Business Community

Business planned for Harborview Drive hopes to offer a place for Gig Harbor to gather

In 1979, with their native Iran in the midst of a revolution,  a family arrived in the United States with hope and the determination to start over.

Pouneh Minovi Kaufman’s family settled in Gig Harbor and began to rebuild their lives. She was 6 years old at the time.

Minovi Kaufman said the community welcomed her family warmly, and that support has stayed with her ever since. She wants to give back to the town that helped her family during that time of upheaval. 

gather Gig Harbor

Minovi Kaufman and her mother, Mandy Minovi, hope to do that by opening a new business they call gather Gig Harbor (with a lowercase g) next year. Their vision is to provide a market and a place for people to connect and share, Minovi Kaufman said.

The business will be at 3126 Harborview Drive. Minovi Kaufman and Peter Kaufman purchased that property in January, according to Pierce County Assessor’s Office records.

Blue Wind Boutique is the current tenant there, and Kaufman said she will honor its lease, which runs through May.

Pouneh Minovi Kaufman and her mother, Mandy Minovi, plan to open a new business called gather Gig Harbor at 3126 Harborview Drive next year. Photo courtesy of Pouneh Minovi Kaufman

Minovi Kaufman has not begun applying for permits for the business yet, according to the city of Gig Harbor’s online permit portal. But they have big plans for the space.

“There is a lot of work to do, but we are excited about it,” Minovi Kaufman said. “There are two buildings on the property, and we are planning to turn the front building into a specialty food market with pre-packaged food, sunscreen, band aids, and things people need who are boaters, as well as the residents.”

The market will also sell products from Minovi Kaufman’s other business, a mobile charcuterie and catering business opened last year called Harbor Bites and Boards.

Big plans for building

They plan to build a rooftop deck with seating on the front building. The second current building, on the rear of the property, will be demolished. In its place they hope to build a community room for local events, book clubs, and cooking classes. The community room would be available for use rent-free, she said.

“It’s a way to give back to the community,” Minovi Kaufman said. “We purchased these buildings with a dream bigger than ourselves, but we need city approval in remodeling them so they can become the spaces our community deserves. Our hope is that we can build a low-income housing (unit) for people in need. We want to work with the city to provide housing, so we are hoping to have one- or two-bedroom housing on top of that building.”

The rendering of the planned specialty market at 3126 Harborview Drive shows a rooftop deck, seating, and vibrant storefront. Rendering courtesy of Pouneh Minovi Kaufman

Giving back

Minovi Kaufman and her mother hope to use their business to support mothers and children in need with transitional housing and food. The goal is to create a stabilizing space that “reflects our own journey and the belief that no one should have to start over alone,” she said.

The mother-daughter operators hope to begin the permitting process with the city later this month, but Minovi Kaufman said she doesn’t expect to have significant progress on the project until 2027.

“We rebuilt our lives from the ground up, supported by the kindness of strangers and the strength of community,” Minovi Kaufman said. “That experience shaped everything we believe in today: when people open their doors to one another, healing and possibility follow.”

Pouneh Minovi Kaufman and Mandy Minovi hope to build a meeting space in a second building in the rear of the property at 3126 Harborview Dr. Rendering courtesy of Pouneh Minovi Kaufman