Cornet Stores
shuts down nationwide

The firm became a fixture in Hawaii
retailing over the last four decades, but a
changing industry overtook it

By Rick Daysog
Star-Bulletin

A weak economy, increased competition from discount retailers and changing consumer tastes.

Those three factors helped seal the fate of Cornet Stores, a fixture in Hawaii's retailing scene for more than 40 years.

J.R. Cornet, company president, said the retail chain in April closed its two remaining isle locations -- its Kailua and Waipahu stores -- and laid off up to 35 local employees.

Last month, Cornet closed the rest of its 43 stores in seven Western states and put all of its real estate holdings on the market.

"The corporation has shut down," Cornet said yesterday. "We are out of the retailing business."

Cornet, a third-generation company executive, said the chain specialized in arts and craft supplies but that segment of the retail business has been declining during the past few years.

Local marketing analyst Marty Plotnick said Cornet sales also were hurt by the weak local economy and increased competition from discount retailers like Price/Costco, Kmart and Wal-Mart and arts-and-crafts retailers like Flora-Dec and Ben Franklin.

"I was surprised that they lasted as long as they did," said Plotnick, president of Creative Resources Inc. "Basically, Cornet didn't change with the changes in the retail industry. Nothing is forever in retailing."

Cornet opened its first local store in 1956 and its business peaked during the business boom of the 1980s. At the time, Cornet operated four stores here and the local outlets accounted for about 10 percent of the company's overall sales, the company said.

In 1995, Cornet shut down its largest store, a 169,000-square-foot outlet in Makaha, laying off more than 100 workers.

The company closed its Wahiawa store in January before shuttering its Kailua and Waipahu branches in April.

Earlier this year, Cornet put its Hawaii locations for sale and has received offers for its 36,015-square-foot Kailua building, said Cornet, who did not reveal the potential buyers' names. The company had been seeking $4 million for its Kailua store but recently dropped its asking price to $3.5 million, said Joe Haas, Cornet's local broker.

Haas said the company has not received offers for its 30,138-square-foot Waipahu store and 17,670-square-foot Wahiawa outlet.

Cornet recently dropped its asking price for its Wahiawa store to $2 million from $3 million. The asking price for the company's Waipahu store is now $2.5 million, down from $3 million, Haas said.