Enoki mushrooms lasted about four hours. Bean sprouts were gone within six. Smaller containers of kimchi sold out in less than two days.

That was the welcome Fina’s Asian Market received after opening Friday in Glenwood Springs. The market, located at 2828 South Glen Ave., is the brain-child of longtime Glenwood Springs residents James Duffey and Fina Rudianti, who saw a gap in the local grocery market and spent years planning how to fill it.

“We’ve got private chefs coming in that are saying I couldn’t find this (product) for years,” Duffey said. 

The store offers a wide variety of hard-to-find products. Duffey said he wants to help shoppers find ways to integrate new and unfamiliar products into their cooking. 

“I am currently working on recipes and information alongside the produce, so you can just quickly scan it. It’ll give a quick explanation of what it is and what you can do with it,” Duffey said. 

So far, one of the store’s biggest challenges has been keeping shelves stocked. 

Duffey said an “absolutely overwhelming amount of people” visited the market after it opened Friday, quickly depleting much of its inventory.

“We were not anticipating that many people, so it kind of wiped out our inventory. But we’re getting new stuff in all this week and all next week, so we’ll keep getting that in,” Duffey said. 

“That was kind of a shock, but it’s a good one to have,” he added. 

Many of the products sold were previously available locally only by ordering online, often at higher prices, or by traveling to larger communities.

“Obviously there’s a demand for it,” Duffey said. 

Fina’s Asian Market is also taking requests from customers for products that are difficult to find in the Roaring Fork Valley.

Rudianti, for whom the store is named, and Duffey have been planning to open an Asian market for the past five years, but struggled to find a suitable location. That changed about 10 months ago when the South Glen Avenue space became available.

Duffey said they have been “thrilled” with the community’s response.

“It’s been a very warm welcome, and we’re very appreciative of that,” Duffey said.