The challenges of a startup business are as tough as ever, but with the growing local ecosystem of investors and new-business support systems, the green shoots of entrepreneurship are encouragingly healthy.
And for the Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards, the yield this year is an impressive array of products and services among its finalists and winners.
Two of the finalists, Maui Ku‘ia Estate Chocolate and Reef.ai, illustrate the range, from craft chocolate and Isle-grown cacao to artificial intelligence-driven services that strengthen a client’s revenue potential.
The Islands’ entrepreneurial sector has grown, says Meli James, president of the Hawai‘i Venture Capital Association, sponsor of the awards. James is also co-founder of Mana Up, a Hawai‘i-based accelerator that helps consumer product companies ascend to the next level.
“I would definitely say since I moved home about 11 years ago and joined the organization as president and board member, there’s been a heavy increase in the interest in entrepreneurship,” James says.
Covid indirectly enabled some of that increase, she says, by spurring advances in technology and its uses: Remote sales and conferencing platforms, for example, have freed startups from some of the capital-intensive brick-and-mortar requirements for new businesses. And virtual assistants and other digital tools are relieving businesses of even more of those startup chores.
The global pandemic also forced a pause in economic activity and a disruption in employment, prompting many to strike out in new directions, James says.
“Not only did people have an opportunity to do a little bit of a life shift, whether that was by choice or not … many people had an opportunity to take that hobby or that interest and really start a company,” she adds. “I think that was good for small business and entrepreneurship.”
Chenoa Farnsworth, one of the leaders in the local venture capital sector, is also a founding partner of Blue Startups, on the team with Henk Rogers and Maya Rogers of Tetris fame. She says that because Hawai‘i was seen as a safe place to be, the pandemic brought “an influx of talent and experience that we didn’t necessarily have before.”
“It brings a little more critical mass to the ecosystem,” Farnsworth says. “There are now other people out there working on the same thing: You are not alone.”
However, she adds, the jury is still out on whether this new momentum is a blip or will have long-term effects on Hawai‘i’s entrepreneurial landscape.
Blue Startups focuses on assisting new technology-centered businesses. Its mentorship program works with roughly 10 companies at a time, for 12 weeks in Honolulu and one in San Francisco.
“The reason I’m a big believer in the technology space is it’s one of the few industries that pays enough where we can afford to work here,” Farnsworth says. She points to the Turno platform, which helps to automate interactions between cleaners and vacation-rental hosts, as a success story. Turno leveraged the Isles’ tourism industry on its path to global potential.
Among the company’s newer initiatives, Farnsworth cites its outreach to the Japanese government to bring Japanese companies, and their additional capital, to Hawai‘i.
“We are well connected to Asia and we can leverage that connection,” she says. “Finally, that is beginning to bear fruit.”
The state’s relatively small population makes it hard to get critical mass for a new industry, she adds, but she says she’s encouraged by the innovative thinking of its younger generations.
Sandra Fujiyama is on the front lines witnessing the advent of future entrepreneurs, and she agrees. Fujiyama is executive director of PACE, the Pacific Asian Center for Entrepreneurship at UH Mānoa’s Shidler College of Business, which offers an extracurricular menu of entrepreneurship programs and mentorships for students in all majors.
Fujiyama sees Hawai‘i’s funding ecosystem beginning to flourish. And that ecosystem was recently enhanced by the arrival of Hi-CAP, a state program that funnels federal money to new startups.
Among the startups Fujiyama points to is Pear Suite, a software platform that supports community healthcare services. It started at PACE and has rolled out nationally.
Problem-solving is crucial for entrepreneurs, and it’s being taught to young students now, she says.
“We’re really trying to empower and educate our students on what we call the entrepreneurial mindset,” Fujiyama says. “And if they can go on to build a business utilizing those skills, then wonderful, right?”
–Vicki Viotti
Social Impact Entrepreneur of the Year
Ag/Clean Tech Entrepreneur of the Year
CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods) Entrepreneur of the Year
Student Entrepreneur of the Year
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Entrepreneur of the Year
Awarded to the individual or team that has gone above expectations with their company, and is a clear example to other entrepreneurs.
Winner: Alexis Akiona, LexBreezy Hawai‘i
When I first started the company, it was just me and my then-boyfriend, now husband, packing orders from our one bedroom in Kalihi,” says Alexis Akiona about the modern alohawear company she founded in 2016. Today, LexBreezy Hawai‘i has a team of 20 and two stores: one in Kailua and one at Ala Moana Center.
“I’m just a small-town Hilo girl making waves on O‘ahu and I’m honored to be Entrepreneur of the Year,” she says. “As a Native Hawaiian, I’m proud to be the voice for a lot of up-and-coming mana wāhine who are looking to become entrepreneurs.”
Akiona “has transformed her startup into a high-demand local fashion brand, revolutionizing the perception of local Hawaiian wear,” wrote the judges of the Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards. “In addition, she generously opens the door for other designers to join her consortium, fostering synergism and creating a platform for them to thrive.”
In 2023, Akiona expanded the reach of LexBreezy Hawai‘i by attending trade shows in Las Vegas, Japan and New York City. “It’s our chance to go and showcase what alohawear really is, and what it means to us, and the traditions behind it,” says Akiona. “It’s a whole different ballgame.”
She has also launched a streetwear component, “focusing on what alohawear means in the 21st century. I wanted something that inspires the younger generation, and that is streetwear. I began my career in streetwear, so it’s full circle to incorporate it in.”
Akiona says she helped raise more than $100,000 to aid Maui families after the wildfires, via an exclusive release print that benefited Maui, as well as donations from each online purchase. “We worked with Maui Rise and donated directly to the families,” she says. “I wanted to step up.”
She also works with the UH Foundation on the Lexbreezy Scholarship, which supports students enrolled in fashion technology or cosmetology programs. In fall 2023, 10 students received financial assistance.
“I always wanted to work for myself,” says Akiona. “I wanted to create a legacy. I would tell the younger generation, ‘Figure out what you want and go after it.’
” Stay tuned for another store opening in 2024, Akiona says. “We are fueled for that, as well as focusing on taking care of my team and the community and looking for even more ways to give back.”
–Kathryn Drury Wagner
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Startup Paradise Champion
Someone who consistently contributes to the success of Hawai‘i’s innovation community.
Winner: Susan Yamada, Pacific Asian Center for Entrepreneurship (PACE), Shidler College, University of Hawaii
After working for startups in Silicon Valley for 17 years, Susan Yamada moved home to Hawai‘i in 2001. She’s amazed to see how far the Islands’ innovation ecosystem has come in the ensuing two decades.
Yamada is chairman of the board of the Pacific Asian Center for Entrepreneurship at UH’s Shidler College of Business. PACE offers mentorships, training and resources to students across the UH system and encourages the commercialization of ideas bubbling out of UH.
When she first took a position there in 2008, PACE had about three programs. “We didn’t have money, but we had a community that gave generously of their time. When we needed judges, coaches, they were always there. That’s the beautiful part of where we live,” Yamada says.
“Now we offer 20 programs. Monetarily, we have earned the trust and respect of our donors. I wouldn’t say money is falling out of the trees, but donors know if we do something, it will be done right and professionally.”
The judges of the Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards told Hawaii Business Magazine in an email that Yamada’s “leadership at PACE has been instrumental, transforming it into a hub of innovation with RISE and other programs and initiatives that have invested over $10 million in services, awards and scholarships.” It’s that leadership, they wrote, that earned her the title of Startup Paradise Champion.
RISE is a newly opened 374- bed, live-learn-work innovation facility. “The challenge is that the university is so siloed – you have your business students over here and engineers over there,” says Yamada. “Some of the best ideas, but worst business plans, come from four engineers. Getting engineers with our business students, they can work out the business model and then start a phased approach to a company.”
RISE is open to graduate and undergraduate students in all majors.
“It’s not only about startups, but also getting students to think about how to look at a problem, how to figure out solutions, how to talk to each other – skills the 21st-century workforce must possess. Innovation and technology are our future, and we really need to invest in it.”
–Kathryn Drury Wagner
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Social Impact Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur and company that substantially contributes to helping solve some of Hawai‘i’s toughest problems.
Winner: Jeff Gilbreath, Hawai‘i Community Lending
Since 2014, Hawai‘i Community Lending has issued more than $42 million in grants and loans to support affordable housing for more than 4,300 Native Hawaiian and other local families.
“We have a deeper level of knowledge of transactions on Hawaiian Homelands in particular, with team members who reside on Hawaiian Homelands themselves, helping others to get on the land and stay there,” says Jeff Gilbreath, founder and executive director of the community development nonprofit.
HCL’s role is to help families overcome financial barriers to home ownership.
Gilbreath says he is inspired by the hope expressed by people who come through the program, and ultimately, in their successes.
“It’s like seeing individual sovereignty in action – to see families years down the road, their health changing for the better, better family interactions, connections to social networks and brighter opportunities.”
–Cynthia Sweeney
Finalist: Carlo Liquido, Circular Design Internship
An entrepreneur and company that substantially contributes to helping solve some of Hawai‘i’s toughest problems.
Hawai‘i is not yet a business hub for the tech world, but Carlo Liquido is taking a ground-up approach that he hopes will change that.
“Let’s build the talent, and then the companies will come,” he says.
With more applicants than it can currently handle, Circular Design Internship pairs job-seeking software designers with mentors, both locally and on the mainland. Its partners include Amazon and Shopify on the mainland and Blue Startups in Hawai‘i.
Liquido and seven other designers run the all-volunteer operation. Over the last few months, they have supported 19 projects, with 25 interns and 19 volunteer mentors across 18 companies.
“Five years ago, I never would have started this,” Liquido says. “But a silver lining to the pandemic is that there has been a paradigm shift with regard to remote work. Now, we have the ability to live in Hawai‘i and make a San Francisco salary, which was not really possible before.”
–Cynthia Sweeney
Finalist: Julie Morikawa, ClimbHI
This past year, ClimbHI has engaged more than 170,000 students across the state, from kindergarten through college, with 600 businesses.
ClimbHI connects teachers and businesses with events, platforms, and portals, providing job opportunities for students and potential recruits for employers.
Its flexibility enables ClimbHI to respond to the greatest needs of our state’s workforce, says Julie Morikawa, the organization’s founder and president.
“It’s literally a revolutionary educational tool. We’re trying to create economic self-sufficiency for our keiki, to stop exporting our number one resource, our talent and aloha spirit, to other places,” Morikawa says.
In response to the Maui fires, Morikawa says, ClimbHI created an emergency response leadership training program for students. Graduates “emerge as prepared leaders, not just for Hawai‘i’s sake, but for our entire nation and beyond to serve a new model going forward, of how you can come out of tragedies better than when you went into it.”
–Cynthia Sweeney
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Deal of the Year
Recognizes the local company that received the largest financial deal in the past year
Winner: Brenton Grimes and Corey Goff, Reef.ai
Brent Grimes
Net revenue retention measures a company’s ability to retain customers and expand revenue from them. Innovative technology from Reef.ai is able to better leverage the data around that key measure of business success, says Brent Grimes, co-founder and CEO of the Hawai‘i-based company that combines “the best of human and artificial intelligence.”
Reef’s success in attracting investors and its commitment to Hawai‘i are why the judges of the Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards picked it for Deal of the Year.
“Raising $5.1 million from investors in 2023 is remarkable given the tough fundraising environment,” the judges told Hawaii Business Magazine in an email. “Reef has a demonstrated commitment to Hawai‘i: Its founders are based here, a number of its investors are Hawai‘i-based and the company is committed to hiring locally.”
Reef sells mostly to other software technology companies, Grimes says, “and they have a lot of data about how their customers are interacting with their products.” Reef’s artificial intelligence is applied to that data and it provides analysis and guidance, he says.
“Reef can isolate those customers that are showing the most signs of risk early on, so they can intervene,” he says.
“Another example is on the growth. Many companies will introduce new products and want to sell those new products into their existing customer base. But most of them don’t have the tools to know who the best customers are to focus on.”
Grimes says Reef’s clients range from early-stage startups to larger organizations with hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.
Corey Goff
Reef.ai was founded three years ago by Grimes and Corey Goff, now its chief technology officer. Grimes previously was an executive with San Francisco-based software company MuleSoft. Reef was born in part out of his experience there.
“We were just following our gut instincts initially and doing an OK job,” he says, “but we weren’t always making great decisions about how we allocated our resources.
“So we pulled a bunch of data about our customers and then aggregated the data and did a simple scoring model as a way to really start to prioritize customers more effectively.”
While acknowledging some of the challenges of doing business in Hawai‘i, Grimes says Reef drew investors specifically seeking to invest in the Islands.
“People really believed in the company, but also were very interested in helping a business with ties to Hawai‘i take the next step.”
–Vicki Viotti
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Lifetime Achievement Award
Winner: Nake’u Awai, Nake’u Awai Designs
Nake‘u Awai, 85, is often described as the “Grandfather of Hawai‘i Fashion.” During 50 years in the field, the images on his designs have become iconic: maidenhair fern, kukui, lauhala fans, maile. Every year, buyers come to see what “Uncle” has conceived in the Houghtailing Street shop where he has worked for four decades.
Fashion is nothing without change, and it’s the same with aloha attire, Awai says.
“It’s changed, definitely. The silhouette … the colors. Because there was a time when alohawear was all neon-bright, but now there are subtleties where fashions are coming out in grays and beiges.”
Awai’s creations hang throughout the shop: prints in muted shades on fabric from cotton to seersucker in a range of pastels, and garments with splashes of brighter colors mixed in. Familiarity and novelty are both present.
What ensures all of it remains Hawaiian, he says, is the use of images that are more local than commercial. Awai compares his approach with that of another noted Island designer, Allen Akina, who also returned to Hawai‘i after time away.
“We both came back. He wanted to appeal to Waikīkī and tourists,” he says. “And I wanted to design clothes for local people.”
For his five decades of fashion accomplishments, Awai has earned the Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards’ Lifetime Achievement Award.
“Nake‘u Awai stands as the visionary pioneer who with humble grace was the first Native Hawaiian designer to use native and indigenous floral in prints,” the judges wrote in an email to Hawaii Business Magazine.
“Awai opened the doors of Hawaiian fashion to the masses. For five decades, his unwavering creative spirit and determination have forged a path for succeeding local designers.”
After graduating from Kamehameha Schools and the University of Washington, where he studied theater and dance, Awai became a professional Broadway-style dancer, appearing in touring productions and TV variety shows.
He nurtured his interest in fashion in costume shops, then came home and started his new career: Carol & Mary stores were the launchpad for his first line under the Nake‘u Awai Designs label.
And, while Awai says he doesn’t miss performing, showbiz plays a big role in his fashion shows. Instead of the classic runway walk, he says, he chooses local models who act out characters he assigns them. Search YouTube for “An Occasional Man Nake‘u Awai” to see an example.
“If they playact, they can go through the whole segment without being nervous,” he says.
–Vicki Viotti
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Agriculture/Clean Tech Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur and company whose technology supports a greener future or helps farmers with innovative agricultural practices.
Winner: Gunars Valkirs, Maui Ku‘ia
Gunars Valkirs suspects some of his interest in fruit trees— cacao, specifically — is in his genes. His father was a farmer before World War II altered his path and Valkirs himself “was always growing things.”
Valkirs had been head of R&D for Biosite, a diagnostics firm in California that was sold in 2007.
He and his wife moved to Hawai‘i and invested in what became Maui Ku‘ia Estate, a maker of award-winning craft chocolate. The on-ramp was getting involved in a UH cacao field trial.
“As soon as I realized I didn’t know anything about it, being a scientist I wanted to learn,” he says.
The company is also about giving back: The couple created the Makana Aloha Foundation, which receives 100% of the estate’s net profits, including what is raised through factory tours, to support local nonprofits.
–Vicki Viotti
Finalist: Emma McCaulley, Sweet Land Farm
Even after Emma McCaulley was well into her studies in culinary arts at Leeward Community College, she hadn’t left the farm far behind. Her mother was part of Wahiawā’s Peterson family and worked on the well-known Petersons’ Upland Farm.
McCaulley found her own calling of raising goats while doing a summer job at Surfing Goat Dairy on Maui. She has owned Sweet Land Farm in Waialua since 2010.
“I enjoyed what I was doing rather than being in a kitchen all day,” says McCaulley. “This was what I was supposed to do.”
The farm, 87 acres that she owns in fee, has about 300 goats. Her culinary skills helped develop a product line that includes various cheeses, caramel, gelato, soaps and lotions. The items are sold at the farm’s onsite store and wholesaled to restaurants and hotels.
–Vicki Viotti
Finalist: Yishan Wong, Terraformation
Terraformation’s goals are clear, and they’re as big as the Earth.
“Our mission is to accelerate the reforestation of the world, that is to say, the restoration of native biodiverse forests, because we believe that this is good for people, communities, ecosystems and ultimately as a solution to climate change,” says Yishan Wong, Terraformation’s founder and CEO.
The company is set up as a Delaware C corporation, he says, because that enables raising of private funding more quickly than a nonprofit. Speed is of the essence, he says.
Terraformation partners with companies and organizations worldwide, tapping forestry and science experts to design projects.
These projects span the globe from Ecuador to Tanzania. Hawai‘i-based projects include a Bishop Museum seed bank and Pacific Flight at Kaupalaoa, which aims to restore a native forest ecosystem in North Kohala that was destroyed by logging and grazing.
–Vicki Viotti
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Consumer Packaged Goods Entrepreneur
Presented to the entrepreneur whose CPG company has consistently seen month-over-month growth in revenue and customers.
Winner: Sandra Gibson, Sea Salts of Hawai‘i
Sandra Gibson, who started Sea Salts of Hawai‘i 12 years ago, considers herself part of a team. Altogether, 17 people, most of them Native Hawaiian, work at the harvesting site in Kona and in the production kitchen on O‘ahu.
Gibson says regulation of food products means the salts are processed differently from old ways. Salt water is drawn from deep ocean streams that may have migrated over great distances, and then evaporates naturally, but in a contained environment.
“Everybody who’s on the Kona team grew up in Kona, and there are salt ponds there, and a strong cultural connection. … They’re certainly very knowledgeable when it comes to the salt traditions and the salt culture in Hawai‘i.”
The company produces gourmet salts and supplements such as magnesium, nigari (used to make tofu) and AstaFactor (astaxanthin, an antioxidant).
–Vicki Viotti
Finalist: Ethan West, Piko Provisions
Ethan West got his MBA and started Piko Provisions with an eye on the niche baby-food market. But it was his family’s farming history, in Maine and Rhode Island, that helped drive the decision to source it locally in Hawai‘i.
“A lot of it has to do with honoring the past,” says West. “I come from six generations of family farmers. … Looking back on it now, there’s nothing else that I would rather be a part of.”
West partners with the Hawai‘i ‘Ulu Cooperative and GoFarm Hawai‘i to produce the ‘ulu (breadfruit), Okinawan sweet potato, banana, taro, pineapple, kabocha (a winter squash sometimes called Japanese pumpkin), avocado and kale in Piko’s three puree blends, for infants 6 months and up. More products for younger and older babies are in development.
And a new taste tester is arriving soon: a baby daughter.
–Vicki Viotti
Finalist: Leala Humbert, Ua Body
Leala Humbert’s line of botanical products was born out of her late mother’s similar skin-care business, Island Herbal, and both use plant-based materials and florals. Her mother learned about the field while living in Japan and France and then brought it to Hawai‘i, where she also worked in lei making.
Humbert named her business Ua Body – ua meaning “rain.” Locally sourced components include mango butter, macadamia and kukui oils, and sandalwood.
Glass packaging and the avoidance of plastics are part of the brand.
“When we relaunched in 2020, we had this slogan, ‘Skin care should be simple,’ ” she says. “It encompasses a lot, and touches on sustainability as well. In this day and age, I don’t understand why a company would not try to be as sustainable as possible.”
–Vicki Viotti
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: People’s Choice Award
Chosen by our local community via an online poll conducted by Hawaii Business Magazine.
The poll asked voters to pick the startup that they think best represents the interests and goals of Hawai‘i’s Startup Paradise, one that serves as an example for others based on its products, successes, popularity and support of fellow community members.
Winner: Tiara Delgado, Kahiau Poke & Provisions
In 2015, Kahiau Poke & Provisions was a side hustle for Tiara and Hinano Delgado, with customers flocking to their Pearlridge Farmers Market tent for fresh fish and flavorful jerkies.
But Tiara says they felt constrained because they shared a commercial kitchen, so in 2018, they opened their own kitchen on Smith Street in downtown Honolulu. The site wasn’t meant to be a storefront but evolved into one as customers sought their products beyond farmers market hours.
Tragically, Hinano died during the Covid pandemic in 2020. “He always believed in me and some of my crazy ideas,” Tiara says of her other half.
Tiara continues his legacy by honoring the company’s mission and name – in Hawaiian, kahiau means to give generously with the heart. It’s a name her customers understand, too: She says they’ve supported her through some dark moments and many have volunteered to assist with the business, when needed.
“My amazing loyal customers supported me, allowing the business to continue.”
Kahiau Poke & Provisions’ products include poke poi, ‘ahi spreads, chile pepper water and various flavors of fish jerky. On the company’s catering menu are platters of poke and sushi.
–Cathy George
Finalist: Deron and Kit Furukawa, Maui Chili Chili Oil
Maui Chili Chili Oil got its start in 2020 when Deron and Kit Furukawa spent many hours experimenting in their kitchen during the Covid lockdown.
By December 2020, Deron had concocted a recipe for a chili oil flavored with Chinese spices, Szechuan peppers, crunchy garlic bits and onions. And their business was born.
The couple sold their products for a year at local markets, then in 2022 landed a contract to sell at Foodland stores.
Deron’s original recipe is the baseline for three flavors: “Mild Kine Spicy,” “Medium Kine Spicy” and “Spicy Kine Spicy.” A fourth flavor, “Yikes! Kine Spicy” is sold online only
. The early days were marked by trial and error, with “broken bottles in shipping, burnt ingredients while cooking and challenges in sourcing materials,” says Kit. She calls herself the “more aggressive entrepreneur, charging at every opportunity,” while Deron is “more grounded, realistic and calculated in his moves.”
This year they plan to test new markets at the Foodex Japan convention.
They continue to volunteer in Maui relief efforts and donate a portion of sales to wildfire victims. “The community work done in 2023 was so substantial that running Maui Chili Chili Oil in parallel was an achievement on its own,” Kit says.
–Cathy George
Finalist: Ola and Puna Trip, Liquid Life and Hā Tonics
Ola and Puna Trip founded Liquid Life in 2015, a chain of health cafes in Kea‘au, Waimea and Hilo, selling coldpressed juices, salads and sandwiches made with nutritious foods grown in the Islands.
But the couple is now pivoting: In March, Liquid Life will rebrand as “Hā Tonics,” specializing in shelf-stable products, and the rebranded logo is expected to roll out in the Hilo cafe. They also sold the Kea‘au and Waimea cafes to other young entrepreneurs.
The rebranding aligns with the company’s original mission to heal and educate customers about the nutritional wisdom of traditional Hawaiian medical practitioners, known as lā‘au lapa‘au.
The Tripps are passionate about sharing the knowledge of their ancestors. Ola’s paternal great-grandmother, Anita Pua, was a traditional healer. Puna’s maternal great-grandmother was a curandera, a traditional Latin American healer. “My mother juiced for me since I was a toddler,” she says.
Puna usually leads the kitchen, and Ola manages the office but occasionally, they swap roles to do “whatever that needs to be done.” In addition to the Hilo cafe, their products are sold at Kilauea General Store, Auberge Mauna Lani, Kohala Grown Market, Island Greens, Plant Based Foods and Umekes.
–Cathy George
Finalist: Adrienne-Joy and Jeremy Jataas, UBAE
Adrienne-Joy and Jeremy Jataas sold desserts made from the purple yam called ube out of their van until one day in 2015 when they went all-in, she says.
Today, they own and operate the dessert company UBAE, which stands for Ube Before Anything Else.
Crinkle cookies and mini cheesecakes are the fastest-selling items at UBAE’s store in the City Square Shopping Center in Kalihi. The products are also sold in grocery, convenience and drug stores; the Navy Exchange; and at KTA stores on Hawai‘i Island. UBAE items also have appeared at pop-up events in Japan.
Sales, production, packaging and distribution are handled by the couple and their 13 employees. UBAE recently acquired a production space in the same neighborhood as the Kalihi store, and Adrienne-Joy says further expansion plans could be announced this year. Cookies and cheesecakes aside, the company also crafts their ube takes on leche flan, sponge cake, chiffon cake, rolls with coconut cream, and softserve dairy-free ice cream.
What fuels the couple’s success and growth is their partnership. “Jeremy is more hands-on, while I’m more in the background and in the books,” Adrienne-Joy says. Their motto from day one: “No risk, no reward!”
–Cathy George
Finalist: Kamalani Dung, Keenan Shigematsu and Micah Yoshino, Hawaii Candy Factory (Noms)
Kamalani Dung
Hawaii Candy Factory’s business concept is sweet, sour and surprisingly simple.
The company says it purchases candies in bulk, coats them in li hing mui powder at a commercial kitchen and warehouse in Kapolei, then sells the hand-mixed sweets under the brand Noms.
What helps sales is Noms’ packaging. It stands out in candy aisles thanks to the bright hue and colorful caricatures created by the company’s in-house designer, Fred Zaha.
Keenan Shigematsu
The company says it launched Noms in March 2021 during the Covid pandemic with a straightforward mission: to “create snacks and holiday products that people of Hawai‘i can look forward to.”
In addition to school and team fundraisers, Noms are sold from a shopping mall kiosk, at convenience stores and drugstores, and retailers focused on the visitor market.
To expedite manufacturing, Hawaii Candy Factory’s executive team created an
Micah Yoshino
inventory management and ordering system customized to their needs; the system uses low-code, web-based platforms and databases.
Hawaii Candy Factory’s sales grew nearly 150% from 2022 to 2023, according to the company. This year, chocolate-based products are scheduled to launch.
–Cathy George
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Investor of the Year
Individual or entity that has invested substantially in the Hawai‘i startup ecosystem.
Winner: Donavan Kealoha, Startup Capital Ventures x SBI Fund
Paying it forward comes naturally to Donavan Kealoha.
“You get a little, you give a lot. That’s how it is in Hawai‘i,” says Kealoha. He is a managing director at Startup Capital Ventures x SBI Fund, an early-stage venture capital firm based in Menlo Park, California, and Honolulu, and an entrepreneur himself. Kealoha’s first interaction with the firm came about 15 years ago, when it supported a startup he co-founded.
Kealoha joined Startup Capital Ventures in 2014, and more recently began working with its third and latest fund, a joint venture with Japanese financial services SBI. He splits his time between Hawai‘i and the Bay Area.
“I try to leverage the network I have,” he says, “to bring insights and learning, and help people develop business plans or fundraising pitches.”
Because the firm focuses on early-stage investments, he says, “You’re really looking at the person, at their expertise and passion, and if we align in values. Have they identified a unique problem and a unique solution to it? Are they going to be able to get early employees to join their mission? They’ve got to have that – what do the kids say? – the rizz.”
Successful investments include WhiteHat Security, a Maui-launched tech company that was later acquired for a nine-figure sum, and Shifted Energy, a Honolulu startup focused on energy solutions.
Kealoha is also a co-founder of the Purple Mai‘a Foundation, a business accelerator program created to uplift Native Hawaiian entrepreneurs. “That was in response to being a Native Hawaiian and wanting to see Hawaiians in particular in this space; I wanted to help diversify the system,” he says.
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards judges told Hawaii Business Magazine that they picked Kealoha and his firm for Investor of the Year because of their track record. “For over two decades, Startup Capital Ventures has been a driving force in Hawai‘i’s entrepreneurship ecosystem, and the new SCV x SBI Fund reflects the continued commitment to support innovation here,” the judges wrote in an email.
“In addition, Donavan’s remarkable contributions extend to the community through the Purple Mai‘a Foundation, which is dedicated to empowering high-opportunity youth in underserved Hawai‘i communities.”
–Kathryn Drury Wagner
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Intrapreneur of the Year
Honors someone who works in a large organization but advocates for innovation and entrepreneurial thinking.
Winner: Micah Kāne, Hawai‘i Community Foundation
First covid, then the Maui wildfires. The Hawai‘i Community Foundation is navigating the most challenging era in its history. “And we’re still in the middle of this,” says Micah Kāne, CEO and president of HCF. “This is an extremely complex disaster. It’s deep, long, emotionally charged, politically charged.”
More than 250,000 donors from around the world have given to the Maui Strong Fund, propelling HCF into a global spotlight. “We’re a different organization than we were,” says Kāne. “A lot of evolution had to happen in a short amount of time.”
He’s proud of the people on his IT team, who worked 24/7 to fix crashing systems; of the management team that conducted 1 a.m. Zoom interviews with press in different time zones; of the overall organization’s “willingness to grind, at a time when it’s really hard.”
HCF’s values align internally and with those of its community partners, he says. That synergy doesn’t develop overnight, he notes, and it’s served the organization well in these times of extreme pressure.
Even before the fires, Kāne “demonstrated innovative thinking and positive impact in the community through his leadership at HCF,” wrote the judges of the Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards, who chose him as Intrapreneur of the Year, an annual award that goes to a person with an entrepreneurial mindset who operates within a larger organization. “Expanding stakeholder partnerships and incorporating the CHANGE initiative, he expanded the scope of HCF to have a broader impact.”
Past models for philanthropy, Kāne says, aren’t working. “If someone is hungry, you want to feed them; if someone needs shelter, you want to house them. But if the pipeline is growing faster than philanthropy can support, you have to work upstream … to deal with the real issues.”
For example, HCF has joined the Maui Interim Housing Plan, a collective of government and nonprofit groups aiming to create a pool of 3,000 stable housing units on Maui. “That was a huge milestone for us,” says Kāne. “The way that disaster programs are structured is rapid response and somewhat uncoordinated. You almost have to hit pause and get everyone around the table to figure out what resources you have and what you’re good at or not good at.
“The opportunity going forward for Hawai‘i is incredible, to use this as a way to rethink affordability and how we treat the environment. We can revisit how we manage and engage communities in developing the future vision for a place – rethinking people and place, and how they both can thrive.”
–Kathryn Drury Wagner
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Tech Entrepreneur of the Year
Honoring the entrepreneur who has created technology and innovation to make our lives better.
Winner: Ricky Uy, Komodo
Ricky Uy believes people are at their best when they play.
He is the co-founder of Komodo, a company based in Honolulu and Tokyo that creates and publishes video games and creative software products.
“We try to be a company of consequence. We create products that have elements of play with the goal to empower, educate and entertain people,” says Uy.
This April, Komodo will roll out Niuhi (the Hawaiian word for tiger sharks and other man-eating sharks), a program designed to inspire people to learn another language by sharing their favorite manga comics. Players can connect, form a community and translate the stories.
Uy says many people begin to learn a language, but it’s hard to stay motivated to achieve fluency.
“Fluency in a language is where there are major life rewards. Breaking down language barriers is a big key because otherwise you end up with siloed communities that don’t really get to engage with one another.”
–Cynthia Sweeney
Finalist: Amber Imai-Hong, Luke Clements, Christopher Amendola and Frances Zhu, Mahina Aerospace
HokuSat, a small satellite built and sold by Mahina Aerospace, is ready for space flight, and might put Hawai‘i on the map in the small satellite industry, says Amber Imai-Hong.
“I really hope we can build this high-tech industry in Hawai‘i to offset the tourist industry and provide a little more economic stability to the state,” says Imai-Hong, who is CEO of Mahina Aerospace, a spinoff of the Hawai‘i Space Lab at UH Mānoa.
Mahina’s four-person team developed software and hardware for HokuSat at UH Mānoa. Manufacturing takes place primarily in the U.S., and assembly occurs in Honolulu.
Uses for the CubeSats include science research, educational projects and commercial ventures.
Since January 2023, Mahina has delivered more than a dozen satellite chips to universities across the U.S., which are used as course materials to help build aerospace programs.
–Cynthia Sweeney
Finalist: Mina Singson-Brightman, Sebastian Borys and Kim Andreello, 40Hammocks
Mina Singson-Brightman
As the owner of two destination event planning companies, Mina Singson-Brightman knows the challenges that large groups face in finding accommodations in Hawai‘i.
“They can spend hours online researching accommodations and activities,” she says. “I realized there should be an app to make the booking experience easier.”
Sebastian Borys
Singson-Brightman and her two partners built 40Hammocks, a free platform for groups to book premium hotel accommodations.
“These groups want an overall experience they can remember, so we focus on four- and five-star hotels,” she says.
The app also lets group members track their hotel bookings, and communicate with other members, such as with announcements.
Kim Andreello
Since launching the platform in August, 40Hammocks says it has put together contracts with hotels on O‘ahu totaling nearly $100,000.
This year, 40Hammocks plans to expand to Las Vegas; Aspen, Colorado; and Austin, Texas; as well as popular destinations in California including Los Angeles, Palm Springs and Napa Valley.
–Cynthia Sweeney
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Student Entrepreneur of the Year
Honoring a younger member of the innovative community who has a passion for learning and the tenacious spirit of an entrepreneur.
Winner: Amelia Stucker and Adam Sullivan, Zingipop Sodaworks
In a beverage market saturated with beer and hard drinks, Zingipop Sodaworks aims to fill a niche with nonalcoholic soda.
Zingipop’s co-owners, current UH student Amelia Stucker and past UH student Adam Sullivan, make and package the sodas in a warehouse in Kalihi and sell them to boutique hotels, coworking spaces and small restaurants on O‘ahu. They recently purchased two new tanks that allow them to double their capacity to 600 gallons and produce four flavors of soda, including fan favorite Ginger Lilikoi.
Stucker says Zingipop is 100% locally sourced; each can’s label features local farms that provide ingredients. “We want to let our customers know where their food is grown,” she says.
Stucker has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and a certificate in entrepreneurship from Kapi‘olani Community College, and she’s on track to earn an associate degree in accounting from KCC.
–Cathy George
Finalist: Dani Pasion, Illicitlover
Dani Pasion’s fascination with “cute, dainty car products” led her to launch Illicitlover, an e-commerce store (illicitloverjp.com) that sells air fresheners for vehicles.
She says the company’s name stems from her personal experiences. “I’ve always felt that I had so much love to give and would get overwhelmed by these feelings. … I first started this small business as a way to cope with these feelings during a tough time in one of my past relationships … I focused this energy into art and this business.”
She designs each version of the air fresheners and sends the art to an off-island manufacturer. The whimsical designs reflect Pasion’s childhood, much of which she spent at car shows, surrounded by customized classic vehicles. One design, Turbo the Duck, consistently sells out, she says.
Pasion is on track to graduate this summer with a marketing and entrepreneurship degree from UH Mānoa.
–Cathy George
Finalist: Tahiya Kahaulelio, Kahaulelio Candle Co.
Kahaulelio Candle Co. specializes in candles infused with the scents of mango, coconut, papaya, hibiscus and other local favorites.
Tahiya Kahaulelio says she was inspired to launch the company in 2020 by her love of the Islands and the rich heritage passed to her by her Nigerian mother and Native Hawaiian father.
All of her candles are handmade with coconut beeswax, she says. Coconut wax is costlier than the soy wax typically used in candle-making but has “the cleanest burn of any candle wax available and plays a significant role in decreasing my company’s carbon footprint,” Kahaulelio says.
Kahaulelio is enrolled in the environmental and interior design program at Chaminade University of Honolulu and is scheduled to graduate in 2026. She says that running a business since high school has been demanding but worthwhile. “It taught me self-discipline, among many things.”
–Cathy George
Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024: Island Innovator of the Year
Celebrating innovations that help Hawaiʻi solve a major problem in the community, the ocean or the ʻāina.
Winner: Claire Sullivan and Rob Barreca, Farm Link Hawaiʻi
How can you make healthy, locally grown food affordable and accessible while still ensuring that producers make a living? Achieving both objectives isn’t easy, but it’s how Farm Link Hawai‘i thrives.
It is a local online grocery that provides customers on O‘ahu with next-day delivery. But ultimately, its mission is to make Hawai‘i healthier by supporting diversified agriculture.
Rob Barreca
Rob Barreca, the company’s founder and chief technology officer, launched Farm Link Hawai’i in 2015. Most food production businesses in Hawai‘i are very small, he says, so he sought to use technology to spur innovation and collaboration with the local food system. “The other angle we have leaned into more heavily now is realizing the disparity of access for food. Fresh local food can’t be for the restaurants only, or fancy people only.”
Claire Sullivan
Claire Sullivan, CEO at Farm Link Hawai‘i, says diversified agriculture benefits Hawai‘i in multiple ways, including: lessening economic dependency on tourism; reducing factors that lead to climate change; and improving human health, especially among vulnerable populations.
“Under Claire and Rob’s leadership, Farm Link is providing Hawai’i producers with a supportive market and ensuring that everyone on O‘ahu has access to the same great food, no matter where they live,” the Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards judges wrote to Hawaii Business Magazine.
For example, Farm Link Hawai‘i accepts SNAP, and beneficiaries of the program automatically get 50% off local produce and poi via the Da Bux program, and free delivery. Beginning this year, the company will be able to process SNAP transactions online, rather than having customers physically swipe their cards when food is delivered.
And in March 2024, deliveries will increase to seven days a week.
“We are also expanding selection, so we can truly replace a trip to the grocery store,” Sullivan says. “Because we do 100% foods that are locally grown, raised or fished in Hawai‘i, we have to woo producers into the marketplace, or get them to add products, and also support aspiring folks. We think of this as supply building rather than passive supply taking – to build that availability together, in both volume and selection. Our growth is intertwined with that of the grower community.”
How will they know they’ve achieved success? “When you are eating 90% local food and not even thinking about it,” says Barreca.
–Kathryn Drury Wagner
