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Pacific Business News
Here are the 2024 Business of Pride honorees
Each year, Pacific Business News celebrates LGBTQ+ business leaders, as well as allies and advocates, in the annual Business of Pride awards, and we’re thrilled to announce the 2024 winners today.<\p> Business of Pride recognizes individuals from throughout the state for their professional achievements, as well as their contributions to creating equality and inclusivity in the community. <\p>
Maui nonprofit names new CEO
Lisa Paulson has been appointed as the new CEO of Maui Food Bank, the nonprofit organization announced Monday. Paulson, formerly the executive director of the Maui Hotel and Lodging Association, will start her new role on Aug. 19.<\p> “We are thrilled to welcome Lisa Paulson as our new CEO,” said Maui Food Bank Chair Jason Economou in a statement. “Her extensive experience and proven leadership in crisis management and community collaboration will be invaluable as we navigate the increased demand for our services and continue our mission to combat hunger in Maui County.”<\p>
Kauai business leader expands role with Denver-based investment firm
Brue Baukol Capital Partners has promoted Trinette Kaui to vice president of land assets and community relations.<\p> "In addition to managing Brue Baukol Capital Partners’ landholdings on Kauai, Kaui’s expanded role will include building positive relationships with the community, guiding charitable contributions and overseeing employee volunteer programs on behalf of the company," an Aug. 1 announcement from the Denver-based real estate investment firm noted.<\p>
How Jamie Delgadillo tripled the size of this financial institution
After being managed by its San Diego partners, Northwestern Mutual-Hawaii officially became its own formal office, the company announced on Aug. 1. Pacific Business News met with its new Managing Partner Jamie Delgadillo, who was promoted from managing director, to discuss what this means for the business today and in the long-term.<\p> Delgadillo said he purchased the Northwestern Mutual-Hawaii office in 2018 when the organization was located on Fort Street Mall with about 25 staff members. Since then, the organization relocated to Pacific Guardian Center in Downtown Honolulu and has more than tripled its staff to about 85 employees.<\p>
Wahiawa food center names first product development manager
The University of Hawaii Leeward Community College's Wahiawa Value-Added Product Development Center has hired its first product development manager: Hailey Zhou. The center announced Zhou's appointment in its August newsletter, and she will start in the new role on Aug. 19. <\p> The 33,000-square-foot food production facility for entrepreneurs and students held its grand opening in mid-April and features multiple kitchens and equipment for processing and packaging food.<\p>
Companies are spending billions for an employee benefit not being used
Workers are leaving the equivalent of hundreds of billions of dollars a year on the table in the form of unused vacation days, and employers increasingly are a paying a price for those decisions.<\p> Financial firm Sorbet surveyed 1,500 American workers over the age of 21 and found that 62% of those employees didn't use all their paid vacation time last year. That's up from 57% who didn't use all their available time off in 2022 and nearly double the rate from four years earlier, according to Sorbet. <\p>
The National Observer: Watchers warn of vicious circle in U.S. economy
Welcome to The National Observer, a roundup of top business news and actionable insights from across The Business Journals network of publications. We're getting into the reason many companies are laying off more workers than they might need to, a solar cell manufacturer's new $1 billion project, and a higher education company's big bet on remote and hybrid learning. But first, let's look at concerns by Wells Fargo economists about a vicious cycle downturn in the U.S. economy.<\p> Get more stories like these every day in your inbox by subscribing to The National Observer newsletter. <\p>
Hawaii Realtors president talks rule changes related to NAR settlement
New rules stemming from a settlement to resolve nationwide claims brought by home sellers against the National Association of Realtors are set to go into effect later this month.<\p> NAR earlier this year "agreed to a $418 million settlement in response to litigation from home sellers who said NAR rules forced them to pay excessive fees," Julie Meier, regional compliance manager and broker-at-large for Compass and 2024 president of Hawaii Realtors, a statewide professional trade organization, said in an emailed response to questions from Pacific Business News.<\p>
Blue Startups has launched latest cohort of its accelerator program
Blue Startups has selected 13 participating companies for its latest accelerator, which kicked off late last month. <\p> The newest cohort — Cohort 16 — launched July 22 and will run through Oct. 11. The accelerator focuses on business development and mentorship, and the 12-week run will cover topics including customer delivery, product-market fit, and investor and customer connections, according to a release announcing the new cohort. <\p>
Maui farmers continue to see impacts from wildfires
A statewide drop in tourism numbers and lingering impacts from the Maui wildfires are continuing to affect island farmers, Warren Watanabe, executive director for the Maui County Farm Bureau, told Pacific Business News. <\p> The restaurants that burned down in Lahaina need time to get permits to rebuild — if they plan to rebuild at all, Watanabe said. <\p>
Here are this year’s Fastest Growing Companies
Pacific Business News is excited to announce this year’s Fastest Growing Companies.<\p> The annual Fastest Growing Companies awards recognize Hawaii businesses that demonstrate remarkable growth. This year’s honorees were evaluated on revenue growth between 2021 and 2023.<\p>
Toy store owners imagine a 'new Front Street'
Robert Loera pulls up to the checkpoint heading into the burned ruins of Lahaina town, placard in hand. <\p> “Uncle, you still got the toy store?” the man at the station asks. Loera nods, laughs and the two men bump fists. <\p>
Sports shop works to reopen in Lahaina
Lopaka Wilson bought his first fishing pole at West Maui Sports and Fishing Supply when he was 6 years old.<\p> “That was the store we went to for gear, tackle, tips and tricks, and the latest news and whatnot,” he told Pacific Business News in late June. “Sometimes, you just walk in there to look at all the pictures [the previous owner hung] on the wall.”<\p>
How one company helped its employees, the community in wake of fires
When Maui Gold Pineapple Co. lost its flagship store on Front Street to the wildfires, its parent company, Hawaii Farm Project, paid employees to help the community in whatever way they could, said owner Todd Domeck. <\p> “Basically, we kept all of our core team on and said, ‘Go find a way to help. And if you can find a way our company can help, bring that back to us,’” he recalled.<\p>
After losing everything in fire, cafe has ‘amazing’ reopening
The trouble started before the Aug. 8 fire for Sean Corpuel and Cool Cat Cafe, a 1950s-style diner that called Lahaina’s 658 Front St. home for more than two decades. High winds had blown off the restaurant’s awning and caused power outages. A manager told Corpuel, who was on the Mainland, that the area looked like a “war zone” because “roofs had flown off, debris was everywhere, palm trees were knocked down.”<\p> “It was a mess before the fire even got bad,” said Corpuel, who started the diner with his father 35 years ago in California before expanding to Maui in 2003. “I went to bed that night thinking about ‘What are we going to do for refrigeration? Can I get a refrigerated truck out there? Do we get the awning cleaned up [and] buy some umbrellas for the outside patio?’”<\p>
After a year of 'preparing for this moment,' Lahaina gallery to reopen
Chris Anderson, owner of Lahaina Printsellers, takes in the Front Street site that once housed the gallery. It’s the first time he’s been back since last August. <\p> How does he feel?<\p>
A look at Lahaina businesses, one year later
The island of Maui was forever changed a year ago, when devastating wildfires, fanned by strong winds from a passing hurricane, broke out on the Valley Isle. <\p> One blaze — the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century — killed more than 100 people and destroyed much of historic Lahaina town, leaving behind about $5.5 billion in damages, per the U.S. Fire Administration. The Aug. 8, 2023, fire in Lahaina covered an estimated 2,170 acres, according to county updates from September. <\p>
One former Front Street shop pivots to pop-ups
The meteorites that once were on display at Whaler's Locker — a 250-square-foot collectibles store on Front Street — remained, even after the store burned to the ground. But when owner Tiffany Winn picked up the megalodon shark teeth, they crumbled in her hands. <\p> “It was so heartbreaking, just gutting losing that,” she said. “It was natural history. And a lot of those pieces were really special — and rare. But we all made it. We just lost all of our stuff.”<\p>
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