BY SEN. SAM SLOM – Shop ’til You Drop. Did you get in enough shopping after your Thanksgiving turkey? What with Manic Thursday, Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday, you sure had ample opportunity to spend money. Stats are conflicting as to how much increase there really was. But wait! There’s more: After the shopping binge of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, charities including the SBH Foundation are encouraging consumers to give back in a newly minted day called Giving Tuesday. C’mon, give!
Ring! Ring! Hangup. I finally did it: I pulled the cord on my land line with Hawaiian Telcom after many decades. I joined a growing number of people who are ditching their land lines for their exclusive cells. Why did I do it? (1) Cost – the home line went from $29 to $42 per month since last year; (2) service-the home phone was out of service too much too often and (3) very few local calls compared to massive SPAM, Mainland andsolicitation calls.
SBH Sunrise Tomorrow! Last chance during 2012 to come to SBH’s SUNRISE Networking Breakfast. The November SBH SUNRISE Networking Breakfast will be Thursday, from 7 – 8:30 am. Our speaker is Tyler Roukema, Owner, Outback Steakhouse, Hawaii Kai. He will speak on, “Entrepreneurship Challenges In Hawaii” The SBH SUNRISE will be in the Pineapple Room, Macy’s Ala Moana. Call Darlyn @ SBH, 396-1724 for reservations to SBH events. SUNRISE will return the last Thursday of each month beginning in January.
Bizarre Foods Here. Andrew Zimmern visited Hawaii last weekend for his “Bizarre Foods in America” program. That fellow from the Travel Channel was also here trying (and failing) to eat a 4# blueberry pancake.
Final Call for an Attorney. Reminder – The state Senate Minority is looking for a young, bright, energetic, committed attorney with a strong work ethic to head up the Senate Legal and Minority Research office at the Capitol. Responsibility and legislative involvement. Full time position. Salary negotiable. Interested? Qualified? Available immediately. Call me personally at 349-5438.
Richard Coons Passes. On Thanksgiving Day, Richard A. Coons, 73, former Managing Partner of the Hawaii office of Deloitte & Touche LLP, passed away at Queens Medical Center.
In 2008 the Hawaii Society of Certified Public Accountants named him to its first Legacy Hall of Fame. He was appointed by the Chief Justice to four terms on the Disciplinary Board of the Hawaii Supreme Court. Most recently he served on the Screening Committee to assist in the selection process of Kamehameha Schools’ Board of Trustees.
He was a past president of Historic Hawai’i Foundation, a member of Rotary International, 200 Club, National Rifle Association, Aloha Shriners, Republican Party, Outrigger Canoe Club, and Waialae Baptist Church.
He is survived by his wife, Barbara Marumoto-Coons, sons,Theodore L. Coons and Charles R. Coons, step-childrenMarshall T. Marumoto, Jay M. Marumoto, M.D., Wendy Suite, Megan T. Marumoto, M.D., one granddaughter and 7 step-grandchildren. Friends will remember him as honest, rather reserved, with a good sense of humor. He enjoyed horseback riding, tennis, sailing, and fishing.
Services will be held at Waialae Baptist Church on Sat., Dec. 15. Visitation will commence at 3 pm with services at 4pm. Aloha attire. Private burial will be held at a later date. Memorial donations can be made to HUGS or Waialae Baptist Church.
Elections Commission Keeps Nago. Despite near universal testimony to the contrary, yesterday the State Office of Elections held a meeting and kept Chief Elections Officer, Scott Nago, who was responsible for this year’s election snafus. Many, many people are upset with the performance during 2012 of the elections office and Nago. The Governor on Monday called for all mail-in ballots. The Commission appointed a two member investigating committee to report back in January. Again, It appears like there are no consequences for state screw ups. We’ll see.
SBH 2013 Conference. The 37th annual SBH Business & Investment Conference is coming! Save Wednesday, January 9, 2013. The SBH Conference will be held 8 am to 1:30 pm at the Ala Moana Hotel (Garden Lanai and Hibiscus Ballroom). There will be networking, business exhibit tables, full luncheon and a tremendous program with outstanding speakers. Speakers include: ASTON’s Kelvin Bloom, the FBIs Tom Simon, Freedom Works’ Matt Kibbe, best selling author Bob Sigall and successful business owners. Luncheon keynote speaker is Ben Cayetano. He should have plenty to say! Sponsorships are still available. Reserve now! Call Darlyn at 396-1724 for sponsorship or reservations.
Judicial Nominees. Chief Justice Mark E. Recktenwaldannounced yesterday that he is seeking written comment on judicial nominees for a newly created position at the District Family Court of the First Circuit (Island of Oahu), authorized by the 2012 Hawai`i State Legislature under Act 107, Session Laws of Hawai`i.
The names submitted for this position by the Judicial Selection Commission, in alphabetical order, are: Brian A. Costa, Nelson W.S. Goo, Timothy E. Ho, Judith A. Schevtchuk, Curtis E. Sherwood, and Kevin A. Souza.
Because the Chief Justice has the discretion to assign judges to the district court or district family court, comments about the qualifications and character of any of the nominees with regard to either calendar assignment may be sent, in writing, to: Chief Justice Mark E. Recktenwald – Supreme Court of Hawai`i, 417 S. King Street, Honolulu, HI 96813, Fax: 808-539-4703
SBA Extends Deadline for Nominees. The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has extended the deadline for nominations for the prestigious Small Business Awards in the Hawaii District until December, 10, 2012. Since 1963, these awards, presented during National Small Business Week, have recognized the outstanding achievements of America’s small businesses for their contributions to their local communities, and to our nation’s economy. In 2013, the 50th year celebration will again honor the nation’s 27 million small businesses.
The 2013 SBA Small Business Award categories for the Hawaii District Office include:
- SBA’s Small Business Person of the Year
- Entrepreneurial Success Award
- Family-Owned Business of the Year
- Small Business Exporter
- Young Entrepreneur of the Year
- Minority Small Business Champion Advocacy Award
- Women in Business Champion Advocacy Award
- Veteran Small Business Champion Advocacy Award
- Financial Services Champion Advocacy Award
- Home-Based Business Champion Advocacy Award
The specific criteria for each of the award categories are outlined on the Hawaii forms available through the SBA District Office or the website of Hawaii Small Business Development Center, https://www.hisbdc.org.
The winner of the State of Hawaii Small Business Person of the Year Award will be invited to Washington, D.C., to compete for national titles and to attend National Small Business Week events in 2013.
For consideration in the County and State awards, the nominations must be submitted by December 10, 2012. The completed nominations should be sent directly to the SBA Hawaii District Office, 500 Ala Moana, Suite 1-306, Honolulu, Hawaii, 96813. Call (808) 541-2990 for more information.
G’Day Mate! Hawaiian Airlines yesterday continued its expansion internationally, with the launch of nonstop service to Brisbane, Australia, capital city of the State of Queensland.
Hawaiian is the only U.S. Carrier serving Brisbane, giving travelers in Hawaii and throughout North America a convenient new travel alternative for experiencing the scenic beauty of Queensland – Australia’s “Sunshine State.”
Big Island Carbon Files CH 7. Big Island biomass company,Big Island Carbon LLC, has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. The company invested $50 million to turn mac nut shells into biomass but had not actually begun operations. CEO was Rick Vidgen.
HiBeam Award. Hawaii Business and Entrepreneur Acceleration Mentors (HiBEAM) is receiving a “Success Story” award from The Federation of Hong Kong Business Associations Worldwide (Federation) and Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) for its Hawaii Tech Asia program.
The award, in its fifth year, recognizes the outstanding achievements of the Federation’s member associates who have developed their business significantly through Hong Kong.
The award will be presented at the 13th Hong Kong Forum on December 4-5. The Hong Kong Forum is the annual flagship event of the Federation of Hong Kong Business Associations Worldwide, a network of 33 Hong Kong business associations in 24 countries with more than 11,000 individual business executives and professionals from around the world as member associates. HiBEAM’s executive director, Bee Leng Chua, is a board member of the Hong Kong Business Association of Hawaii that is part of the Federation.
Hawaii Tech Asia was developed to allow fast-growing technology companies from Hawaii to get first-hand knowledge of the ins and outs of doing business in China from local legal, accounting and business development experts. The companies meet with angel, venture and private equity investors as well as potential distributors, suppliers, partners and customers. Hawaii Tech Asia took 13 companies to Hong Kong and Singapore in 2011 and 11 to Hong Kong and Beijing in 2012.
“The companies have started establishing the valuable long-term relationships they need to grow into the Hong Kong and China markets,” said Chua. “Companies like Hawaii Biotech and High Health Aquaculture Asia are returning to Hong Kong and China for subsequent rounds of talks with potential investors.”
“Kai Medical found a distributor in Hong Kong, and StreetVac is currently in talks with a large bus company to test its street pollution reduction filter. They also participated in an Asian environmental tradeshow as a result of Hawaii Tech Asia. BizGym, a cloud-based business concept validator and business planning tool designed for early stage entrepreneurs is partnering with universities and a digital media and information technology accelerator for distribution in Hong Kong and eventually in China,” she added.
Chua says Hawaii Tech Asia hopes to bring China resources to Hawaii next year. Hawaii Tech Asia was funded in part through a grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration and a HiSTEP (Hawaii State Trade and Export Promotion) grant led by the State of Hawaii Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.
HiBEAM, founded in 2000 and based in Honolulu, is a nonprofit organization that provides mentoring and advice to early stage Hawaii technology companies to help them accelerate their growth and attract funding. The companies in the HiBEAM portfolio have raised more than $100 million in equity funding to date. HiBEAM members include venture capitalists, corporate investors, angel investors, entrepreneurs, the University of Hawaii, law firms, accountants and public relations professionals. For more information about HiBEAM, please see www.hibeam.org.
UH Awards Scholarships. The Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa awarded over $1.4 million in scholarships to 275 business students for the 2012-2013 academic year. Each year, full and partial scholarships are awarded to undergraduate and graduate business students based on academic achievement, financial need, and specific area of concentration, community service and/or other criteria established by the donors.
Through the College’s new Freshman Direct Admit Program, each student received a $1,000 scholarship renewable in their sophomore year based on academic standings.
Souki In, Say Out. Looks like the House Republicans broke the logjam and helped select a new Speaker of the House after 13 years with Calvin Say. Apparently 79-year old Joe Souki of Maui has been chosen Speaker of the House. No final vote has been taken. The State Senate organized itself hours after the November 6 election returning Shan Tsutsui of Maui as Senate President.
SBH on Sale! Reminder that during the month of December, your firm can be part of SBH and enjoy all of the benefits and discounts, for 50% off. That’s right, if you join (or renew) during December only, your membership will be only $100 per year. Go online or call Darlyn (396-1724) now!
SBH can help you with YOUR business. Just starting a business? Call me personally for help at 396-1724 or email: SBH@lava.net. Smart Business Hawaii Means Business and we’re here to help you.
Aloha,
I`m no one to judge in here, everyone is looking for smart solutions to earn some extra income online by doing some constructive tasks. This is how internet has expanded, after all, into what it has become today. You must produce and sustain income in order to make it.
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