KTA Super Stores celebrates 110 years

KTA Super Stores is celebrating its 110th anniversary, marking more than a century of serving Hawaiʻi Island and the generations of families and communities who have helped shape the locally-owned and operated company since 1916. KTA was founded by Koichi and Taniyo Taniguchi as a 500-square-foot grocery and dry goods store in Waiākea Town, now the Banyan Drive area of Hilo. At that time, Hilo was a bustling wharf town, serving boats in Hilo Bay. The sugar industry was booming, and where today there is asphalt and four-wheeled vehicles, railroad tracks and steam engines were the dominant mode of commercial transportation in the early 20th century. Wooden storefronts ringed Hilo Bay, beckoning ship crews from the Hilo Wharf to come in to stretch their legs and stock up on goods. A Focus on Community KTA, however, has always been focused on serving the local community. In the early days, Koichi took grocery orders from Hilo families and delivered their purchases by bicycle.

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