THE OLD ADAGE still matters in Hawaii’s top hotels: Every little thing counts. That commitment to seemingly small things – greeting you by name when you check in, smiling at you with every interaction – has kept two hotels as the…
“ABOUT $1.1 BILLION A YEAR IS PAID OUT IN PENSION BENEFITS NOW (TO STATE AND COUNTY WORKERS). IN THE NEXT 10 TO 20 YEARS, THAT’S PROJECTED TO GROW TO ABOUT $2 BILLION A YEAR.” –WESLEY MACHIDA Director, State Department of…
When Billy Ng told his former boss at Island Sign Service Inc. that he and his brother, Min, wanted to eventually buy the business, his boss didn’t think the two would succeed. “Imagine, we were two immigrant boys from Cambodia…
Hawaii Business magazine is pleased to announce the Top 100 Realtors for 2015 – the gold standard in identifying the state’s top performers. This list is the only objective ranking of real estate agents in Hawaii for the ninth consecutive…
By sixth grade, Cedric Gates' future already looked bleak: Severe childhood obesity had pushed his weight over 200 pounds. A year later things got worse: His mother collapsed at work and died from heart disease. By the time he was…
If you coach a local sports team that needs uniforms or run a business that uses logo wear, you probably know about Kenjo Inc. in Kalihi. For 28 years, Sidney Lynch has been the quiet, steady force behind Hawaii’s second-oldest…
After all the hullabaloo, the hearings, legislation, planning, permits and protests, the concept of an urban, gentrified Kakaako is now an urban reality in progress. Cranes fill the skyline from one end of Kakaako to the other, with at least…
I believe the Hawaiian people have been given a tremendous gift from Pele and that gift is this access to deep ocean water,” says Rich Bailey, owner of Dewpoint Systems. The gift of deep ocean water may be Pele’s, but…
I am the person most responsible for my health. No question about that. But should my company also take an interest in my health? In crass financial terms, the answer is yes. One reason is obvious: health insurance premiums. At…
For frugal folks, riding a motorcycle or moped is the way to go, says Glenn Koishigawa. “People’s jaws drop when I tell them they can get up to 60 miles to a gallon on a moped,” says Koishigawa, owner of…
Richard Wacker didn’t start as a banker. An engineer by training, he spent 20 years in executive positions at General Electric. His first banking job came in 2004, when he left GE to run the troubled Korea Exchange Bank for…
BPTW QUICK LINKS LARGE COMPANIES | MEDIUM COMPANIES | SMALL COMPANIES SPECIAL AWARDS BEST PLACES TO WORK: BENEFITS AT A GLANCE Company Name Offers profit sharing or stock option % of employee medical premium paid by employer Number…
Honolulu at night is a different animal from its daylight self. Yes, it’s darker, but also emptier, the spaces less defined and much less colorful. What light there is feels dramatic; simple sights can feel staged. The person who works…
Daniel B.T. Lau, co-founder of Finance Factors, was born in 1919, the year the treaty officially ending World War I was signed, and Congress approved Constitutional amendments that created Prohibition and gave the vote to women. Stephen Haugse, the owner…
Income inequality led the agenda at the 2015 World Economic Forum in Davos and has sparked spirited debate in Washington, D.C., and across America, where the gap between the nation’s richest citizens and everyone else has been growing for four…
It’s been six years since the Alakai sailed out of Honolulu Harbor for the last time, yet somehow the Hawaii Superferry won’t go away. It haunted the 2014 campaign like the ghost of elections past. In June, an unscientific online…
“There was always something else. When pineapple closed, the resorts were there. When the ranch closed, Monsanto was still there. There was always an answer. We don’t have the answer now.” —Kimberly Mikami Svetin, Store owner To some people, Monsanto…
President of FCH Enterprises, owner of Zippy’s restaurants Brothers Francis and Charlie Higa made a wise choice in 1966, when they opened a drive-in restaurant called Zippy’s on South King Street instead of a car wash, and launched one of…
Hawaii’s known for a unique blend of cultures and tastes, and that is evident in the wide variety of foods and products available in the Islands’ many ethnic markets. These markets go far beyond the typical Japanese, Chinese and Korean…
If you are keeping score on whether technology makes our lives better or worse, put this in the plus column: Technology has dramatically cut the number of stolen cars in Hawaii over the past decade. In 2003, 9,651 motor vehicles…
In the 24/7 global marketplace, where the game changes overnight and social media amplifies your message and your mistakes, here come the Millennials, the generation raised to thrive in this world. Just about everyone has strong feelings about Millennials. The…
Dr. Kim-Ahn Nguyen has understood the importance of collaborating and adapting to change since childhood. She was just 7 when her family was evacuated from Vietnam and deposited in a small town in New Jersey to start a new life…
As the sun rises on Waikiki Beach, some workers are going home while others have just arrived and are preparing to serve, feed and entertain up to 6,000 visitors at the Hilton. Senior writer Beverly Creamer and photographer Greg Yamamoto…
Bipolar Workforce or Just Poor Polling? Hawaii’s numbers have seesawed in the workplace satisfaction rankings conducted annually for the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index. Hawaii’s overall ranking was tops in the nation for four straight years, before falling to eighth last year.…