Small Business

Maui Varieties is the parent company of 14 Ace Hardware and six Ben Franklin stores in Hawai‘i, as well as five stores in Seattle and Oregon, and two in Las Vegas. Maui Varieties also owns two Daiso discount stores on Oʻahu, which specialize in Japanese products.

GBC Boxes & Packaging was founded by George and Bertha Chu in 1972, and originally sold Hawaiian souvenirs wholesale to stores statewide, including ABC Stores.

Allan Ikawa launched Big Island Candies in 1977 after working with a Swiss pastry chef and has grown the company into an internationally renowned brand.

Steve Haumschild moved to Hawaiʻi in 2001 to become a researcher at Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.

The pandemic made hand sanitizer a necessity in March 2020 and Lanikai Bath and Body continued to have a supply when many other stores on Oʻahu ran out, says Brook Gramann, co-owner of Lanikai Bath and Body.

Pacxa was formed in 2010 when several local tech businesses united into a single company offering a range of IT services, including support, outsourcing and consulting.

A listing for a Hawaiʻi coffee farm caught the eyes of two Oregon natives as they surfed through Craigslist in 2010 during the aftermath of the Great Recession.

In the early days of the pandemic, Ko‘olau Distillery pivoted from making whiskey to creating hand sanitizer, which it donated to first responders, hospitals and others in need.

S&G Labs of Hawaii began COVID-19 PCR testing earlier than other labs at the start of the pandemic in March 2020, says owner Lynn Welch.

Inter-Island Solar Supply started 46 years ago as a supplier of solar hot water equipment but has since expanded to also sell solar PV panels, residential gas water heaters, water filtration systems and other equipment to Hawaiʻi contractors and builders.

"I describe Nalu as the power of friendship, how four friends made it happen against all odds,” says Tomas Kloosterboer, co-owner of Nalu Health Bar.

Last March, when the first CARES Act became law, Stacey Katakura says Accumulus held financial webinars that taught business owners how to access federal aid and keep their doors open.

Mid-Town Radio Disco Mart is an appliance, electronics and furniture retailer known around Waipahu for its hardworking team and quality customer service.

The Hawaiʻi Island Chamber of Commerce has been furthering the interests of local businesses since its founding in Hilo in 1898.

A neighbor island manufacturer that quickly makes and delivers large, custom products for a fair price might seem like something from the past, but Island Metals says it is breaking the norms of manufacturing.

The emerald green plantation-style store is an eye-catching landmark on the edge of Kailua Beach Park.