MauiGrown Coffee has harvested a record 225,000 pounds of "green" coffee.
Owner James "Kimo" Falconer, who once grew sugar cane for Pioneer Mill and stepped in to rescue Pioneer's moribund coffee farm when the plantation liquidated, says, "Today, we're seeing the decline of major agricultural industries like sugar and pineapple statewide. However, coffee is on the rise."
MauiGrown has had interest from buyers in Japan, Germany and Britain but only now that production has ramped up can Falconer think of committing to those markets.
MauiGrown is unique because the landowner, Kaanapali Land Management Corp. (a survivor of the dissolved Pioneer Mill) is offering pieces, several acres each, of the coffee farm to be buildable lots, while Falconer will continue to manage the coffee trees.
Howard Hanzawa, vice president of Kaanapali Land Management Corp., says it is a chance to "own a working plantation in West Maui without all the startup costs and backbreaking work."
When Falconer set out to revive what had been Kaanapali Coffee, the trees were well-grown but ill-tended. It took four years to get production up to 46,000 pounds, but it has been soaring since.
ON A SEA CRUISE. In 2008, Hawaii Superferry supported a range of nonprofit organizations and charitable causes in Maui with in-kind donations of voyages and sponsorships totaling more than $56,000. Director of Community Relations and Customer Service Lani Olds said: "Hawaii Superferry will continue seeking out various groups who can benefit from in-kind donations and sponsorships. We recognize that the current economic climate will have an impact on Maui's nonprofit sector, and we are ready and eager to help whenever possible."
NEW AT WHALERS VILLAGE. There are five new ventures at Whalers Village, which has more than 90 businesses. They are Billabong surf wear; Totally Hawaiian Gift Gallery; Maui Dive & Surf on the Beach, which rents equipment and sells activities; Swarovski Crystals; and Pacific Treasures Boutique for women.
HAWAIIAN RINGS BELL. Hawaiian Airlines President Mark Dunkerley led a team to ring the bell to open the NASDAQ Stock Market in New York City earlier this month. Hawaiian's parent company, Hawaiian Holdings Inc., recently joined the NASDAQ to increase the visibility of its stock and provide the company with greater exposure to institutional investors. Hawaiian was subsequently added to the Russell 3000 Index, which measures the performance of the largest 3,000 public companies in the country.
PLEDGE TO VITEC. The A&B Foundation has provided support for business development with $25,000 for VITEC-Continuing Education & Training at Maui Community College. The money, the A&B Training Bonus, supports sole proprietors, individuals (including the unemployed), and small businesses with fewer than 100 employees with tuition supplements. For more information, call 984-3231.
FACES LIT UP. Dr. Hugo Higa of Aesthetic Vision in Honolulu has opened a Maui office to offer consultations about his laser face-lift. This uses a Fraxel repair laser, located on Oahu. "We started receiving inquiries from potential patients in Maui," Higa says, "and there was enough interest that we arranged to use a local office to evaluate potential patients for the procedure and then schedule them into our Oahu facility." He plans to be on Maui the second and third Saturdays each month. See www.aestheticvision.com.
SOUND AS A DOLLAR. Global Finance magazine has ranked BNP Paribas eighth on its list of the "World's 50 Safest Banks." That matters here because the French bank owns First Hawaiian Bank. Only four American banks make the top 50, none higher than Wells Fargo at No. 21. Global Finance has been publishing the rankings, based on credit ratings, for 17 years. This is the first time it has felt the need to update the list with a midyear assessment.
* "Tides of Commerce" appears on the Money Matters page every other Monday. If you have an item for the column, please call reporter Harry Eagar of The Maui News at 242-6392 or fax the item to his attention at 242-9087.
His e-mail address is heagar@mauinews.com.
