Retail Merchants of Hawaii honors Hawaii’s outstanding retailers with their Ho’okela Awards of excellence at “Ho’okela 2013 ~ Striving for Excellence,” the RMH Annual Conference took place yesterday at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort. There were over 425 attendees which included many of Hawaii’s thriving businesses along with their top executives.
The industry’s premier event of the year, Ho’okela 2013 – Striving for Excellence, brought together retailers and retail partners who examine and explore the trends, events and people and who continue to make the retail industry a vital and dynamic force inHawaii’s economy.
Recognizing the 2013 Ho’okela Winners:
RETAILER OF THE YEAR:
MICHAEL TAM, MARTIN & MACARTHUR
Governor’s Award for Exemplary Service to the Retail Industry
KELLY KAUINANA, Marketing Director, PEARLRIDGE CENTER
RETAIL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR – STATE OF HAWAII
TORI RICHARD
RETAIL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR – HAWAII ISLAND
HULA DADDY KONA COFFEE
RETAIL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR – KAUAI
ISHIHARA MARKET, LTD.
RETAIL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR – MAUI
UPTOWN SERVICE, INC.
RETAIL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR – OAHU
FISHER, HAWAII, INC.
RETAIL EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR
LAURA ROSS, HULA DADDY KONA COFFEE
RESORT RETAIL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR
HAWAIIAN QUILT COLLECTION, INC.
NEIGHBORHOOD RETAIL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR
EKI CYCLERY
BEST NEW RETAIL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR
ISLAND OLIVE OIL COMPANY
E-COMMERCE RETAIL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR
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Founded in 1901, the Retail Merchants of Hawai’i (RMH) is a state-wide not-for-profit trade association committed to the growth and development of the retail industry in Hawai’i. The RMH mission is to promote the welfare of the retail industry, to provide information and training to advance the interests of the retail industry, and to serve as an advocate for the retail industry in both the governmental and the business communities. The retail industry is the largest single generator of general excise tax revenue and employs almost 25% of the workforce in the State of Hawaii. Because effective interaction with government is critical to business, RMH is recognized as the official representative of the retail industry in Hawaii.