A shortage of personal protective equipment and a desire to ensure safety of the community led Spokane resident Johnny Chan to create a pop-up shop that sells KN95 masks, face shields, gloves, surgical gowns and hand sanitizer at wholesale prices.

Chan, under Science English LLC, launched the pop-up shop Sunday in a storefront at 1406 W. Third Ave., inside of Chan’s Red Dragon, which is owned by his family.

Chan created the pop-up shop after noticing several area residents out in public not wearing face masks, and thought it could be because they were unable to obtain PPE.

“I think (the shop) is important to me because I noticed a general need,” Chan said. “I’m from Spokane, and I noticed it doesn’t have as many (COVID-19) cases as Seattle and, definitely, masks make a difference. There’s a big demand for masks over the world.”

Chan said he has secured more than 550,000 KN95 face masks, hundreds of face shields and “as much sanitizer as you can ever need,” over the past few months, adding the hand sanitizer is sold through a partnership with a local vendor.

Chan is selling the KN95 masks for $2 each. One-time-use masks are priced at 50 cents each and face shields are $4.90 each. A quart of hand sanitizer sells for $8.

Bulk rates for PPE are available for businesses and government agencies, Chan said.

“I want to sell them at a very small margin, just enough to pay labor costs and to get masks out there to help flatten the curve,” he said. “It was a big investment on our part – a lot of money to put out there – but when it costs money to stay alive, so be it.”

Chan, who is a property investor and developer, also launched a similar pop-up shop on Alki Beach in West Seattle last month that was met with positive feedback from customers and large businesses looking to obtain PPE for their employees.

The pop-up shop in Spokane is open 11 a.m.-6 p.m. daily. Chan encourages businesses to place orders over the phone at 509-768-7484. Curbside pickup is available for senior citizens who wish to call in orders.

Chan aims to keep the pop-up shop open for about two months.

“We just want to make sure we give Spokane people a chance to wear a mask,” he said. “I really want to protect my city – the place where I grew up – and the community.”