The black market thrives throughout the Islands. Here’s how much people make in three local underground industries: cockfighting, prostitution and marijuana dealing – and why they do it, despite the risk of arrest. Tonto pulls down his black beanie and…
Dane Atkinson used to be the kind of startup CEO that board members praised because he attracted top-notch talent while saving money. Certain candidates were just not aggressive at negotiating their salaries, and he took advantage of that. “It’s easy…
Two dozen local companies and business leaders who won this year's Hawaiʻi district awards from the federal Small Business Administration (SBA). Hawaii Business also recognizes our Editor's Choice Winners for 2017.
Hanau ka aina, hanau ke alii, hanau ke kanaka. Born is the land, born were the chiefs, born were the people. That’s the Hawaiian proverb that guided Wednesday night’s celebration of Hawaii Business’ “20 For the Next 20” class of…
Three nonprofits on Oahu are partnering with needy families to build affordable homes for ownership using the beneficiaries’ sweat equity, plus volunteer labor, government help, private donations, and a whole lot of advice and support for the families. All that…
Hawaii Business is thankful to be strengthening the local economy and helping our communities thrive by offering insightful and engaging content for the past 61 years. This attitude of gratitude has us looking back on all of the editorial features…
Mosquitoes have already caused a dengue fever outbreak in Hawaii. Zika and other mosquito-borne diseases may be close behind. Here’s what scientists are doing and what you should do. For most of Kepa Police’s life, mosquitoes were minor annoyances, simply…
Critics say use of the chemicals by seed companies endangers the health of Hawaii’s people, but the companies insist they are using pesticides safely and following federal regulations. A recent report suggests a way forward on the issue. Malia Chun…
Two years ago, 27,000 gallons of jet fuel leaked from the military’s giant Red Hill underground storage tanks. The Navy more fully explains what went wrong then and answers the question: Will further or bigger leaks happen and contaminate a…
“What I have been doing most of my adult life and professional life is being very open and honest,” says Daniel Chun, one of Hawaii’s openly gay business leaders. “If it’s weird to me, and if I make it weird,…
When tricky emotional issues stifle a family’s wealth-management planning, financial advisors call upon therapists to move the process forward. It could be the basis of a twisted reality show: Throw a family into a conference room, have them grapple with…
It was 1955. The FDA approved the Salk polio vaccine and Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus. The Brooklyn Dodgers won the World Series for the first time and Disneyland opened. Jimmy Stewart and…
I grew up in a home where mom and dad successfully owned and worked together in a business for over 25 years. As a child, I helped in the business over the summers and learned some of the most enduring…
1947 Roy and Estelle Kelley build their first hotel: the five-story, 50-room Islander Hotel on Seaside Avenue, the first in Waikiki to cater to middle-income travelers and families. Four more hotels follow over 12 years. The…
Divorce is big business – maybe even bigger than the wedding business in America. That’s because contested divorces involve more than just lawyers. There are also accountants, parenting consultants and other niche specialists to be paid, plus the money spent…
The world has changed. Is Hawaii still stuck in the past? Or were we ahead of the times all along? Remember 2004? That year, a BlackBerry was the height of executive cool, while the first iPhone was still three years…
In late 2012, Ken Ordenstein started his own funeral business, building on a lifetime of experience. His mother and father were Anna and Francis Ordenstein, co-founders of Hawaiian Memorial Park. At the Ordenstein home, which included four sons and three…
We rank individual Realtors and real estate companies by the dollar value of total sales during 2013 and by the number of transactions. One Realtor led both lists; turn the page to find out who. Methodology How We Compiled the…
Roberta Oaks, Fashion Designer and Retailer Oaks did not start out to be a fashion designer. She majored in photography and art history, and then worked in restaurants for 10 years. Not until her late 20s did it hit her:…
Stanley Kuriyama did something all too rare for a CEO: He put his company's success ahead of his personal interests. A lot of people think Stanley Kuriyama is a local hero. As chairman and CEO of Alexander & Baldwin, he…
Imagine a retail business in which one key measure of sales growth was up 42.2 percent last year, with similar growth this year. You’d be on Easy Street, right? Except this same business is plagued by a perennial problem: Customers…
Henry Kapono Kaaihue was already a well-known performer, with decades on stage and dozens of best selling CDs, when he met his wife-to-be, Lezlee. She was a successful, trained-on-the-job stockbroker and he was playing at the Pier Bar at Aloha Tower…
Name: Paulette Kahalepuna Job: Feather artist and owner of Na Lima Mili Hulu Noeau, a store where Hawaiian feather work is taught, and supplies and finished pieces are sold. Experience: 21 years. START: In 1991, Kahalepuna helped her feather-expert mother Mary Lou and father…
The Art of Learning Back when it was The Contemporary Museum, it was an idiosyncratic destination in the hills above Honolulu, a place where you could walk the gardens, grab lunch in the cafe and see intriguing contemporary art that…