A Chattanooga native who lived in Honolulu for seven years said he continues to be amazed by Chattanooga’s growth, to which he has contributed with the opening of a computer store.

“I left Chattanooga in 2000, and Frazier (Avenue) was just getting an eclectic mix,” said David Blair, owner of Computers Plus. “Now, that’s really filled out, downtown has continued, and the growth has continued from Hamilton Place toward Ooltewah and Collegedale.”

Mr. Blair said he returned to Chattanooga last year to launch the first Computers Plus franchise in Tennessee. His store is at 1906 Gunbarrel Road, next to Intown Suites and across from Mr. Zip, which itself has developed into one of Chattanooga’s busiest commercial corridor.

The store, which opened last Friday and is co-owned by Mr. Blair’s wife, Heather, sells computers and peripherals, performs maintenance and allows customers to custom-build computers.

The entrepreneur said he grew up in the Hixson area, and lived in North Chattanooga before moving to Hawaii. For seven years Mr. Blair lived in Honolulu, where he did software development for a dating service. From his 15th floor office, Mr. Blair said he often could see whales in the ocean.

Now, his workplace views are of restaurants and stores in the burgeoning East Brainerd commercial district.

Real estate broker Pryor Bacon Jr. said he and his father, Pryor, helped make Gunbarrel Road a busy commercial area. The elder Mr. Bacon developed three subdivisions, including Bonds Terrace, which made way for Circuit City and other stores, the younger Mr. Bacon said. Mr. Bacon said he developed the Kensington office complex at Shallowford and Gunbarrel roads, Hamilton Office Park and a commercial center up the street from Computers Plus.

Mr. Blair believes a boutique store dedicated solely to computers can thrive in a market with big-box appliance, office and general merchandise stores that happen to sell computers in addition to many other items, Mr. Blair said.

He has invested about a quarter-million dollars in that belief, Mr. Blair said, and has hired 14 workers with computer and technical knowledge. He has several computer technicians, and their communication skills were as important as their computer skills, he said, because they need to be able to converse with customers.

Computers Plus will compete with larger stores with a knowledgeable staff, competitive prices, the latest computers and peripherals, customer service and its maintenance services, Mr. Blair said. For $399, a customer can buy a lifetime service plan, Mr. Blair said, which includes tune-ups, hardware and software installations and a temporary computer if a machine must be mailed to the manufacturer. A limited-time service plan is also available for $249. Diagnostics may be performed within 24 hours, he said.

Mr. Blair believes many consumers miss having a Gateway Country store where they can lay hands on computers with a knowledgeable staff, an experience that he provides.

Computers Plus carries such brands as Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Acer and Apple. The company is certified by Apple as a reseller and technical service provider, Mr. Blair said. In the back of the store, he said a customer may choose all his computer’s components, from the motherboard to case to hard drive and video card, and more.

His next store likely will be in the Highway 153 area, and he is doing preliminary site selection, though he has no timeline, he said. He also would like to open a store in North Chattanooga at some point, he said.