Local retailers Hilo Hattie and Maui Divers are expanding their partnership in a bit of a role reversal with Hilo Hattie slated to open a store within the Maui Divers Jewelry Design Center in Honolulu.

Maui Divers has long had stores within Hilo Hattie stores, and still has two such arrangements in Lahaina and Lihue.

The planned new Hilo Hattie store, announced Tuesday, represents a small expansion for the venerable kamaaina retailer since it emerged from bankruptcy in January with a smaller retail footprint that went from seven stores right before the bankruptcy filing in February 2015 to three stores now — the Maui and Kauai stores plus one in Ala Moana Center on Oahu.

Among Hilo Hattie’s store closures last year was the company’s flagship location, which included a Maui Divers store within 33,000 square feet of retail space that was part of a 87,000-square-foot headquarters and distribution facility on Nimitz Highway in Iwilei.

The new store will be 2,250 square feet and is scheduled to open April 1 in the Maui Divers flagship complex at 1520 Liona St., about four blocks mauka of Ala Moana Center.

The chief executives of both companies said the venture is a good fit that continues a partnership the two retailers have had since 2001 when Maui Divers started operating jewelry concessions inside Hilo Hattie stores.

“There is a lot of synergy between Maui Divers Jewelry and Hilo Hattie, including our shared history as local manufacturing and retail operations that have grown to be internationally recognized brands,” Bob Taylor, Maui Divers president and CEO, said in a statement.

The histories of the two retailers almost merged in 2009 when Maui Divers submitted a $1 million bid to buy Hilo Hattie while it was dealing with a previous bout of bankruptcy after a mainland expansion plan ended badly. However, that proposed acquisition was withdrawn. At the time, sales at Hilo Hattie stores made up close to 20 percent of Maui Divers’ sales.

Instead, Donald B.S. Kang of local garment maker Royal Hawaiian Creations acquired Hilo Hattie out of bankruptcy in 2009.

In the Tuesday announcement Kang said Hilo Hattie “couldn’t be more excited about this venture with our long-time partner.”

Kang said in his statement that the new store conforms to Hilo Hattie’s mission to give customers the “most authentic Hawaiian shopping experience.”

Hilo Hattie, which was founded in 1963 and is nicknamed “The Store of Hawaii,” will sell aloha wear, T-shirts, food, candy, island gifts and jewelry at the Maui Divers flagship location.

Maui Divers was established in 1959 and has 30 stores throughout Hawaii. Its flagship design center-showroom has attracted more than 4 million visitors since opening in 1988, the company said. The operation, which includes shuttling tourists from Waikiki via company buses, features a guided tour of the facility where the company said virtually every piece of its jewelry is designed and manufactured.

Hilo Hattie previously had a similar model at its Iwilei site, but was forced to shift to a more traditional retail setup with smaller stores. The retailer is interested in adding more stores, but nothing is imminent beyond the Maui Divers deal, said Mark Storfer, Hilo Hattie chief operating officer.