Fernandez Entertainment Has Brought Fun to Hawai‘i for 121 Years

SmallBiz Editor’s Choice Awards Hall of Fame: CEO Linda Fernandez oversees a large family enterprise founded by the “Barnum of the Pacific.”

It’s a rare privilege to run a business based on joy. “Fun has always been our mission,” says Linda Fernandez, CEO of Fernandez Entertainment and CEO/owner of Fun Factory. “The smiles on customers’ faces – that’s how you know if you did a good job.”

The entertainment company was founded in 1903 by Edwin Kane

“E.K.” Fernandez, who became known as the “Barnum of the Pacific.” “E.K. would take circuses to the Philippines, Hong Kong and Singapore,” Fernandez says.

Imagine a ship filled with tents and elephants and sequined costumes, all swaying their way across the ocean. “E.K. did things that were so remarkable,” says Fernandez, who was married to E.K.’s son, Kane. They worked together on the business for decades, until his death in 2001.

In 2018, the company won the Family-Owned Small Business of the Year award for the federal Small Business Administration’s Hawai‘i region.

Even for a company specializing in fun gatherings like fairs, festivals and special events, what happens behind the scenes is not always a picnic. Take, for example, the ever-present threat of bad weather.

“It takes a great deal of money to take a show to the outer islands, so you have a huge freight bill,” says Fernandez. “You fly in all the help, and everyone is in hotel rooms, all these front-loaded expenses. And then it pours for five days. That can be a total loss.”

She also remembers an alarming time – literally.

“We were doing the Maui Fair, this was the early 1970s, and there was a tsunami alert. For me, the girl from Arizona, I didn’t even know what it was. People are running through the midway, and the siren is going, and Kane runs up and says we have to evacuate all the people and the animals.” They retreated to a higher elevation, with the lions and bears and their trainers awaiting an all-clear.

Still, she says, “We are so fortunate to be in this kind of business. I must have met thousands of people when I was working at the carnivals. Many of those children are now adults bringing their own children. It’s like a highway through time.”

The company has hundreds of part-time and fulltime employees, says Fernandez, which includes team members trained and certified in ride maintenance and operation, as well as tradespeople who work in the paint and electrical shops. “The safety of families in Hawai‘i is the No. 1, No. 1 and No. 1 priorities,” she says.

Fernandez’s three children grew up working in the business on weekends and holidays. Her son Scott owns and operates the outdoor fair business; daughter Sydney is a VP of Fun Factory and a CPA. Another daughter, Shelley, owns and operates a supplier to the amusement and redemption industry, based in New Jersey, where she lives.

As for the future? Expect growth. The company has Fun Factory locations in Georgia and California, with plans to expand, says Fernandez. “And here in Hawai‘i we are always open to the opportunity and if we find it, we’ll build it, or expand stores and add on to our existing real estate.”

Some classic entertainment, like carousels, will hopefully never go out of style. But new amusements arrive regularly.

“With every tide, so to speak, every generation and decade, there are changes,” says Fernandez. “When VR first came out it was pretty rudimentary, and the investment was quite high. And now, there are really good versions, and we own them and they are in our stores. There was not enough content, but it’s getting there.”

What would the Barnum of the Pacific think about how the business has grown and thrived?

“I think E.K. would be so excited. He’d be proud.”