shin, back in July 2008 and has grown enough to eventually open two branches in Dubai, along with an online store and now supply restaurants and other supermarkets with their products.

1004 Gourmet prides itself for supplying sauces, and even fresh seafood such as tuna and uni also known as sea urchin to over 350 restaurants in the UAE, include popular Japanese restaurants like Wokyo, Maru Udon, Nobu and Zuma.

Their growth doesn’t stop there, the specialty store is hoping to expand further by opening at least two more branches in the UAE and another big one in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“Before coming to Dubai in 1992, our family used to live in Riyadh so Saudi Arabia has always had sentimental value for us,” and “we wanted to look into opening in Riyadh because of the rise in popularity of K-Pop and Korean culture,” CEO, Chang Sup Shin told Arab News Japan, while also sharing how a plan to open a branch in Saudi Arabia by 2022 is in the works.

The store offers an array of products from Korea, Japan, China, Thailand, Singapore, and Taiwan made apparent by the many customers venturing in and out of their Green’s branch.

1004 Gourmet’s CEO spoke to Arab News Japan about the store, illustrating how “our Chairman Mr. Shin saw a demand in the market for more variety of Korean products for the Korean community in Dubai but after a couple of years, we recognised a growing demand from the non-Korean market. In addition to products from Korea, we branched out to import from Japan, China and other East Asian countries.”

1004 Gourmet supplies customers with a range of fruits, vegetables. grains, noodles, seasoning and sauces, beverages, and pickled foods.

There is an array of noodles available, as well as Japanese meats, customers can also find unique beverages and sweets reminiscent of Japan. The store specifically sources miso, and udon noodles, seasonal fruits like strawberries and peaches from Japan.

The market also caters to both the Muslim and non-Muslim communities by offering foods that are labelled “Halal” and placing the non-halal options in a separate section of the store.

Sup Shin, told Arab News Japan how “I have had to grow in to this role as our company grew. I recognise 1004 Gourmet’s success to our team work and organisation. With a vision of where we are and where we want to be, we are continuously pushing the boundaries of our shop both on and offline whether it’s new products, cooking classes or working with local artisans.”

Recently, 1004 Gourmet team up with JETRO, A Japanese government-related organization that promotes trade and investment, to sell gift boxes filled with treats.

This collaboration reflects JETRO’s support for the specialty store, as they aim to support local Japanese brands via 1004.

The collaboration also sheds light on the market’s desire to work towards more collaborations in the future.