Hawaii Business Magazine - February 2014

Horn Player Takes His Passion for Music Offstage

Hawaii Symphony Orchestra follows national trend by moving musician to top office job Jonathan Parrish can tell you off the top of his head how many musicians are needed to perform Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's "Scheherazade" (it's 82). While he'll always have…

Hawai‘i's Only Carnivorous Plant

Hawaii is famous for many things, not the least of which are its rare plants. It’s well known that most of Hawaii’s 1,200 or so native plants, having found their way here as seeds and spores, lost their defenses over…

Maui Divers Refreshes Its Multilayer Brands

Maui Divers Jewelry’s elegant new shop in the lobby of the Hilton Hawaiian Village’s Alii Tower is just the most visible part of a multimillion-dollar brand refresh for the entire company. The state’s largest jewelry retailer and manufacturer, which started in 1958 as an…

The Art of Surfing

Matt Luttrell and business partner Chance Carpenter have added a new publication to the crowded field of surf magazines. The title, nude, is sure to turn heads. “It is supposed to be provocative,” says Luttrell, the editor. He says the name also reflects that the…

TedxMaui Shares 'Ideas Worth Spreading'

Big ideas often have humble beginnings. Just ask TEDxMaui founder Katie McMillan, whose first brainstorming session for the event unfolded at Baldwin Beach Park in Paia, with sand between her toes and sunscreen on her shoulders. The casual affair –…

Wild Days of Tree Trimming are Dying

PHOTOS BY ELYSE AND MATT MALLAMS   Back in the mid-1970s, when Abner Undan started working for a tree-trimming company, the standard method was to lop off branches randomly and use spikes to climb palm trees. “Those were the old…

High-Rises Design Inspired by the Ocean

It’s not your imagination, Honolulu is packed with high-rises. In fact, it ranks sixth in the United States —right behind San Francisco—and 30th in the world among cities with the most skyscrapers, according to Emporis, a building-industry information clearinghouse. Since…

Raising Funds for Hokulea's Worldwide Voyage

PHOTOS BY MONTE COSTA   “Raising funds in today’s economy is no easy task,” says Clyde Namuo, CEO of the Polynesian Voyaging Society. Neither is travelling around the world in a traditional Hawaiian sailing canoe, but the voyaging society is simultaneously…

How Fish Get From the Sea to Your Plate

Some afternoons, after lunching on a mess of ahi furikake or fried ahi belly at Nico’s, the big fish restaurant down on Pier 38, I like to walk across the street and amble down the docks and survey the ragtag fleet…

Talk Story with Jeff Shonka, First Insurance Co. of Hawaii

Shonka, who oversees  300 employees, says First Insurance will continue to pursue core values exemplified in the acronym RICE: Respect for others; Integrity in all we do; Creating the future for ourselves and the community; and Excellent customer service. You…

Editor's Note: This Fishing Story is No Tall Tale

Dennis Hollier is one of the best writers I’ve worked with during 36 years in the news business. His rare combination of intelligence, curiosity and writing skill generates stories that are both a pleasure to read and an insider’s guide…

Parting Shot: Surf Photographer Zak Noyle

Swell Shot Wednesday, 5 P.M. North Shore, Oʻahu Photo by Nate Lawrence Zak Noyle positions himself as he prepares to photograph surfers at Pipeline. Noyle has been shooting surfers for eight years, the past six professionally. The time he spends in…

Ask the Expert: Flood Insurance

Question: I heard the National Flood Insurance Program is moving away from “subsidized” rates. What does this mean? Answer: Due to the catastrophic nature of flooding, most private insurers exclude flood damage from their property insurance. To fill this need,…

Entrepreneurs Inspired by the Ocean

It’s no surprise the same ocean that inspires surfers, paddlers and swimmers has also inspired entrepreneurs to make a living off what they love. They start surf schools, design canoe paddles, cultivate marine livestock, run fishing charters or develop technology…