Lobster entrepreneur Luke Holden is bringing his expanding business model to a pier on Portland’s waterfront.
“We had the unique opportunity to be a part of a restoration project around the commercial working waterfront,” Holden says.
At a time when competition between fishermen and nonmarine businesses is rising over access to Portland’s waterfront, Holden says he is hopeful the planned 200-patron restaurant and seafood-buying operation will help solve the problem.
The company and the pier’s owner, Holden says, are investing upwards of a million dollars in the decaying wharf. Facilities will include nine berths and associated parking, dedicated to fishermen.
“They are existing births. The key there is that they were rough — unsafe for fishermen to get on and off the pier. We expanded the floats from four feet to 10 feet. So it’s just a whole lot more real estate for fishermen to actually do all of the necessary work to go out and fish,” he says.
Luke’s Lobster sends processed lobster products to consumers around the world, and the business has a new distribution agreement with Whole Foods.
There are more than 40 Luke’s Lobster shacks open in the U.S., Japan and Taiwan. A Cape Elizabeth native, Holden says he expects the company’s Portland lobster shack to open next summer.