Harbor Freight plans January opening in New Kensington

Harbor Freight’s store in New Kensington will open in late January, a company spokeswoman said Wednesday.

In Riverview Plaza along Tarentum Bridge Road, it will be the company’s 67th store in Pennsylvania and fourth in Westmoreland County, said Donna Walker, a spokeswoman for Harbor Freight in Calabasas, Calif.

“It will be much more convenient for our customers in the New Kensington community, as currently they travel about 10 miles to our Monroeville location, 13 miles to our Pittsburgh location or 19 miles to our Pleasant Hills store,” she said.

The 15,750-square-foot tools store sits atop part of the footprint of a former Kmart, which was in the plaza for nearly 55 years. Part of that space is occupied by Aldi, which opened in March 2023.

The New Kensington Kmart closed in 2019. Kmart’s last full-scale U.S. store, in Bridgehampton, N.Y., on Long Island, is scheduled to close Sunday.

The New Kensington Harbor Freight is smaller than big-box stores in its category, which Walker said the company sees as a competitive advantage.

“Many of our customers are professional trades workers who want to stop in, find what they need and then head out quickly to their job site or workshop,” she said. “For other customers, this size makes it easier to browse and find our great deals.”

The store will have 25 to 30 employees, Walker said. Interested applicants can apply online at harborfreightjobs.com/retail and search for “New Kensington, Pa.”

“We consider ourselves to be one of the best places to work in the retail industry, with highly competitive pay, great benefits and the opportunity to advance in one of the fastest growing companies in retail,” Walker said.

A new Starbucks cafe also is under construction in Riverview Plaza. City council approved construction of both stores in February.

Starbucks plans to open its new store in the spring, a spokesperson said.