Vallarta Supermarkets, a popular Southern Californian Latino grocery chain, has opened its first location outside of the state.
The chain, founded in Van Nuys and headquartered in Santa Clarita, operates more than 60 locations across California. On Wednesday, it opened its first outlet outside the state in Arizona.
The store, located in Glendale, a suburb of Phoenix, Ariz., offers Mexican and other Latin American staples, including tortillas, pan dulce, agua frescas and ceviches “prepared in small batches throughout the day,” according to a statement from the company.
The store’s carnicería offers marinated meats, and the cremería features queso fresco and cotija.
Its hot, cooked meals, popular in the Californian outlets, will also be sold.
The grand opening featured mariachi performances and a grocery giveaway and marked a “huge milestone” for Vallarta Supermarkets, spokesperson Lizette Gomez said.
Gomez said the supermarket has a goal of opening about five new locations per year and is actively eyeing expansions in more states.
“This will lead the example for the rest,” Gomez said.
Within California, the company intends to open locations in Rancho Cucamonga, Bellflower, and San Jose soon.
In 2025, it opened stores in Modesto, Colton, Park Mesa Heights and Hemet.
Gomez credited the company’s success to its focus on catering to its customer base.
“We’re humble, we keep to our roots, we listen to our customers, we bring home to them, wherever they’re from,” Gomez said.
For instance, the supermarket offers everything from sushi to freshly-cut fruit served with tajín and chamoy, inspired by fruit vendors, she said.
Gomez said the Glendale outpost, one of its smaller locations, has created about 140 full and part-time jobs.
The Glendale outpost is located at the site of a former Goodwill, according to Google Street View history.
Vallarta Supermarkets traces its roots to the 1980s, when Mexican immigrant Enrique Gonzalez Sr. opened a small meat market in Van Nuys.
Under the leadership of his son Enrique Gonzalez Jr., the company added locations across Los Angeles, focusing on serving Latino customers.
The company is still owned by the Gonzalez family, according to Gomez.
Vallarta isn’t the only Southern California grocery chain rapidly expanding its footprint.
In December, Trader Joe’s bought a Santa Monica store space and opened a Costa Mesa location. That month, the Monrovia-based grocer also opened stores in Texas, Virginia, New York and South Carolina.
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