Perhaps no one has done more to bring Asian shopping centers to communities across the Bay Area than John Luk.
Luk launched his career in commercial real estate years after arriving in the South Bay from Hong Kong for a career in nursing. But noticing the lack of Asian grocery stores and banquet halls as demographics shifted in the South Bay, he formed a partnership in 1993 to open Milpitas Square, one of the Bay Area’s first large Asian-themed shopping malls, with around 60 retail shops and restaurants.
Since then, Luk’s firm, GD Commercial Real Estate, has been involved with developing, leasing and managing more than a dozen shopping centers in Santa Clara and Alameda counties, including Lion Plaza in San Jose and Pacific Pearl Shopping Center in Pleasanton.
Over a lunch of lobster egg noodles and pork spare ribs at the Mayflower Seafood Restaurant in Milpitas Square, Luk shared his unlikely career path, the strategies behind his success and what he believes his shopping centers mean to the Bay Area’s Asian communities.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Q What brought you from Hong Kong to the Bay Area?
A I graduated from high school at 17 and went into nursing in Hong Kong. I worked in government hospitals and quickly took on leadership roles. That background gave me the legitimacy to apply for a U.S. visa.
I came from Hong Kong in 1975, at age 26. I worked in the emergency room at Kaiser in Santa Clara. When they interviewed me, they asked, “Can you handle the emergency room? English isn’t your first language.” I told them, “You can test me on the night shift.” Within two years, I became head nurse. I was determined to succeed. That attitude has stayed with me—in nursing and in real estate.
Q How did you make the leap into commercial real estate?
A I was living in Milpitas more than 40 years ago. I watched my neighborhood change — more and more Asian residents — but there was no place to hang out, no family gathering place and no good Asian grocery stores.
Then I noticed the Milpitas Square location: It’s at the intersection of highways 880 and 237, only a few miles from Sunnyvale, close to North San Jose, near large Asian populations — Filipino, Vietnamese, Chinese. But we were missing a good Asian supermarket and a proper center to serve them.
I could see the demographic shift. Asians were becoming the majority.
Q How did you get Milpitas Square off the ground?
A We started around 1993, basically from ground zero. I began marketing it myself. It wasn’t easy. I brought in Ranch 99 from L.A. and put together my own partnership for this center. We invested about $3 million. Even 30 years ago, that was a lot of money. I opened it myself with that partnership. Without a good team, the center would have looked very different.
Back then, there weren’t many Asian grocery options. Now, of course, there are many Asian supermarkets and grocery stores everywhere.
Once we were locked in the supermarket, I formed a partnership to open the restaurant. There were no banquet facilities locally — people had to go to San Francisco. Now it’s the opposite: People from San Francisco come down here because it’s cleaner, more professional, with better parking. We now have more than 30 Asian restaurants at the mall. People have choices.
GD Commercial Real Estate Executive Managing Director John Luk talks during an interview at Mayflower Seafood Restaurant in the Milpitas Square shopping center on June 4, 2026, in Milpitas, Calif. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
Q What did you do next? What other malls did you help open?
A After Milpitas, I went to Fremont — Warm Springs and Mission — and did a 96,000‑square‑foot commercial condo project with Marina Food as anchor. Then I added a Ranch 99 at the corner. I also worked on an older mall in Newark, about 50 years old, and helped renovate and re‑tenant it, bringing it to a more professional level with the right mix.
For most of the major Asian malls in the Bay Area, I’ve left a footprint. I try to do things professionally: bring in corporate tenants, dress up the restaurants and make sure the center feels high-quality.
Q How do you evaluate a potential tenant?
A I always deal with the decision‑maker and often try their food at their existing locations — Milpitas, Cupertino, wherever. I ask whether they want to come to an Asian mall and whether they’re willing to take a larger space for a banquet hall or a smaller one for a casual eatery. I’m persistent, but I’m also very careful in choosing anchors.
The supermarket and the banquet restaurant are the key anchors. Once you have those, you can build everything else around them.
Q What’s next for you? Do you have plans for new malls or expansions?
A It’s about finding the right strategic locations and owners who understand my philosophy. The Milpitas Square mall, for example, was originally zoned for auto uses. The developer asked, “Should we build an auto mall?” I told him, “No. There’s already a big auto mall coming to Fremont. That won’t work here. Let’s create an Asian avenue instead.”
He trusted me, and I performed. I immediately connected with Ranch 99 and got the banquet restaurant going — two major anchors.
GD Commercial Real Estate Executive Managing Director John Luk at Mayflower Seafood Restaurant in the Milpitas Square shopping center on June 4, 2026, in Milpitas, Calif. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
Q Asian restaurants and grocery stores have become more popular with non‑Asian customers, too. Is this something you’ve noticed?
A Yes. Look at boba tea shops. It’s not just Chinese or Asian customers — there are many Caucasians, everyone. It’s trendy. In this center, we already have four boba places. Because of my vision and persistence in executing it, I’ve helped change the dynamic of how Asian malls can be viable and attractive — not just to Asians, but to everyone.
Q What inspired you to focus not just on Chinese malls, but malls for all Asian communities?
A The success of places like Milpitas Square and the Fremont projects made people seek me out — Fremont, Cupertino, Richmond. They’d say, “Come over, help us revitalize this mall.” When you do it right, you attract the whole community.
Q What do you think it means for Asian communities to have places like Milpitas Square?
A It gives them a sense of ownership and pride. People feel proud to hold a banquet here, to bring family and friends. Especially for Asians — Chinese, Filipinos, later Vietnamese — 30 or 40 years ago they had to go to San Francisco for groceries and banquets. Now they don’t. With such strong demographics in the South Bay, how can you not build an Asian mall?
John Luk Profile
Age: 75
Birthplace: Macau, China
City of residence: San Jose
Education: Associate Degree in Nursing, Evergreen Valley College
5 things about John Luk
1. Luk was the head of a private psychiatric facility in San Jose
2. He also became the head nurse of the emergency room at Kaiser Permanente in Santa Clara
3. He is a volunteer at Bay Area Chrysamthemum Growers Association
4. He was a planning commissioner for the city of Milpitas
5. He learned about baseball and football from a friend who took him to games and patiently explained every play
