Tiendas Topeka (or Topeka Stores) was a large Puerto Rican department store chain.
History
Like many of his fellow Cubans, Julio Estrella arrived in Puerto Rico in the early '60s. In Cuba he had a successful miscellaneous-wholesale operation, which he decided to start up in Puerto Rico with the help of his brother and his nephew. Following the advice of a friend, who happened to be a successful merchant in New York, Estrella decided to venture into the retail business, opening the first Topeka store on Loiza Street in Santurce in 1967. "We stocked our store with some of the same articles we offered through our wholesale business and with some articles from other suppliers," recalled Estrella. “We also got a break from our friend in New York, who gave us a generous line of credit to begin our operation.” The store's offerings were revamped after Estrella's nephew noticed that Santurce needed a place where area residents could purchase articles for the home at affordable prices. Topeka's shift in inventory caused sales to double within a year, said Estrella. When the operation was generating enough sales to allow investing in advertising, Estrella placed ads in the newspaper and on the radio, which helped push sales even further. Two years later, the first Topeka store in Puerto Rico reported sales of $2 million. After the success of the Loiza Street store, the Estrellas expanded their operation, opening new stores in Hato Rey, Río Piedras, Caguas, Carolina, and Arecibo. As for the Topeka name, its origins became somewhat cloudy with time. Estrella once said it was the name of a nightclub he frequented in his native Cuba. Another possible origin is rooted in frugality. The first Topeka store opened in a location where a store called Kimbo used to be. To take advantage of the existing "K" on the store sign, the name Topeka was chosen. The better known Topeka, Kan., had a role in the company's development, as Estrella named another of his business ventures after the neighboring town of Yakima. Topeka would go on to compete with local store chains on the island over the years such as La Reina, Pitusa, and Tiendas Capri.
On June 30, 1988, a new Topeka store would open at the Carolina Shopping Court in Carolina as an anchor to the mall.
In 1998, Hurricane Georges would destroy the Arecibo store, and Estrella owner of Topeka Inc. decided it wouldn't be cost effective to refurbish and reopen it.