Inside Sukoshi Mart’s latest, much larger location in Scarborough

Sukoshi Mart opened their original, hole-in-the-wall outpost in Kensington Market in March of this year. The name means, “a little bit” in Japanese, and their goal was to carry a little bit of everything, like the popular pint-sized convenience stores in Japan that sell bento boxes alongside beauty products and cutesy school supplies. The original location initially started out as a side project for Linda Dang and Nancy Young, who were focusing on launching their sake bar Koi Koi (Dang also owns North Poké). But it became such a sensation they decided to expand. In their new 2,500-square-foot digs inside the Scarborough Town Centre, which used to belong to a Lululemon, there’s room for even more variety, and they try to source brands that big-name Asian stores don’t stock. “We want to get goods people have never seen before,” says Young. Their skincare lineup is especially strong, with an entire wall of sheet masks and cult-favourite Korean brands like Cosrx.

The other location sells fresh meals made daily, but there’s no kitchen here. They do have a few desserts, though, including daifuku mochi by Sasaki Fine Pastry.

Shoppers can score five sheet masks for $15. They feature ingredients like snail mucus and pearl extract:

Here are some more:

Young and Dang love dogs, so decided to make their logo a shiba. He now appears on tote bags, post-its and patches:

Since the place used to belong to Lululemon, all they had to do was paint and bring in new fixtures. They love that they’re right beside another Japanese brand, Muji:

Their beauty lineup includes jade and rose quartz rollers:

Two whole walls at the back are reserved for unconventional snacks:

Apparently the green package is surprisingly delicious. “It looks like a cheesepuff but it’s actually a caramel corn flavour, and the puff is matcha-flavoured,” says Young. “The first time I had it I ate a whole bag in one sitting.”

Warning: pushing this guy’s belly is extremely addictive:

Why buy regular Kit Kats when you can get ones that are flavoured like strawberry cheesecake or adzuki sandwiches?

There’s no shortage of sweets. Their Kasugai gummies, which look and taste kinda like grapes, are especially popular and even made our holiday gift guide:

Their shiba socks would make great stocking stuffers:

This canned iced coffee tastes exactly like real iced coffee:

Here are the rest of the beverages:

They also carry pretty utensils, including chopsticks and floral cutlery holders: