Perhaps his parents sensed he was destined for greatness, and this inspired his name, which means “king of the morning star.”

Today, he is known simply as Kini Zamora, the designer who has established the eponymous fashion house recognized locally and globally.

In 2015, Zamora became a household name virtually overnight after representing Hawaiʻi on the reality TV show, Project Runway.

Zamora was 10 years old when his Aunty Delilah offered to give him and his cousins their first sewing lesson. It was pivotal experience; Zamora was hooked. His aunty had learned to sew from Zamora’s grandfather and was passing on this sewing expertise to the next generation.

“I was the only one who wanted to learn more,” Zamora remembered. “My mom gave me sketch pads because I liked to draw, to create. She always knew I had that in me. Sewing was a medium to express myself, to bring my sketches to life. I would design clothes for troll dolls and dress them up.”

His ʻohana encouraged his passion for sewing. “I always received fabric for Christmas, and I enjoyed sewing all my own clothes,” he said. “I designed and wore jams shorts to school. My aunty showed me how to construct from a commercial pattern and how to piece things together from a design perspective.”

Zamora also sewed for others. One of his proudest achievements was creating a customized tank top for his mom; it was the first gift he made.

Despite learning to design and sew from his aunty, Zamora wanted to formalize his knowledge with a degree in fashion technology from Honolulu Community College (HCC).

His parents were unable to financially support his college aspirations, so Zamora applied for college financial aid, obtaining scholarship assistance from Kamehameha Schools, the Rotary Club, and other organizations plus additional financial support from HCC as a male in a female-dominated field of study.

After graduating from HCC, Zamora applied, and was accepted, to the prestigious New York Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). However, he quickly found the classes too basic.

He stuck it out for more than a year, but eventually decided it was not worth his time or money and returned home to Hawaiʻi. Nevertheless, he enjoyed the experience of living in New York City.

When Zamora was selected to compete in Project Runway, it set a new trajectory for his fledgling business. “I applied six times over a 10-year period before finally being selected,” he said. It is that kind of resilience that has fueled his success.

He participated in extensive interviews and even a psychiatric evaluation designed to ensure that the “cast members” could handle the sometimes-brutal critique from celebrity judges and compete with other talented, ambitious contestants.

“It was excruciating,” he said.

He made it through the initial application process and was flown to Los Angeles for open casting before a panel of judges. Upon returning home, he submitted a video, a work portfolio, and participated in an on-camera interview.

Once he was selected as a finalist, Zamora had just five days to get to New York City. Finalists were not introduced to each other or allowed to interact. The show was filmed at 8:00 p.m. and by 7:00 a.m. the following morning he was on a plane returning to Hawaiʻi.

After learning he was selected for the show, he was not allowed to tell anyone why he would be away for six weeks. “But I think everyone knew,” he said.

The exposure Zamora received from being on Project Runway, super-charged his business. He suddenly had to curate work requests to ensure he could keep up with the demand. It was a good problem to have.

And the feedback Zamora received from the judges on the show helped to hone his design aesthetic. He specializes in two areas: avant-garde creations and ready-to-wear.

His avant-garde creations are often “over-the-top” pieces created for weddings, pageants and for performing artists, including hula hālau. “It’s always gratifying to see your work on stage,” he grinned.

His ready-to-wear clothing is the company’s signature Hawaiʻi lifestyle brand. Each year, he produces four or five collections, each with 20-60 mix-and-match design options sold primarily through the company’s website and at Noʻeau Design in Kapolei. He would eventually like to elevate Kini Zamora into a lifestyle brand and expand into eyewear, accessories, fragrance, and home furnishings.

Zamora also has contracts to produce aloha wear uniforms for organizations like ʻIolani Palace, Maryknoll School and St. Louis School and he hopes to scale up his business to serve bigger uniform contracts.

To help expand his business, Zamora secured an Office of Hawaiian Affairs Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund loan.

His team is currently composed of five part-time employees and sub-contractors who are committed to making work fun, interesting and creative. And he offers design internships to college students.

Zamora is also trying to run an environmentally responsible business. “The fashion industry is the second most polluting industry (in terms of waste),” he notes.

Walking his talk, the company is taking steps to be more sustainable. Zamora participated in the first two “Goodwill Goes Glam” shows, which encourages reducing, reusing, recycling, and upcycling used clothes and accessories. His company packages online orders with minimalism in mind and also offers pick-up options. Paper from sublimination printing is recycled to create patterns or as wrapping paper, while fabric remnants are donated to H&M’s recycling program for reuse.

Today, from his studio in Hālawa, Zamora and his team continue to create enduring designs and dream even bigger dreams for the future of the business.

The post Dreaming Big Dreams appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

By the time she was 12, Akaka Ruth had modified her career goal, setting her heart on becoming a fashion designer. Today, she is living her dream and she still believes in thinking big.

In 2021, during the height of the pandemic, she founded Keha Hawaiʻi, her own clothing brand, as an exclusively online store. Akaka Ruth was intentional about her startup and products, and the result is a business model solidly aligned with her values.

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The colors and patterns that Akaka Ruth uses in her designs are inspired by the natural beauty of Kāneʻohe, Oʻahu, where she was born and raised. – Photos: Nick Smith of Content In Motion

Today, Keha Hawaiʻi is still primarily operating online, but Akaka Ruth also participates in pop-up mākeke at locations like the Kākoʻo Hawaiʻi Market (during the Merrie Monarch Festival), Hoʻomau Market, Pai Ka Leo, and the Made in Hawaiʻi Festival.

And she plans to unveil a new line of clothing at this year’s Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo (April 20-26) and at the Made in Hawaiʻi Festival at the Hawaiʻi Convention Center in Honolulu (August 15-27).

Akaka Ruth credits her mom as the source of her inspiration and the primary influence over her career choice. “My mom taught me how to sew and I was hooked,” Akaka Ruth said. “It came naturally for me.”

Akaka Ruth’s older sister, Hōkū, was another influence. “She was so fashionable growing up, and I would always wear her clothes,” she laughed.

Her ʻohana has a running joke that fashion runs in their family. “My grandmother, my father and I would all show up for church wearing clothes in the same shade of green,” Akaka Ruth said. “We always laugh that fashion is in my genes.”

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Akaka Ruth grew up in Kāneʻohe, Oʻahu, and both of her parents were Hawaiian language teachers. She attended Ke Kula Kaiapuni ʻo Ānuenue, a Hawaiian language immersion school, before transferring to St. Andrew’s Priory for ninth grade and then to Kamehameha Schools Kapālama in the 10th grade.

She earned a degree in Hawaiian Studies at UH Mānoa while completing fashion courses on the side. After graduating, she worked as a teacher at Royal Elementary School on Queen Emma Street in downtown Honolulu.

But at the urging of both her mom and her husband, Akaka Ruth eventually went back to school at Honolulu Community College (HCC) enrolling in the Fashion Technology program. At HCC, she was a student worker in the college’s Native Hawaiian Center and continues to serve there today.

It was while she was attending UH, however, that her entrepreneurial spirit began to emerge. She started an accessory brand and became recognized for her turban-style headbands and beanie caps popular with cancer patients dealing with hair loss from chemotherapy. And because she was so adept at sewing, she also took on occasional projects, sewing special outfits for her friends, for hālau, and for various schools.

Akaka Ruth is proud to be a Native Hawaiian Christian, and seamlessly blends her cultural roots, values and faith to offer the best version of herself in her work and to those around her. There was a lot of thought, introspection and prayer to bring her business to fruition.

“Prayer is a big part of what guides me,” she said. “I even questioned if fashion was what I should be doing as a Native Hawaiian. [But] I believe we need Native Hawaiians in all sectors.”

There is a refreshing humility about Akaka Ruth, who emphasizes that she still has much to learn and accomplish in her chosen profession.

Growing up in Kāneʻohe Akaka Ruth was surrounded by richness and beauty of God’s creation – which inspires the prints she designs for her clothing line. For example, Kāneʻohe is known for its puakenikeni – so one of her signature designs is a striking rendering of puakenikeni blossoms in vibrant orange and green.

Her fluency in ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi is also foundational to her approach to design.

With the help of an OHA Mālama Loan, Akaka Ruth is expanding her business and plans to incorporate accessories into her brand along with children’s clothes.

But even as she grows her business, she is committed to continuing to design her fabrics herself and use local subcontractors for the sewing. And when smaller orders do not meet minimum volume requirements for the subcontractors, she will continue to do the sewing herself.

Akaka Ruth is just getting started and has big plans for the near future. She would eventually like to have a storefront with multiple locations in the next few years. And she would like to return to teaching someday and create a community gathering space to talk story; a space where people can meet and learn from one another.

“God has a plan, and we must be open to doing His will,” Akaka Ruth reflected. “People have said that my prints bring back memories of their own childhoods. I’m just so honored to be able to express who I am through my designs.”

The post Keha Hawai‘i: A Business Inspired by Hawaiian Culture, Values and Faith appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

It has been said you can’t buy happiness, but you can buy ice cream – and that’s basically the same thing.

And ice cream entrepreneur Zach Villanueva, owner of Sage Creamery in ʻEwa, is committed to keeping his customers happy with an ever-rotating array of island flavors made with organic and locally sourced ingredients from vendors like Lāʻie Vanilla Company, ChadLou’s Coffee Roasters in Kailua, Mānoa Chocolate in Kailua, and Mānoa Honey and Mead in Wahiawā.

Villanueva and his wife, Courtney, started making ice cream in Courtney’s mom’s garage in March 2020, right at the start of the pandemic.

At the time, Villanueva was working full-time as the manager of the tasting room of Kō Hana Distillers, which makes rum. Initially, making ice cream was only intended to be a “side hustle.” However, by August 2020, just a few months into the business, Villanueva went all in and started working full time on his ice cream business.

While many established businesses had to make rapid pandemic-related pivots to survive, being a start-up business, Sage Creamery didn’t have any set ways of doing business and Villanueva was able to roll with the pandemic restrictions.

“During the lockdown, we couldn’t leave our homes except for business, so we started delivering ice cream directly to customers’ homes,” he said.

This yielded phenomenal results. “The business grew organically and took on a life of its own,” Villanueva said.

Sage Creamery has now been in business for more than four years, and last February they celebrated the grand opening of their first brick-and-mortar store.

Of course, for an ice cream business, having reliable, high-quality freezers is critical.

So, Villanueva reached out to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and applied for a business loan. He went through the loan process and, once the loan was approved, he was able to purchase four brand new, top-tier freezers for their new shop.

Although the popularity of their ice cream has grown over the years, Sage Creamery continues to make it in small batches to maintain quality control – about 100 gallons a week to meet the current demand.

Besides the Villanuevas and one full-time employee, their crew consists of 10 part-timers. A typical workday begins at 10:00 a.m. and ends at 7:00 p.m. six days a week. Initially, they used a commercial kitchen in Iwilei to make their ice cream, but now production takes place at their shop in ʻEwa.

Located across the highway from UH West Oʻahu, students and professors are regular Sage Creamery customers, with faculty members often ordering ice cream for special events.

In addition to serving walk-in customers at the store, Sage Creamery provides weekly orders of ice cream to Diamond Head Market & Grill and to Monkeypod Kitchen.

“Chef Jose (Gonzalez-Maya, executive chef at Monkeypod Kitchen) reached out to us to supply his restaurant and now Sage Creamery ice cream is mentioned by name on their menu,” said Villanueva, proudly.

One might describe their journey to success as a… rocky road.

“I bought a $20 ice cream maker from E-Bay and read cookbooks to learn how to make ice cream,” said Villanueva. “It was a lot of trial and error.”

“I made my first batch in 2016, and Courtney and I agreed it was the worst ice cream we ever tasted,” he laughed.

Today, Sage Creamery is known for its super premium ice creams. One thing that sets their ice cream apart is its a higher fat content, resulting in a creamier texture.

At their shop, customers are greeted with a menu of locally inspired original ice cream flavors. Some of their signature flavors include Lāʻie Snow Cream (made with vanilla beans and sweetened condensed milk); Mango Sticky Rice (a non-dairy coconut and pandan sorbet with mango jam) and Ube Crinkle Cookie (ube ice cream with ube cookie chunks).

There are also special monthly flavors like Peanut Butter and Jelly, Banana Lumpia, Thai Tea Oreo, and Kauaʻi Kūlolo.

Stories are important to Villanueva, who fondly remembers listening to his grandmother’s stories about growing up on Hawaiʻi Island. He carries on that storytelling tradition by sharing his own stories about Sage Creamery’s ice creams, ingredients and inspiration.

For example, their “Merrie Monarch” ice cream is made with strawberries and Kō Hana Distillers rum, “because King David Kalākaua loved strawberry ice cream and loved to drink,” Villanueva explained.

But the most important story Villanueva tells is the story of his late brother, Daniel, for whom Sage Creamery was named.

Daniel, who passed in August 2018, was a seeker, wise beyond his years. His ʻohana referred to him as their “sage” (a profoundly wise person). His life journey led him to the rainforests of the Amazon, where he spent time with an Indigenous healer – a deeply spiritual experience.

Villanueva said that his brother lived a life of discovery, love and wonder, inspiring those he left behind. And thus, Sage Creamery is named for, and honors the memory of, Daniel Villanueva.

Visit Sage Creamery at:
91-3575 Kaulualoko Street #3005
in ʻEwa Beach, Oʻahu

To see their latest flavors follow them on Instagram:
sagecreamery

The post Scooping Up Success with Locally Made Ice Cream appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

This is the basis of Alika Peleholani Garcia’s thriving nonprofit, Kuleana Coral Restoration, which restores and protects Hawaiʻi’s coral reefs by blending high-tech marine science with Native Hawaiian cultural values to create a better habitat for marine life to flourish. The goal is to support ʻāina momona – abundant reef ecosystems.

Garcia said his work has opened his eyes to the connection between coral, marine life, shoreline protection, subsistence, food security, and sustainability — all of which are top concerns today. However, it wasn’t always that way.

“I’m a Native Hawaiian and I didn’t know about these things until I was 36 years old. I didn’t know about the Kumulipo,” he admitted, adding, “Coral polyps provide life for the sea worm, the sea urchin, and other inhabitants.”

His current project involves helping rebuild Lahaina’s shoreline following the devastating wildfires last August. A hui of organizations reached out to Garcia for support. It is a reminder that the health of our coral reefs are essential to the life of our planet.

“The coolest thing about this project is that I’m learning about our culture, Indigenous wisdom, to restore our community,” Garcia said. “It’s a special beginning, a new mindset. Lahaina will teach us how we restore our communities across the state.”

A Change in Business Direction

After graduating from Damien Memorial High School, Garcia worked as a commercial fisherman to pay for college. He didn’t think much about the impact he had on the ocean.

In November 2015, Garcia started a for-profit business called Hawaiian Reefer, LLC, which was intended as a commercial fishing company. He caught and sold invasive fish species for food and aquariums.

The company received an OHA Mālama Loan, and Garcia used it to purchase two diver propulsion vehicles (DPVs), also known as “diving scooters,” and a dive compressor to fill their scuba tanks to support commercial fishing efforts. Today, the company rents out its boats and scuba tanks to scientists involved with other projects, which helps provide another revenue stream.

As years passed, Garcia felt his heart pulling him in another direction. “We had been fishing over the past 15 years and realized that commercial fishing takes a lot and doesn’t give back,” he said. “I was having a conversation with Kapono Kaluhiokalani, my business partner, about ways to give back for that we and our families had received.”

That prompted a pivot to the creation of their nonprofit Kuleana Coral Restoration – a venture that more squarely aligned with their values.

Clear Direction

Garcia, who has also been employed as a firefighter for the past 16 years, brings a “firefighter’s mentality” to his work. “We don’t want to put out fires; we don’t want to even let the fire start,” he said. “We’re applying those same principles to [protecting] coral reefs.”

Garcia and his partners, co-founder Daniel Demartini, Ph.D., who serves as director of science; and co-founder Kaluhiokalani, a fellow firefighter who serves as director of outreach, are staying busy responding to community requests for their services.

Today, with a team of five full-time employees and seven part-time staff members, Kuleana Coral Restoration is supporting community-based restoration projects across the state.

Garcia said he works every day, balancing the demands of Kuleana Coral Restoration with 24-hour shifts 10 days a month for the Honolulu Fire Department, while still making time for his ʻohana – wife, Natasha, and 2-year-old son, Reef.

Kuleana Coral Restoration has identified four organizational goals:

1. Creating fish habitats: Hurricanes ʻIwa (1982) and ʻIniki (1992) resulted in long-term negative impacts on fish populations in Pōkaʻī Bay in Waiʻanae, Oʻahu, affecting food security for residents. To address this, Kuleana Coral Restoration has planted 500 coral colonies in Pōkaʻī Bay to create a habitat for fish and increase those populations.
2. Coastal protection: Over the next decade, Hawaiʻi will need to prepare for sea level rise and other effects of climate change by building artificial reefs to protect shorelines. This entails placing concrete or other porous material on the ocean floor to encourage the growth of coral colonies.
3. Emergency reef repair: When a luxury boat ran aground last year in Honolua, just north of Kapalua, Maui, huge swaths of coral reef died. Kuleana Coral Restoration has the capacity to save damaged coral reefs before they die if they are dispatched to the site within a month, thus Garcia prioritizes rapid response efforts. He notes this is also a matter of environmental justice, as some areas are not considered “priorities” compared to tourist destinations like Waikīkī.
4. Ecological resilience: In collaboration with the University of Hawaiʻi’s Coral Resilience Lab, Kuleana Coral Restoration is selecting thermal resilient coral species to prepare for higher ocean temperatures. Thousands of thermally resilient coral fragments have already been placed in Maunalua and Kāne ʻohe bays on Oʻahu, and at Olowalu in West Maui. In anticipation of heavier rainfall, Kuleana Coral Restoration is also exploring coral colonies resilient to runoff sediment.

Preparing the Next Generation

To increase the number of Native Hawaiians with marine science expertise, Kuleana Coral Restoration is providing scuba training and workforce development training for 24 Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders over a three-year period (about eight individuals a year) through a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement is supplementing this with cultural training and technical assistance.

In a separate program, Kuleana Coral Restoration is also providing scientific diver training. “We are importing marine science knowledge and blending it with Hawaiian cultural knowledge to create jobs for Native Hawaiians and local people,” Garcia said.

“We are not cultural practitioners; we have fishermen’s knowledge,” Garcia said. “But we are invited to many conferences to speak about Indigenous knowledge because we know how to work with our communities.”

The post Diving Deep to Fulfill Their Kuleana appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

Like most families in Hawaiʻi, Lani and Duane Ozaki work tirelessly to meet the high cost of living and plan for the future of their children. It’s especially hard on Molokaʻi, where essentials for everyday living typically cost more.

But the Ozaki couple takes it all in stride, seeming to effortlessly hold full-time jobs in addition to running Molokaʻi Auto Parts, a thriving, diversified store in the charming, old-Hawaiʻi town of Kaunakakai where time — and the ills of modernization — have graciously forgotten. Thanks to their hard work, commitment to caring for the community, and a loan from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund, the business is thriving and providing a steady revenue stream for their family.

Lani is a co-lessee of Department of Hawaiian Home Lands property in Ho ʻolehua, near the Molokaʻi Airport, which was passed on from her grandmother, but the Ozakis take nothing for granted. Duane is a licensed auto mechanic who teaches at the Kamehameha Schools Kapālama campus on Oʻahu during the weekdays and returns to Molokaʻi on weekends to tend to the business. Lani works as a health coordinator with ʻOhana Health Plan, part of Centene, one of the largest managed care plans in the nation, making home visits to ensure vulnerable Molokaʻi residents have access to home health services.

Seeing a Need

Although everyone on the island works together, in 2019 Duane saw a need to provide the approximately 7,000 Molokaʻi residents with more options to obtain auto parts. He approached Carquest Pacific to request support to open an independently owned and operated store. Carquest has stores across the United States and previously had a store on Molokaʻi. Carquest Pacific saw the great potential for the island. They had full faith in the Ozakis.

“At first, I had reservations about starting this new venture,” Lani recalled. “I had questions about our ability to meet expenses. Duane is the risk-taker!”

It turned out to be the right move.

“Our business has allowed us to meet amazing people, like those at Carquest,” she said, “and today, if we need a part right away, we can also order it from the Carquest on Nimitz Highway on Oʻahu and it will arrive via UPS the next day, or by barge the following Monday.”

The business got off to a great start, but the pandemic occurred, and businesses were in a lock-down mode that caused sales to drop significantly. Fortunately, Molokaʻi Auto Parts had developed its website with online ordering capabilities. Customers were able to place orders online and although businesses had to close their doors, the Ozakis could text or call customers when their orders were ready for pick up. This helped to mitigate the impact of the decline in sales.

Diversifying Product Lines

The pandemic showed the importance of diversifying their product offerings beyond car parts. Molokaʻi Auto Parts also sells high-quality lawn and garden equipment as a Golden Eagle dealer. They offer products from reputable brands such as Echo, Shindaiwa, Bear Cat and Billy Goat. Generators, chain saws, pressure washers, blowers and trimmers are sold at the store. Larger equipment like chippers, chipper/shredders, aerators, and lawn vacuums can be ordered.

During the pandemic, Molokaʻi Auto Parts added another line of business and became a MOBI authorized partner. This allows the store to activate cellular devices with low-cost cellular plans that start at under $10. MOBI utilizes the Verizon platform to ensure customers have great cellular reception. Cellular devices are also sold at Molokaʻi Auto Parts.

After the pandemic, the world experienced supply chain challenges and Molokaʻi Auto Parts was no different. There was limited merchandise to sell.

A Flourishing Business

Today, however, things are looking up. The loan from OHA helped Molokaʻi Auto Parts to consolidate expenses at an “amazing rate” and this has improved cash flow for the business.

Molokaʻi Auto Parts now has over 200 business accounts and the Ozakis continue to be grateful for the support of customers and businesses in the community.

Customers can place orders online, but Lani says those on Molokaʻi still prefer to come in person to pick up their merchandise because they like the face-to-face interaction and enjoy “talking story.”

The store has three employees, and an independent contractor who does the marketing, website, and social media for the business. The contractor is their daughter Tehya, who graduated from the University of Hawaiʻi-West Oʻahu and now works as an accountant in Nebraska.

The Ozakis’ two sons Hāloa, 13, and Kauluokalā, 8, also help with the business, and although every waking moment is accounted for, they make time for their sons’ sports games and spend time together as a family at the beach.

Lani says her family will continue to work hard, holding to the values that were taught to her – kuleana, the desire to take their responsibilities seriously and ensure they do what they say they will do; and mālama – the need to take care of the people who take care of them.

“Without the people here, we would not be able to make this work,” Lani said.

Background on Lani Ozaki

Lani was born and raised on Molokaʻi and received her undergraduate degree in psychology and master’s degree in counseling psychology, both from Chaminade University of Honolulu. She is a licensed marriage and family therapist. Lani met Duane when she was in college, working at Duane’s father’s auto shop in Kalihi. Lani worked for Queen Liliʻuokalani Trust for nine years before joining ʻOhana Health Plan. And the rest is history.

Nathan Hokama, APR, is the principal of Strategic Communication Solutions, LLC, which has provided communications consulting for Hawaiʻi businesses, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations since 2004. He previously served as corporate communications manager for Tesoro Hawaiʻi (now Par Hawaiʻi) and American Savings Bank, a subsidiary of Hawaiian Electric Industries.

The post Molokaʻi Auto Parts Keeps the Friendly Isle on the Move appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

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As a young man, Umi Martin left his hometown of Kekaha to attend college in Missouri. He later moved to Oregon – which is where he was living when he decided it was time to return home and reconnect with his roots. Today, Martin operates a successful farming business and country store on Kauaʻi.

“When you’re in your early 20s, you start to think about these things, about your Hawaiian culture,” Martin said.

Martin aspired to pursue a master’s degree in Hawaiian studies at UH Mānoa, but none was offered at the time (an MA in Hawaiian studies was not approved by the Board of Regents until 2005). Undaunted, he immersed himself in the lifestyle of the lo‘i at Kānewai on the UH campus for six months.

Instilled with a passion to mālama ʻāina, Martin decided to seriously pursue agriculture, using an acre of his grandmother’s kuleana land in Waimea, Kauaʻi, to start growing taro. For the next 15 years, Martin and his wife, Kaʻiulani, lived in a small house adjacent to their loʻi working and raising their young family.

When a store in Waimea came up for sale, Martin saw an opportunity to grow his business. With the help of an OHA Mālama Loan, he purchased the store and got it up and running, turning it into a flourishing go-to local style “convenience store” aptly named Umi’s Store.

For the next six years, the ʻohana continued to work their small farm selling their vegetables to restaurants while running the store. Martin hoped to someday expand into growing tropical fruit and invested time growing his nursery and researching farming methods in anticipation of one day having land for a tropical fruit orchard.

In 2014, his dream became a reality when Martin secured a lease for state agricultural land in a secluded area of Kekaha plus valuable technical support from the state’s Agricultural Development Corporation. By the end of 2016, he was up and running. A second OHA Mālama Loan helped Martin establish his orchard.

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It took him three years to plant his 5-acre parcel, growing 20 different tropical fruits. Martin’s knowledge of fruits is as impressive as his tenacity. He grows a variety of different oranges plus jackfruit, lilikoʻi, guava, and soursop.

But Martin is best known for his mangos – he grows five different varieties. He notes that the mangoes flourish in Kekaha’s hot, dry weather enabling yields of 5,000 pounds every other year. “Rain makes the fruit ugly,” Martin added.

Martin is optimistic about the future and hopes to one day expand his farm to 50 acres – and he encourages others who may be thinking about pursuing agriculture to not hesitate.

“Now that the days of sugarcane are over, the opportunity is here!” he said.

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs now offers a MahiʻAi Agricultural Loan program, with unique features for farmers. For more information: https://loans.oha.org/.

The post Reconnecting to Hawaiian Roots Yields a Fruitful Life appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

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When Justin Nakaʻahiki was growing up, his parents always reminded him about the valuable resources available to Native Hawaiians and encouraged him to take advantage of those opportunities.

As a shy boy from Kekaha Hawaiian Homestead on Kauaʻi , Nakaʻahiki took his parents’ advice to heart. And today, with the support of an Office of Hawaiian Affairs’ (OHA) Mālama Loan for Native Hawaiian business owners, Nakaʻahiki now owns his own company: Destination Marketing Hawaiʻi.

A Local Company with Global Reach

This small-town boy is now playing in the big leagues.

Nakaʻahiki’s company has a vast network that connects Hawaiʻi to English-speaking audiences around the globe with compelling pre-arrival messages for travelers coming to our islands.

Nakaʻahiki is the ideal go-between. He capably represents Hawaiʻi to businesses throughout the world and represents the interests of businesses seeking support in Hawaiʻi. He recently organized a major conference here in Hawaiʻi for 300 of the world’s travel industry leaders.

But success didn’t happen overnight. It’s been a long journey full of obstacles, but Nakaʻahiki has been able to move forward and has made good business decisions along the way – a a prime example of someone who turns challenges into opportunities.

Thriving in Challenging Circumstances

After graduating from Waimea High School, Nakaʻahiki earned a marketing degree from UH Mānoa and hit the ground running. He worked in various positions at a Honolulu advertising agency, which led to a successful career in the travel industry and tourism marketing. His 20-year career includes a decade of leading the marketing efforts for Aqua-Aston Hospitality.

“I made a switch in my career just two months before the Great Recession [of 2008],” Nakaʻahiki recalled.

The self-described optimist didn’t let the daunting challenges of visitor decline and the volitile economic climate derail him. He stayed with it, developing the tenacity and an unshakable confidence that would serve him well in the future.

In 2018, he left the hotel industry with a myriad of connections and contacts to join Destination Marketing Hawaiʻi.

Nakaʻahiki had known the company’s owner for years through his professional network, and she had become something of a mentor to him. She started the company in 1998, but wanted to transition out and pegged Nakaʻahiki to take over.

For two years, Nakaʻahiki worked with her, learning the business and enjoying the freedom she gave him to take on big projects.

Pandemic Introspection and Rebalancing

In early 2020, Nakaʻahiki purchased Destination Marketing Hawaiʻi. No sooner had he acquired the business, when the unthinkable happened – the pandemic began, lockdowns were enforced, and the visitor industry went into a tailspin as visitors stopped coming to Hawaiʻi.

“I saw colleagues who had been in the business for 20 to 30 years leave the industry,” Nakaʻahiki said.

Instead of despairing, Nakaʻahiki used the downtime for administrative housekeeping, getting all the paperwork in order for his newly acquired company. “Since I was now my own boss, it was a time to reassess everything,” he said.

Timely Support from OHA

Nakaʻahiki also turned to OHA and federal funding to help his company get through the pandemic. He had learned about OHA’s loan program “through friends of friends and through cousins of cousins,” and knew he would be in good hands.

The financing came at a critical time, allowing him to create a solid foundation for his company.

Loan Processor Robert Crowell with OHA’s Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund program said OHA was able to provide Nakaʻahiki with funds to revamp Destination Marketing Hawaiʻi’s portfolio of products and services and, critically, to provide funding to keep Nakaʻahiki’s assistant employed.

By 2021, Destination Marketing Hawaiʻi was ready to move forward.

A New Way of Seeing Hawaiʻi

The pandemic was also a time for reflection. During the lockdown, Hawaiʻi residents had an opportunity to experience uncrowded beaches for the first time and better understand the need to protect and preserve Hawaiʻi’s natural beauty and ecosystems.

Suddenly, stewardship of our islands, destination management, and attracting the right “types” of visitors — instead of high volumes of visitors — became the topic of everyday conversations and high-level policy discussions.

Nakaʻahiki not only looked at changes within his own company, but also the way Hawaiʻi was being marketed and promoted in general. His abiding love for Hawaiʻi and genuine respect for all people guided the direction of his company.

And his values-based commitment to mālama Hawaiʻi became even stronger as the pandemic challenged and broadly changed perspectives on the perils of over- tourism.

Nakaʻahiki didn’t get caught in the fray by taking sides on the issue of destination management versus tourism marketing. His seasoned industry perspective allowed him to see the intrinsic value of both views as he used his influence to personally promote efforts to “rebalance” Hawaiʻi’s visitor industry and help others to know and appreciate the authentic Hawaiʻi.

“Over-tourism is not unique to Hawaiʻi,” he said. “We need both destination management and travel marketing. One can leverage the other more effectively for storytelling. The two specialties can work hand-in-hand.”

In the meantime, Nakaʻahiki continues to move his business forward. Although he has big aspirations – and has even considered replicating his business model to support other destinations around the world – at the end of the day, his connection to the land and ʻohana was stronger.

“This is my home,” he said. “This is where I’m meant to be.”

The post Encouraging Mālama Hawaiʻi Tourism appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

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Paula Gushiken is a perfect example of the innovative entrepreneur who has the outlook and ability to turn challenges into opportunities. Gushiken is the energetic owner of Maui Vehicle Storage – a business that has filled an unusual niche and leveled up.

The company primarily serves part-time residents – the so-called “snowbirds” who typically retreat to Maui from the continent during the winter season. Although snowbirds rent out their condos when they are away, condominium regulations prohibit them from leaving their vehicles unattended on the property for long periods of time.

Meeting that need, Maui Vehicle Storage provides its clients with a place to safely store their vehicles until they return to Maui.

It’s a win-win. Gushiken’s service gives her customers peace of mind knowing their vehicles are secure – and it allows her to operate a successful business with six other family members, including her three adult children. Today, the company stores up to 500 vehicles on 2 acres of leased land in Kahului and continues to grow.

Starting with Aloha

Gushiken’s business had an interesting start. She didn’t have the luxury of developing a full-fledged business plan before launching Maui Vehicle Storage. It was her genuine concern for a friend – and an unwavering confidence in her abilities – that started the business.

Originally named the Car Barn, the company’s first owner was moving to the continent and sold the business to his neighbor for $400,000. The neighbor had big dreams, acquiring the business so that he could leave his job to care for his wife, who had suffered a debilitating stroke.

The ownership transfer included 150 vehicles, which were moved to the new owner’s Haʻikū property. However, because his property was zoned as agricultural land, he learned that he would be fined $11,000 a day until he removed the cars.

He reached out to Gushiken for help.

At the time, she was busy running Puʻunēnē-based Diversified Crane Services Maui, which she also owns and operates. However, she and her daughters agreed to take the business off his hands and offered to pay him in installments to alleviate his financial stress.

Welcome Support from OHA

Gushiken had set the law of reciprocity in motion, and soon found help for her unplanned, newly acquired business. The Office of Hawaiian Affairs’ (OHA) Mālama Loans program provided both low-cost financing and no-cost technical assistance to help ensure their success.

“We’re glad to be a partner with Maui Vehicle Storage,” said OHA Loan Processor Robert Crowell. He explained that after loan applicants participate in the coaching sessions, their loan request is presented to a quorum of the OHA Mālama Loans board of directors for approval, a one- or two-day process.

“OHA’s technical assistance provider was extremely knowledgeable and very well connected to assist with all our business needs. They are the true meaning of the word aloha in our community,” Gushiken said. I am so fortunate they were able to help us!”

Turning the Pandemic Crisis into an Opportunity

In retrospect, Gushiken’s acquisition of the business in November 2019 could not have occurred at a worse time. Four months later, the world locked down in response to the global pandemic. But instead of despairing, Gushiken looked for new business opportunities.

“I reached out to the car rental companies, Budget, Avis and others, and asked if I could store their vehicles for them,” Gushiken said, noting that, with tourism at a standstill, rental cars were not being used.

“Within two weeks, I received a call asking to store 500 vehicles. And soon after that, I received a request to store another 500 cars.”

She made some quick calls to lease more space, and the property owners obliged. At the pandemic’s peak, she was storing an additional 1,500 vehicles – in addition to the vehicles of her regular customers.

Road Tests for Driver’s License

Always open to opportunities to grow her business, Gushiken recently saw another niche that needed to be filled when her niece could not meet the strict requirements of the county’s Motor Vehicle and Licensing Division (DMV) to complete her road test.

Learning that many people are unable to meet the requirements, Gushiken purchased a vehicle dedicated to road tests which she rents out soley for that purpose. She even helps clients get familiar with the car before they take their road test.

Taking the idea a step further, Maui Vehicle Storage recently acquired a half-acre property strategically located adjacent to Maui County’s DMV. Gushiken plans to expand the company’s capabilities for more vehicle road tests.

It’s just another testament to Gushiken’s creative problem-solving skills combined with her uncanny ability to not only identify needs, but fill them.

The post Find a Need and Fill it appeared first on Ka Wai Ola.

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Cori Ehukai Nakamoto is living every entrepreneur’s dream. She followed her passion for cake decorating and successfully turned her hobby into a flourishing business aptly named Cori’s Cake Dreams. With the support of OHA Mālama Loans, today she has three Cake Dreams Bakeshop sites. Like her impressive cake designs, Nakamoto’s aspirations show her boundless, creative energy and optimism for the future.

Nakamoto’s sweet taste of success didn’t happen overnight. For more than a decade, she dedicated herself to perfecting her craft, creating and selling her exquisitely designed luxury cakes for weddings, showers, birthdays, and other special occasions on weekends – while working full-time as an orthodontic care coordinator.

The McKinley High School graduate who grew up in Kalihi first became smitten by the joy of cake decorating when she took a cake decorating class with her mom. That was a pivotal experience. She sold her first cake in 2010, nearly 13 years ago, and soon was taking as many as four to five orders a week. Her weekends were spent producing cakes from start to finish — baking, decorating and delivering — all on her own. And she enjoyed every sweet moment.

Nakamoto’s professional validation came when she and Nixon Dabalos, another Hawaiʻi baker, were selected by Netflix producers to be one of the four contestant teams on the popular show, Sugar Rush: Extra Sweet in 2020.

“When we got to the studio it was awesome,” Nakamoto said. “It was like a Disneyland for adults in the cake business. We just gave it our best shot and hoped to make it past Round 1.”

The baking team representing Hawaiʻi actually did better, winning all three rounds and impressing the judges with their innovative creations. They were required to make desserts made with childhood sweet and savory junk food snacks.

The Hawaiʻi duo outshined the other contestants with their cheese-filled cupcake encrusted with cheeseball crumbs; their Hawaiʻi-inspired rainbow Ho-Ho made with chantilly and mango jam drizzled with Milk Dud glaze; and a boombox and gumball machine expertly designed to burst with candy when the cake was cut.

They made all of Hawaiʻi proud winning the grand prize of $10,000. Nakamoto said she is still reaping the benefits of the notoriety of winning on a nationally acclaimed show, but she has remained grounded and humble and is working as hard as ever.

“Even though others tell me, ‘You’re there,’ I don’t feel like I’m quite there yet,” said Nakamoto, who continually strives to get better.

In May 2022, Nakamoto successfully acquired two bakery locations, one at Fort Shafter and the other at Tripler Medical Center, and six employees, which she subsequently doubled to a staff of a dozen to greatly expand her vision and operations. It was exactly what she had been praying for to take her business to the next level. She recently celebrated the grand opening of her third bakery at Schofield in Wahiawa.

The bakeries offer every imaginable delight: cassava flan, Ube Brazo De Mercedes, blueberry cheesecake tarts, banana bread, Fruity Pebbles macarons, and even the cheeseball cupcake that won the hearts of the Netflix Sugar Rush judges.

With the bakery acquisitions, Nakamoto made the difficult decision to give up her orthodontic position after 20 years.

“I loved working there,” she said, noting that her sisters, Darcie and Bree, and her friends from church have been her main source of encouragement as she ventured into her business on a full-time basis.

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) Mālama Loan program has been instrumental in supporting Nakamoto’s dream. OHA helped Nakamoto to finance the purchase of a new freezer, build a new website for her bakeries, develop marketing materials, and provide employee uniforms and startup capital to cover the first month of payroll.

Aikū‘ē Kalima, manager of OHA’s Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund program, said the program provides more than lend money. “We contract a vendor to provide technical assistance to every approved start-up loan applicant to ensure their success. It’s like having a personal coach or mentor assigned to you to review your business plan to not only ensure you can repay the loan, but also to enjoy long-term business success.”

Nakamoto does not consider herself a role model but is proud to represent Native Hawaiians. She offered some practical words of wisdom for others: “When times get rough, most businesses scale back, but that is the time to push through.”

Visit cakedreamsbakeshop.com.

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