Stepping into Monaco Market feels at first like going into any other convenience store in the area, but in a shopping center. A quick look around reveals that Monaco Market is nothing like any other store in town.
 
The store, located in the University Landing shopping center on South College Road near the University of North Carolina Wilmington, brings a variety of food cultures to the area.
 
“We definitely wanted to create an atmosphere for our business,” said Prince Rayyan, co-founder and co-owner of the recently opened store.
 
Monaco Market’s snacks are imported from other places. Some are familiar names to U.S. consumers but in flavors available abroad. Examples include KitKat candy bars from Brazil, potato chips from Germany and cotton candy from Australia. Prince Rayyan said the store also carries products from other countries, including Malaysia, Japan, Italy, Mexico and the United Kingdom.
 
Together with his brother Fahad and a cousin, Prince Rayyan opened the store in February this year. While Monaco Market could seem tailored for college students, the owners are just as eager to appeal to anyone who appreciates international snack foods.
 
The Rayyans have been around convenience stores their entire lives. Their father, Sam, who died in 2022, practically raised them in his own business, so the business model comes naturally to them. With that, the brothers wanted to open a unique store. Their interest in foreign snacks sparked the concept.  
 
“We have niche brands, such as Oreo cookies wafer cakes,” Prince Rayyan said, adding that the products found at Monaco Market are hard to find in Wilmington and even in the United States. “The products we carry are items that are regularly sold in other countries but are not often sold in the United States.”
 
He pointed out one of his biggest sellers: Kentucky Fried Chicken potato chips, which he jokes really do taste like KFC chicken. These particular chips, branded with the U.S. fast-food chain, aren’t widely available at domestic retailers except for export shops and instead have been sold in Europe. It’s just one example of familiar U.S. snack names that appear in different versions overseas.
 
“It’s quite amazing the foods that are carried in other places that just for branding purposes are only sold there,” Prince Rayyan said.  
 
In addition, the store has a ramen bar and a boba tea bar.
 
Prince Rayyan said that while the ramen bar was targeted at nearby college students, the owners have been pleasantly surprised to see noncollege students flocking to the ramen bar and stopping by for specialty boba tea.
 
For the Rayyan brothers, the store’s opening is a dream come true, despite the long hours and daily grind.
 
“We are here from early in the morning until 10 at night some days, but it’s worth it,” Prince Rayyan said.
 
The store’s ongoing goal is to keep customers happy and coming back, while also introducing new products for them to try regularly.
 
If store traffic is any indication, the Rayyan brothers are bound for success. While Prince Rayyan said there are slow periods, he emphasized that daily traffic remains consistent, and weekends are especially busy with consumers eager to try something new.
 
Born and raised in Wilmington, the brothers graduated from UNCW’s Cameron School of Business with majors in finance.
 
Prince Rayyan said his education paved the way for the store and prepared him to be a business owner, adding that he uses his college education every day.
 
He said that the brothers’ major at UNCW enabled them to craft their business plan, develop their branding and plan for future growth.
 
The store’s branding includes a simple bodega cat, alluding to the popular cats of New York bodegas, or small grocery stores. Prince Rayyan said future plans for the store include developing select items that identify with the bodega cat brand that signifies the store. He said the owners are already planning new items for the coming summer months.
 
He added that, while there have been a few hiccups, such as delayed deliveries of some products due to tariffs, Monaco Market has been fortunate to receive most items.
 
“As a business owner, you certainly have to be cautious,” Prince Rayyan said. “Thankfully, we understand the functionality of our business from front to back.”
 
He said the store is hard work, but it’s also rewarding.
 
“I can wake up every morning, and I’m proud of myself,” he said. “We are looking ahead to the future.”