Nextel plans Honolulu store

Advertiser Staff

Wireless-telephone service provider Nextel Partners Inc. plans to open a retail outlet in Honolulu as part of an effort to supplement its direct sales force and authorized dealers with company-owned stores.

Kirkland, Wash.-based Nextel, which operates in smaller U.S. markets, opened its first store Tuesday in Louisville, Ky., and is in lease negotiations for a second store in Honolulu.

The stores will help expand and service a customer base that Nextel said has more than doubled in the last year. The company, an affiliate of Nextel Communications, was established in 1998 and has about 20 direct sales representatives in Hawai'i.