Ken's Market

What Ken's Market does

Ken's Market is a Seattle-based, family-owned independent grocery operator founded in 1955 that runs two neighborhood stores — Ken's Market in Greenwood (7231 Greenwood Ave. N) and Marketime Foods in Fremont (4416 Fremont Ave. N) — both operating 7am–10pm seven days a week. The product offering is a full-service grocery assortment organized into departments: deli (scratch-prepared sandwiches, soups, salads, rotating hot food, charcuterie), produce (local and organic, seasonal), meat and seafood (humanely raised, sustainable), grocery (staples plus local packaged goods), coffee and bakery (Lighthouse Roasters espresso plus pastries from Macrina, Marsee, Essential, Little Rae's, Seattle Bagel, Boulart), and a beer, wine and spirits section weighted toward Washington producers. Differentiated offerings include the Nuovo Amico olive oil (exclusive) and a recurring smash-burger program on Tuesdays and Thursdays, plus catering for events (48-hour pickup notice) and online gift cards redeemable across both stores.

The underlying technology footprint is minimal: a standard e-commerce platform is used solely for online gift card sales, with no proprietary technology, no app, no integrations, and no disclosed AI capabilities. The revenue model is straightforward transaction-based retail across five streams — grocery, prepared foods and deli, catering, beer/wine/spirits, and gift cards — with no subscription, membership, or contract-based recurring revenue. Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer brick-and-mortar, supplemented by organic social (Facebook and Instagram for both stores), email newsletter, and in-store seasonal promotions; customer segments are geographic (Greenwood and Fremont residents as the primary segment) with a secondary segment of local businesses and organizations placing catering orders.

The company has remained under single-family ownership for approximately 70 years with no external investors, no parent company, and no disclosed leadership transitions; the company has no subsidiaries, no funding history, no M&A activity, no patents or trademarks, and no regulatory actions on record. Its competitive position rests on a curated local-producer supplier ecosystem, exclusive specialty SKUs, neighborhood density, and community engagement rather than technology, scale, or pricing differentiation.

Name

Ken's Market

Legal name

Ken's Market

Website

https://kensmarkets.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1955

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ken's Market is a family-owned independent grocery operator since 1955 running two full-service Seattle neighborhood stores — Ken's Market in Greenwood and Marketime Foods in Fremont — selling local, scratch-prepared grocery, deli, meat, seafood, beer/wine, and catering to nearby residents and small businesses.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Grocery Retail

NAICS

Specialty Food Retailers (4452), Other Specialty Food Retailers (44529)

SIC

Retail-Grocery Stores (5411), Retail-Food Stores (5400)

akta.pro primary industry

Farmstead & Local Artisan Food Markets (Retail Shops) (CRAHAGAO)

Keywords

• Grocery retail
• Deli prepared foods
• Catering services
• Beer wine spirits
• Fresh produce

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Retail Grocery Sales: Revenue from selling groceries including produce, meat, seafood, dairy, packaged goods, and household items across both store locations.
2. Prepared Foods and Deli: Revenue from freshly prepared deli items including sandwiches, soups, salads, and hot food options sold daily at both locations.
3. Catering Services: Custom catering orders for events including office parties, showers, and birthdays. Orders placed via phone with 48 hours notice and picked up at stores.
4. Beer, Wine & Spirits: Revenue from alcohol sales including local craft beer, Washington wines, and spirits with emphasis on regional producers.
5. Gift Cards: Online gift card sales that can be redeemed at either Ken's Market in Greenwood or Marketime in Fremont.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Ken's Market is a family-owned neighborhood grocery business that operates two physical supermarket locations in Seattle, Washington — Ken's Market in Greenwood and Marketime Foods in Fremont. The stores sell groceries across departments including produce, meat and seafood, bakery, floral, beer/wine/spirits, and a deli offering prepared foods, smash burgers, and an exclusive branded extra virgin olive oil. The company also offers catering services and gift cards, and shares recipes and weekly specials through its website.

Product overview

Ken's Market and Marketime Foods are two independent neighborhood grocery stores in Seattle (Greenwood and Fremont respectively), operating since 1955. The product portfolio consists of two store locations offering full-service grocery with distinct departments: Deli (fresh sandwiches, soups, salads, rotating hot food), Produce (local/organic seasonal items), Meat & Seafood (sustainably raised, local), Grocery (staples plus specialty items from local producers), Coffee & Bakery (espresso bar, local pastries and breads), Beer/Wine/Spirits (emphasis on Washington products), plus Catering and Gift Card services. Ken's Market also features exclusive products like Nuovo Amico Olive Oil, and both locations offer smash burgers on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The stores emphasize locally sourced, sustainable, and scratch-made foods.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Ken's Market — Greenwood Store

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Phinneywood Neighborhood AssociationminorOthersCommunity organization supported by Ken's Market as part of their neighborhood commitment. The company actively participates in local causes and community initiatives in the Greenwood and Fremont areas.
• Fremont Chamber of CommerceminorOthersLocal business organization supported by Ken's Market. The company maintains active involvement in the Fremont business community.
• North Central Little LeagueminorOthersYouth sports organization receiving support from Ken's Market as part of their community giving program.
• Family Works Food BankminorOthersLocal food bank supported by Ken's Market through community outreach and food donations.
• NAMI (National Alliance On Mental Illness)minorOthersMental health advocacy organization receiving support from Ken's Market as part of their community commitment.
• Local Produce SupplierscoreOthersPartnerships with local growers for produce including Billy's Gardens for heirloom tomatoes. Emphasis on local and organic sourcing for seasonal produce.
• Lighthouse RoasterscoreOthersLocal Seattle coffee roaster featured at Ken's Market espresso bars. For over 30 years, Lighthouse Roasters has been hand roasting small-batch coffee using a vintage 1952 Gothot cast-iron drum roaster.
• Local BakeriescoreOthersPartnerships with local Seattle bakeries including Marsee Baking, Essential Baking Co., Little Rae's, Seattle Bagel Bakery, Macrina Bakery, and Boulart for pastries, breads, and desserts.
• Local Meat SupplierscoreOthersPartnerships with local producers including Jack Mountain Meats, Painted Hills Natural Beef (Fossil Oregon), Draper Valley Farms, Uli's Sausages, and Bavarian Meats for humanely and sustainably raised meat.
• Local Seafood SupplierscoreOthersSustainable seafood partnerships including locally harvested oysters, Washington coast rockfish, Norwegian steelhead, and small batch smoked salmon and lox from Gerard and Dominique.
• Local Grocery SupplierscoreOthersSupport for local food producers including Ziva Hummus, Carso's Pasta, and Ellenos Yogurt - all independent Seattle area-based companies.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Mutual Fish Co. Seattle-area seafood specialist comparable to Ken's meat/seafood department on sustainable sourcing, local/regional procurement, and scratch-prepared offerings.
• DeLaurenti's Specialty Food & Wine: Seattle Pike Place specialty food/wine retailer comparable to Ken's on the curated-specialty, hard-to-find-assortment angle, though smaller and single-location.

Direct peers

• Metropolitan Market: PNW-based independent upscale neighborhood grocer with full-service deli, scratch-prepared foods, and strong local sourcing — the closest direct comparable to Ken's Market in terms of positioning, format, and customer base across Seattle/Puget Sound.
• Town & Country Markets: Independent PNW neighborhood grocer (Bainbridge Island, Kirkland, Lakemont) operating small-format full-service stores with strong deli and local sourcing — a near-twin operating model to Ken's Market.
• PCC Community Markets: Seattle-based community-owned co-op grocer emphasizing local, organic, and sustainable products with strong prepared foods; comparable to Ken's on local-sourcing, deli/prepared foods, and Seattle footprint.
• New Seasons Market: Pacific Northwest neighborhood natural-foods grocer with emphasis on local producers, scratch deli, and curated beer/wine — closely comparable in assortment philosophy and customer demographic.

Broad incumbents

• Whole Foods Market: National upscale grocer with multiple Seattle-area stores emphasizing organic, local, prepared foods, and curated beer/wine; competes for the same customer wallet share but at much larger scale and with digital/delivery infrastructure.
• Safeway (Albertsons banner): Long-established Seattle-area supermarket chain offering full grocery plus deli/bakery and pickup/delivery; competes for mainstream neighborhood grocery trips.
• QFC (Kroger banner): Major regional supermarket banner owned by Kroger with deep Seattle penetration; competes on convenience, price, and increasingly on local/prepared offerings relative to Ken's.
• Trader Joe's: National specialty grocery chain with a Seattle-area presence competing for the same prepared-foods, specialty, and neighborhood-shopping occasions as Ken's Market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/KensMarketGreenwood
• Instagraminstagram.com/kensmarket/?hl=en
• Xx.com/kens_market

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ken's Market