Hawaii Travel Podcast: Hawaii Travel Tips & Things to Do in Hawaii for Your Hawaii Vacation Planning | Hawaii’s Best Travel

9 Simple Ways to Support Local Hawaii Businesses This Season

• Bryan Murphy — Certified Hawaii Travel Expert & Owner of Hawaii’s Best Travel | Hawaii Travel Podcast • Episode 195

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Ever wonder why your Hawaii dollars disappear into big chains instead of the hands that actually shape the islands?

Supporting local businesses in Hawaii matters, but most visitors stick to resorts and miss the family-run spots that keep communities thriving.

👉 Hit play now to hear 9 local business owners share their stories and learn exactly how to support Hawaii's heart, whether you're visiting next week or shopping from home.

👉In this episode, you will:

  • Hear directly from local owners about what responsible tourism actually looks like and why small businesses matter
  • Discover where to shop, eat, and explore to keep your money in the community (from shave ice to ukuleles to home decor)
  • Learn how to support these businesses online, even if you're not planning a trip anytime soon

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Scroll up ⬆️ and hit play now to discover the local businesses that make Hawaii feel like Hawaii and how you can support them this season.

🤙Businesses mentioned:

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This Hawaii travel podcast is for travelers looking to plan a trip to Hawaii. Discover travel tips, itineraries, and traveling tips & hacks with guides to help you explore Hawaii. Whether you’re planning a Hawaii vacation to the islands, dreaming of a Hawaiian getaway, or visiting Honolulu, Maui, Kauai, Oahu, or Big Island we’ll help you travel with aloha.

Edge of the Ocean, Stick Figure (w/ permission)
Ukulele and Chill, Coby G (w/ permission)
Talk Story, Hawaiian Style Band (w/ permission)

9 Simple Ways To Support Local Hawaii Businesses This Season


[00:00:00] Bryan Murphy (2): Supporting local businesses in Hawaii shouldn't be complicated, but with big brands everywhere and most visitors short on time, it's easy to miss the businesses that that actually keep Hawaii and its community going.

[00:00:11] Bryan Murphy (2): Today I am gonna give you nine simple ways that you can support local. Even if you're not in Hawaii

[00:00:17] Bryan Murphy (2): and today you'll hear directly from a few of these local businesses. and learn the ways that we all can support local Hawaii this holiday season.

[00:00:32] Bryan Murphy (2): Welcome to Hawaii's best podcast, helping you plan an

[00:00:35] Bryan Murphy (2): Unforgettable trip to Hawaii and breeding new local businesses and local culture from the people who live in Hawaii.

[00:00:43] Bryan Murphy (2): I am just so honored to share with you a few of these stories. Some of these voices you may have already heard on the podcast.

[00:00:49] Bryan Murphy (2): I guarantee you a lot of these companies you probably have already heard of and maybe you're not sure or haven't heard their story Over the years of doing Hawaii's best been podcasting for almost seven years now. I've had the chance to sit down with some incredible local business owners and.

[00:01:06] Bryan Murphy (2): Artists and people who have put their heart and soul into what they do And with the holidays coming up tomorrow being Thanksgiving, and this felt like the right time to bring some of these voices back together. you're going to hear short clips from past episodes.

[00:01:20] Bryan Murphy (2): You're gonna hear the stories, advice for visitors, and how you can support what they do in Hawaii, even if you're not visiting Hawaii anytime soon. So, whether you're planning a trip or just love Hawaii, this episode is definitely for you.

[00:01:32] Bryan Murphy (2): Before I forget, I just want to invite you to go ahead and hit follow on your podcast app. if you're listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, hit follow

[00:01:41] Bryan Murphy (2): Because I have some upcoming episodes that I'm really excited about to share with you starting next week. So go ahead and hit follow.

[00:01:47] Bryan Murphy (2): but today we're gonna kick things off on Maui with a small shop

[00:01:51] Bryan Murphy (2): That's been part of the community for years. This is Ellie from Tutu's Pantry and she's sharing how her love of Food, family, community, and Maui turned into a place. Visitors come back again and again.

[00:02:04] Ellie - Tutu's Pantry: So, started in June, 2009. I wasn't born here, but I've been here since 1995.

[00:02:13] Ellie - Tutu's Pantry: Always in Kihei. Always in Maui. And this is my home. I absolutely love this island with my whole heart. So I've developed quite a bit of a community here. So when I started to just pantry, I wanted to start something that would.

[00:02:33] Ellie - Tutu's Pantry: Just really give back to my, the special community that I have here. It all started from a girlfriend of mine asking if you would open a little business, what would you do? And without hesitation, and also without any prior experience, I said I would open a little shop that had jams and spices. Local flavors.

[00:02:56] Ellie - Tutu's Pantry: Flavors, mm-hmm. Of our region. Looked at me and said, wow, that sounds like a pretty good idea. I drew a bit of a quick concept and the soul of it. I always saw my grandma, my grandparents had, uh, pasta factory in Argentina growing up. So that was the soul of it. It was, you know, the, the grandma's pantry, all the yummy spices, seasonings that grandma had and, and cookies and streets.

[00:03:28] Ellie - Tutu's Pantry: 'cause she was really great at that. Always having like something delicious with her grandchildren. Right. So that's where the name came. Tutu Spanish, which is, you know, in Hawaiian tutu Grandma. that's how it all started.

[00:03:40] Bryan Murphy (2): I think you could really hear how much Ellie cares about her community and the people who walk through her doors.

[00:03:47] Bryan Murphy (2): She also has a simple way of explaining what it means to be a responsible visitor. when you come to visit Maui.

[00:03:53] Ellie - Tutu's Pantry: if I would have to embody a responsible tourist. So when I go into a place that I, I enjoy, that I wanna go back to, I think that it's important to leave my money in the small community because that's what adds the charm to the place.

[00:04:14] Ellie - Tutu's Pantry: It's not the, you know, the big box stores or the restaurant chains. It's really. Where the soul of the place is. It's within, you know, the small producers, the small restaurants, small stores, et cetera. So I think responsible tourism is to visit these places and make an effort to shop more at those places than with the big chains, because you can find those big chains anywhere, but really the memories are made with.

[00:04:46] Ellie - Tutu's Pantry: These unique, smaller places that you won't find back home.

[00:04:50] Bryan Murphy (2): So if you're planning a trip and you want your money to actually stay in the community, Tutu's Pantry is a great example of where to start and here's how you can connect with Ellie and support what she's doing.

[00:05:02] Ellie - Tutu's Pantry: Yeah, you can follow us on social media We mostly post on Instagram, we're more active on Instagram and a little bit on Facebook Tutu Pantry on Instagram and for purchasing tutu pantry.com. Our website has about 600 local products and we ship anywhere

[00:05:23] Bryan Murphy (2): Tutu's Pantry is such a great picture of how one small shop can support a whole web of local makers and artisans. Our next story keeps the same theme of family and creativity, but this time in the world of modern Aloha wear.

[00:05:39] Bryan Murphy (2):

[00:05:39] Bryan Murphy (2): I am gonna introduce you to Alexis from Lex Breezy. Lex Breezy is a second generation aloha wear brand that grew out of a mother daughter story and a lot of hard work. Alexis took what her mom built and created something that speaks to a new generation, but I'm gonna let her explain that in her own words.

[00:05:56] Alexis - Lexbreezy: My name is Alexis Aona. I am Lola Miller's, daughter.

[00:06:00] Alexis - Lexbreezy: So I am the owner of Lexy Hawaii. We are a modern, a LoJo work company, second generation. I followed into fashion after watching my mom simply sisters, you know, find her footsteps in Hawaii fashion. So I really had the idea of. I love what my mom is doing, but I wanna create something of my own. So I was able to, you know, follow her footsteps, but create a brand that really speaks to my generation in Alo Ho Wear.

[00:06:29] Alexis - Lexbreezy: So taking her styles and her print and making it a little bit more modern and fun and, you know, a little bit more sexy. So that's kind what the playoff of Lex Breezy is. We still work together. We're, you know, getting ready for the main in Hawaii festival. My first main in Hawaii festival actually was with my mom and it was actually at her booth.

[00:06:49] Alexis - Lexbreezy: So we always do the main in Hawaii Festival together, we work with local artists who designs our prints and we make very exclusive styles and one of a kind designs. We never reprint any of our prints. We have two storefronts, one in Kailua and one in Alamuana. And then my mom has actually her business based out of Hilo, so she has a storefront in Hilo.

[00:07:09] Alexis - Lexbreezy: Oh, okay.

[00:07:10] Bryan Murphy (2): Alexis isn't just designing clothes, she's thinking about the people and families behind every piece that is created. And she has some really down to earth thoughts, I think, on what it means to support made in Hawaii in a real way.

[00:07:24] Alexis - Lexbreezy: Supporting local for me is not worrying about the price tag and really look at what is in the label, who's making your products, where is it being made, who are you supporting behind it? What families and cakey, I feel like is being supportive. And you know, we started out as a small business and now I have two sons, so it's like what's behind the label?

[00:07:46] Alexis - Lexbreezy: When you support me in Hawaii, who are you supporting? And you know, not only are you supporting a family, it's like our family. You're all supporting. The families that we support and the community that is around us as well. So I think that's just what's so special about supporting Made in Hawaii. You know, who's making your products?

[00:08:04] Alexis - Lexbreezy: You know what's in the label? Pretty much. Mm.

[00:08:07] Bryan Murphy: Nothing against a, b, c stores, but a lot of people who visit Hawaii, and this podcast is for people who are visiting Hawaii and helping with education and bringing amazing voices like yourself. To the audience, but going to like an A, b, C store, there might be some, you gotta kind of sift through.

[00:08:24] Bryan Murphy: There might be some local products there, but by and large, probably not. Okay. So how can someone seek out and support local, maybe specifically why they're on their, on their trip.

[00:08:36] Alexis - Lexbreezy: Maybe it's not about supporting maybe everything that's made here, but what about things? Maybe people that have. That are raised here, maybe they're not, that have still, their connection with Hawaii I think is super important.

[00:08:50] Bryan Murphy (2): So if this is the type of business that you wanna support on your trip or even while you're shopping online. Here's where you can find Lex breezy and her family's brands.

[00:08:58] Alexis - Lexbreezy: You can find us online@lexyhawaii.com. And you can find Simply sisters@lolamillerdesigns.com. We have also have a storefront in Ala Moana. Target wing, second floor, Malca, and we also have a storefront in Kailua Town.

[00:09:11] Bryan Murphy (2): Alright, so from fashion to fine art In so many ways that we who aren't in Hawaii can support these local businesses.

[00:09:19] Bryan Murphy (2): And our next feature goes back to the island of Maui. And it's Maui based artist whose love for surfing in the island shows up in every piece he creates. My buddy, my friend Patrick Parker. Patrick grew up surfing in California with a picture of Hawaii in his mind, long before he moved there.

[00:09:35] Bryan Murphy (2): Now he lives in Upcountry Maui painting and creating work that's completely inspired by his love of ocean.

[00:09:42] Bryan Murphy (2): Here's Patrick, sharing a little bit about his journey.

[00:09:44] Patrick Parker: I grew up in Los Angeles area near the beach, and I've always been a surfer since I was like nine years old. So I've always had a love affair with Hawaii since about that age.

[00:09:54] Patrick Parker: 'cause when you learn about surfing. You learn about Hawaii and that's the, the roots of surfing. And so as you grow up as a surfer, you get this fantasy of like this tropical island in the middle of the Pacific and it has great waves, it's beautiful, it's warm, there's amazing beaches. It's just beautiful.

[00:10:11] Patrick Parker: And then as I grew up and I became an artist, the two combined where I was painting and collaging and doing surf art. So I think naturally for me it was an easy like way to immerse myself. My inspiration was to move to Hawaii. I did that about 11 years ago, and it was the greatest move of my life. I don't think I'll ever wanna leave Hawaii live anywhere else.

[00:10:35] Bryan Murphy (2): It is cool how you can feel how rooted he is in the islands of now. and because he both lives on Maui and remembers what it's like to visit, he has a helpful reminder for anyone traveling to Hawaii.

[00:10:47] Patrick Parker: The more respectful you are anywhere you travel, you'll feel good. They'll wanna meet you. And when you're living here, now that I've been here long enough, when you do experience someone and you meet them and they have that same kind of mono, that same kind of energy, like, oh, I'm just so grateful to be here.

[00:11:03] Patrick Parker: It makes the experience so much better for both people. You know, if you're, if you're coming just to take, to take, to take, oh, I only have a few days. I wanna hit this swell. I wanna get, I wanna get the most waves. I wanna just, or I'm sponsored. I deserve these waves. There's someone taking photographs of me.

[00:11:18] Patrick Parker: I wanna get the best barrel and so I can further my career. That's gonna backfire very quickly here.

[00:11:23] Bryan Murphy (2): And if you wanna check out Patrick's work actually shared. A story a couple days ago about a piece that I just bought from him, and it's, I think it's my fourth piece. So I really love his work and you can learn more about him here.

[00:11:38] Patrick Parker: If anyone wants to contact me through my website@patrickparkerart.com, I live up in, uh, up country. It's up Kula Onala. I live at like. I have this amazing view. It's like 3000 feet. So inspiring. Look out the window right now. I can see it. I can see like four different islands. It's awesome.

[00:11:55] Patrick Parker: That's

[00:11:55] Bryan Murphy: awesome.

[00:11:56] Patrick Parker: If you're in town and you wanna check out my home studio, I have a bunch of art here. All different kinds, more than just what's on the website and I'd be welcome to, you know, to meet you. There's also, um, another way to contact me is on Instagram at Patrick Parker. Art. I have a lot of work on there, pretty consistent with posting new stuff.

[00:12:14] Bryan Murphy (2): Patrick's Art creates a lot of what people love about Maui. And our next story is about a place visitors line up for every single day

[00:12:23] Bryan Murphy (2): I am talking about none other than Iolani's Hawaiian Shave Ice and all the care that goes into something that seems So simple on the surface.

[00:12:31] Bryan Murphy (2): woo's. Hawaiian Shave Ice is one of those spots that people plan their whole afternoons around, but behind the long lines and colorful shave ice, there's a real focus on quality and a lot of heart for Maui. This was a part of a special series that I did a couple years ago

[00:12:48] Bryan Murphy (2): That was in response to the tragic fires in Laina,

[00:12:51] Bryan Murphy (2): and you can hear some of that in David's voice. who is the owner of UL's?

[00:12:56] Bryan Murphy (2): But I'll let him explain a little bit more about how it all started.

[00:13:00] David - Ululani's Shave Ice: What sets us apart, our shave ice is extremely fine, like viola shave ice. Mm-hmm. But we make our own ice and we use ultra purified water, and when I say ultra purified, it's water that went through the reverse osmosis process. Then we put an ultraviolet blast to that to make sure that 99.999% of all bacteria and.

[00:13:27] David - Ululani's Shave Ice: Things that shouldn't be in the water is removed and then we, we make our own. So our process is different, you know, regarding, I don't wanna disclose any secrets on that side, but our syrup, yeah, yeah, no worries. Our syrups are also different in the sense that, you know, again, we make our own syrups, we make it with pure king sugar, and this was at a time where everyone was using high fructose corn syrup.

[00:13:51] David - Ululani's Shave Ice: We were using, uh, fruit purees. We were using just. Premium ingredients and everything was designed to our tastes. So every flavor that we have was designed for our tastes. Either we made it ourselves, and at the time we were making our own zuki beans, or we're at times we were using, making tapioca pearls in coconut milk.

[00:14:11] David - Ululani's Shave Ice: But right now we make our toasted coconut, we make our mochi, and all of those pieces are either premium or gome. We also use. Maui's own Rni ice cream. And their ice cream is a generational ice cream company. And the flavors and the, and what they have is what fits us.

[00:14:33] Bryan Murphy (2): So it's not just about the treat, it's about doing things the right way from the ingredients to the experience while ordering. and David also shared a really clear message for anyone thinking about visiting Maui right now.

[00:14:45] Bryan Murphy: Please

[00:14:46] David - Ululani's Shave Ice: go to Maui. We need you to go to Maui. There is one area in Lana La Lana is impacted and we don't need anyone going over there to take selfies and photos of you being the area that was impacted. But every other business needs you to go again at at our Townside jobs.

[00:15:15] David - Ululani's Shave Ice: When all of this happened, we were fine. Well, I'm saying at the time that they shut off tourism, but it has definitely been clarified that Maui is not shut off because Laina is the only section that is uninhabitable or that we don't want visitors to go to. But we have Haiku, we have pa, we have ku, we have ka, we have, you know.

[00:15:44] David - Ululani's Shave Ice: Ha Hana, there's just a number of different areas of Maui, the, the beautiful parts of Maui that are there.

[00:15:53] Bryan Murphy (2): So if you're planning a trip and want to support businesses like Ani, There's an easy way to reach out.

[00:15:59] David - Ululani's Shave Ice: They can go to our website. you know, we have an email address on there, info@ulusshavice.com. I'm one of the ones that receive all of those emails that come through and just, I'm so grateful for this opportunity.

[00:16:14] David - Ululani's Shave Ice: To speak, you know, on the behalf of our company, our employees, our community, as well as for sharing the depths of our feelings for those that were severely impacted by the tragedy that happened, and know that we are doing everything that we can to put those impacted in a better place.

[00:16:39] Bryan Murphy (2): If you go to their website, you'll probably notice that there's a lot more locations popping up, even across the continental us. So wherever you're at, you might be close to Ani and maybe you don't even realize it. But businesses like Uliss are a big part of what makes Maui feel like Maui. Over on Oahu.

[00:16:57] Bryan Murphy (2): There's another spot that started small and grew into something a lot bigger than the original idea.

[00:17:05] Bryan Murphy (2): Let's head over to the Sunrise Shack. The Sunrise Shack started as a tiny yellow stand across from Sunset Beach and grew into one of Oahu's most recognizable cafes. The original North Shore Shack has since closed.

[00:17:18] Bryan Murphy (2): This was about a year ago, I think they closed it, but you can still find them in Waikiki Alana, across from Sharks Cove on the North Shore of Oahu and in Kailua Town. So here's Travis sharing how it all began.

[00:17:31] Travis - Sunrise Shack: We wanted to be at Pipeline because that's all the action is. And then he just randomly sent me this little photo of this beat up little shack and it was like a pretty ugly color.

[00:17:43] Travis - Sunrise Shack: It was like between a blue and a green and another color. And it is like, it was almost blending into the bushes. He couldn't even, and he is like, what about this? I was like, oh, that's not what I was thinking. You know, I was a trailer, like, you know, that tow around, we could be mobile. He's like, okay, well just keep that, like, you know, keep that in your thoughts.

[00:18:06] Travis - Sunrise Shack: And so we couldn't find anything else. And then it was coming down to it like, okay, let's just go for the shack. And uh, luckily him and his family knew the, like the owners of the property. We all partnered up. We just started, we painted the whole thing yellow. We called it the Sunrise Shack because it's across from Sunset Beach.

[00:18:25] Travis - Sunrise Shack: Right? Sunset Beach is like right there where the sunrise, where like a morning, um, experience, you know? Mm-hmm. We rise the sun we have just those bullet coffees to, to launch the whole concept and that, that's kind of how we started. It was really small times. At first we were doing like a hundred dollars a day and we also just thought we were just a pop up for just that.

[00:18:48] Travis - Sunrise Shack: We get a huge flux of people here in the winter, right? For all the surf events, the waves are massive. Um, it's just the time to be here if you're gonna come to the North Shore and that, that's what we had in mind. And so yeah, it was, it was really slow starts in the beginning.

[00:19:05] Bryan Murphy (2): It is such a classic North Shore story, a simple idea, a beat up shack, you know, all the things, A lot of persistence, the right ingredients. But Travis also had some thoughts for visitors trying to figure out which island to choose and what makes each one different

[00:19:22] Travis - Sunrise Shack: Yeah, I mean it's, first of all, it's hard to choose which island you're going to go to. I would say you should visit all the islands, in your lifetime

[00:19:32] Travis - Sunrise Shack: Oahu is just a really good base, you know, like there's a lot of opportunities here. Um, there's a lot more to do here if, like, like the kind of the shopping side or like going to see a nice movie.

[00:19:46] Travis - Sunrise Shack: Or eating like at a good restaurant like Oahu provides the most in that aspect. but where I'm from on Kauai is really amazing. They call it the Garden of Eden. It's literally like the best fruits you'll ever have in your life. Some of the like biggest like kale plants and just like, it's just like crazy what you can grow there.

[00:20:09] Travis - Sunrise Shack: think Maui's pretty similar. It's probably a little bit more commercial than Kauai. it's, it's a bigger island too. Kauai is like the smallest main island. And the big island is just a wild place. It's like just all volcanic rock. It's kind of like, I think it's the closest thing to like visiting the moon on, on like planet Earth.

[00:20:31] Travis - Sunrise Shack: Yeah. Be wild over there.

[00:20:32] Travis - Sunrise Shack: so they're all very different. I mean, I think most people just come to Oahu. Um, you can really experience nature here. You can experience nature on all the islands. Um, Oahu probably has some of the most famous things here in Hawaii.

[00:20:45] Bryan Murphy (2): wherever you end up, Oahu included, you'll see Sunrise Shack pop up as a place. People love to stop, and here's where you can find them. If if you want to check them out while on Island,

[00:20:55] Travis - Sunrise Shack: You can follow us on Instagram at Sunrise Shack.

[00:20:58] Travis - Sunrise Shack: we also have like our new e-commerce store online, and that has some details about like our story. That's Sunrise shack hawaii.com. that's where you can find us if you're ever out here in Hawaii. We have the one in, uh, Waikiki and then the one here on the North Shore. And I think our future will be probably expanding here on, on Oahu.

[00:21:23] Bryan Murphy (2): sunrise Shack is also opening up their first. Location outside of Hawaii. they're gonna be opening up in Long Beach, California. So if you are on the West Coast and you happen to be in SoCal, you can find a Sunrise Shack coming near you hopefully soon. And hopefully in other locations as well.

[00:21:41] Bryan Murphy (2): So from coffee and smoothie bowls to tacos and fresh salsa, my favorite.

[00:21:46] Bryan Murphy (2): Our next up is another Oahu favorite. This time we're heading to a family run Mexican spot called Margaritas.

[00:21:53] Bryan Murphy (2): margaritas is a small, local Mexican fusion restaurant on Oahu that grew out of real love for Mexican food.

[00:22:00] Bryan Murphy (2): Here's how it all started.

[00:22:01] Margaritas: Well, we've always really loved Mexican food. Like as kids we've, we've grown up with a, besides Asian food, uh, it was a lot of, a lot of Mexican food, so we loved it. Yeah, we're making our own guacamole from where, when we were little, super simple guacamole from the avocado and everything.

[00:22:17] Margaritas: we will go out and eat Mexican food as well as a family like almost, at least once a week. So there's, there's always that been that passion for Mexican food.

[00:22:25] Margaritas: at the start, you know, our initial idea was just talk with some margaritas. Keep it really simple, right?

[00:22:30] Margaritas: Oh, okay. So when we, when we got one of the chefs on board who went to culinary school, he is an expert at, uh, Mexican food. He actually just wanted to serve his own dishes, but he didn't want to serve out burritos, quesadillas, you know, the very simple, basic type of things.

[00:22:50] Margaritas: There's no burrito here. What kind of Mexican place is this? You know, like, whatcha guys doing here? But a lot of our really intricate sauces have come from his recipes and, you know, there was a, there was a lot of gain to be had with that as well. Our salsa is like everyone that says is really, really good.

[00:23:06] Margaritas: It's all homemade from scratch. Our queso dib, it's all this like, it's all very fresh and got very good compliments from all of our, uh, customers and everything. And this is all was developed like over time as well from the beginning of the restaurant. And, but the concept has, has been pretty much the same from the beginning.

[00:23:26] Margaritas: It's always been to have. That healthy Mexican cuisine,

[00:23:30] Bryan Murphy (2): I think you can tell that they care about doing things their own way, simple concept, but with a lot of attention to details. They also had some straightforward advice for visitors who want a more local experience on wahoo.

[00:23:45] Margaritas: I would say don't stay in Waikiki.

[00:23:48] Margaritas: If you want more of an authentic Hawaii experience, I would stay in an Airbnb somewhere in the North Shore or something like that. Get a car so you can travel the island. You don't want to be in a trolley. I mean, unless you do, I, I'm speaking for myself. I, I don't know. Like, uh, you just, you just want the freedom of being able to explore the island, go to different places, right?

[00:24:04] Margaritas: So get a rent a car for a week or however while, and then hikes and beaches, you know, they're everywhere.

[00:24:09] Bryan Murphy (2): So if you're the kind of traveler who wants to get out and see more of the island, that's a good place to start. And if you want to stop in for a meal while you're out exploring, here's how you can find margaritas.

[00:24:20] Margaritas: We've got Instagram, we've borrowed, we're on Yale, Google, which type in Margaritas. We're the only one. It's like, uh, very easy to find. It's right by Ana if you're shopping around there

[00:24:31] Bryan Murphy (2): food is one way to connect with Hawaii. Another way is through the spaces you spend time in your home, your hotel, or even the gifts you bring back. Our next feature brings Hawaiian design and storytelling into home decor.

[00:24:45] Bryan Murphy (2): This is NoHo Home.

[00:24:47] Bryan Murphy (2): NoHo Home is a native Hawaiian owned home decor brand led by designer Jaylene.

[00:24:52] Bryan Murphy (2): Kani, her work is all about helping people feel connected to their space through Hawaiian inspired design. Here's Lene, explaining the meaning behind the name and the heart of the brand.

[00:25:03] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: So, you know, no home. And I'll start with NoHo, which in Olelo, Hawaii means amongst other things to dwell, uh, to reside, to sit with not a thought or a feeling. So that's the spirit of no home where no, which is to feel connected and to dwell in your sacred spaces.

[00:25:26] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: And so no home. We provide Hawaiian inspired luxury home decor. We like to call it style with aloha.

[00:25:36] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: my mom was the first education coordinator for the Polynesian Voyaging Society.

[00:25:43] Bryan Murphy: Oh cool.

[00:25:44] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: And she was there through their voyages, their, their first voyages when, in the time when Hawaii was really looking back to its roots looking, you know, to explore, you know, our indigenous knowledge, you know, specifically in this case, you know, how, how to bring back traditional ways of navigation.

[00:26:04] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: So, you know, that was an exciting period in, in Hawaii and it was a great time for me to be at. You know, the, the hip of my mother as she was doing this work in the community, you know, she also went on to become the entrepreneur, training specialist for another community organization. And what she did was she specialized in teaching native Hawaiians how to start their own businesses.

[00:26:35] Bryan Murphy (2): I think you get a sense pretty quickly that NoHo home is about more than patterns on a pillow. Jalene also shared a powerful mindset shift for anyone traveling to Hawaii.

[00:26:47] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: you know, how, how do you as a, as, as a traveler, First of all, moving from a, a tourism mindset. Tours mindset to a traveler mindset and explorer.

[00:26:59] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: You know, having that mindset of an explorer that we are here to learn, explore, not gawk, not see, not frolic.

[00:27:10] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: But we're here to explore with a sense of gratitude for the experience. Being able to explore a new space and share, you know, time and company with new people and kilo. So the practice of kilo, which is constant observation over long periods of time to understand a concept.

[00:27:40] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: A person, you know, our, our ina. Um, so. This practice of kilo, I think is pretty critical. If, if we could share that with, you know, our travelers in that observation is key. It's the first step to understanding. So before you jump in and experience, observe,

[00:28:05] Bryan Murphy (2): And I think that explorer mindset she talks about is such a helpful filter for planning your trip. And if you want to bring some of her work home with you, or support them online or about what she's building, here's where you can find NoHo home.

[00:28:20] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: so our website for all of our retail re, you know, residential product, NoHo home. hawaii.com. and then we also, for those people who are in the business community and you know, wanna partner with us, the architect and interior design community, they follow us on NoHo home contract.com.

[00:28:46] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: So that's where you can see all of the, the building blocks for custom and commercial products. we have an Instagram. Our handle is NoHo home, N-O-H-O-H-O-M-E, and that's across all of our platforms. You can find us on macys.com, bloomingdales.com in noo designers please, when, when you're in, Hawaii, try to make a stop At Noo designers, it is filled with native Hawaiian entrepreneurs and their Maya or their goods, and it is up.

[00:29:20] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: Wonderful place to shop Home Worlds. If you're local, you know, please visit your local home World Store, Bloomingdale's. So we are in Bloomingdale's Al Moana, and we also are in March and MacArthur, uh, and Foodland with our giftable. So, you know, that's, those are definitely places that all of our visitors stop by when they're here.

[00:29:43] Jalene Kanani - NoHo Home: Uh, you can pick up some of our products there,

[00:29:45] Bryan Murphy (2): Design is definitely one way to see Hawaii differently. Another is through the lens of a local photographer, someone who spends a lot of time outdoors with families, watching how they experience the islands.

[00:29:57] Bryan Murphy (2): Our next feature is with photographer Heather Ayenga from Little Bird Photography.

[00:30:03] Bryan Murphy (2): Heather lives on the Windward side of Oahu and spends a lot of time, helping families experience that part of the island in a real relaxed way. Here she is talking about why this side of the island feels so special to her.

[00:30:15] Heather - Little Bird: So I moved to Hawaii 24 years ago with my husband and. We always wanted to get to the Windward side. We started off in town and we would come over to the Windward side because it always felt so magical. You come through. Poly and you just see this beautiful landscape.

[00:30:36] Heather - Little Bird: You've got the steep mountains stretching down to, you know, beautiful blue ocean. It just, there's something about it that just feels really breathtaking and it doesn't get old. I wanna say like living here, like the views are just stunning all the time. I always appreciate them, so it's a really wonderful place to to call home.

[00:30:56] Heather - Little Bird: But because we now live on the Winward side, I thought. I might as well share my favorite part of the island with you. And I also think it's a unique spot to enjoy with families. The beaches here are more mellow than you get on the north shore, less crowded than on the south shore. West side is also has very steep beaches with big waves, so it's kind of the ideal stretch to explore with family.

[00:31:24] Heather - Little Bird: It's really easily accessible. And the other thing is that it starts with. You have a lot of diversity along the coast. It starts with lava and it's very dramatic. And then you end with nice, sandy, calm beaches at the tip.

[00:31:37] Bryan Murphy (2): I really love how Heather describes the Windward side. It's such a beautiful part of the island, and it's not just a pretty backdrop, but a place to slow down and explore. She also had one simple piece of advice she hopes that every visitor takes to heart.

[00:31:52] Heather - Little Bird: Most important is to just get out of Waikiki, get out of your resort for at least one day and go explore and you know, see what the island has to offer.

[00:32:02] Bryan Murphy (2): so if you want some help capturing those memories while you're out exploring, here's how you can connect with Heather.

[00:32:07] Heather - Little Bird: My website is hi like Hawaii, like hello, HI, hi little bird.com. And it's little bird photography

[00:32:15] Bryan Murphy (2): And last but not least, probably one of my favorite interviews was with Chris Kamaka from Kamaka Ukulele. Now. I wanna highlight this Hawaiian brand that's been part of the islands for over a hundred years. Kamaka ukulele is still family run, and if you spend any time around Hawaiian music, you've probably seen or heard one of their instruments.

[00:32:37] Bryan Murphy (2): So here's Chris Kamaka sharing a bit of their family story and his role today.

[00:32:43] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: Well, I'm the production manager at the factory. I'm a third generation. Wow. Um, my grandfather started it back in, uh, 1916.

[00:32:54] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: My cousin is the, Fred is the office manager now. But since my grandfather, when my grandfather passed, my dad took over and then eventually, uh, my uncle Fred. Came and helped with the business. My grandfather actually started it in the garage, you know, as a hobby. Oh, wow. Building more like the pineapple shape.

[00:33:16] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: Okay. I don't know if you're familiar with that, but, uh Right. It's a shape that he designed. He was more interested in trying to experiment with sound, and it was a lot easier to bend rather than the traditional, you know, figure eight instrument. Oh, I see.

[00:33:31] Bryan Murphy: Especially fabricating in the garage. Yeah. It's probably easier to, yeah, so he just made

[00:33:34] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: it for a lot of our aunts and uncles who were professional entertainers and, and it grew from there.

[00:33:41] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: He opened his first factory on, on South King Street.

[00:33:44] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: Eventually he had to move everything down to our farm on the west side, Lulu, because they were widening King Street at the time, so. Then my dad was away at school. He was studying to be an entomologist.

[00:33:59] Bryan Murphy: Okay. He was working on his PhD. Wow.

[00:34:02] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: And he got the call my, that my grandfather was sick.

[00:34:05] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: Yeah. So he came home, stopped everything, took care of dad till for about a year until he passed and decided, wow, what, what should I do with all of this equipment? He went to the libraries and did a lot of research and, and eventually, uh, said, okay, let's go for it. I'll try it. And it's ever since, you know, we've moved to our original factory where we are now.

[00:34:29] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: Yeah. In 59 from there, you know. The rest is history.

[00:34:34] Bryan Murphy (2): So when you pick up a kamaka ukulele, you're holding more than just an instrument. You're holding a piece of that family story. I also ask Chris what he would've want every first time visitor to know before coming to Hawaii.

[00:34:48] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: Well, I guess first timers coming to the islands. You know, Hawaii has always been about aloha, you know, and, and, and, Opening up one's oneself or one's arms and, and, and greeting them because we've always appreciated life and appreciated, you know, just being able to share what we have, you know, because, you know, sometimes we take it for granted where we live, you know, because, you know, it's such a beautiful place.

[00:35:17] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: And hopefully we can portray that to those who do come, then they would appreciate it even more.

[00:35:23] Bryan Murphy (2): So if you love Hawaiian music or you love just the process of building something, if you ever want to, have you ever thought about picking up an ukulele? Kamaka is such a great way to support a long, standing local business that's still rooted in family and craft. Here's Here's how you can connect with them, how you can visit them, or even shop online.

[00:35:42] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: Well, Kamaka, we're at five 50 South Street right, uh, in Honolulu.

[00:35:46] Chris Kamaka - Kamaka Ukulele: My website is kamaka hawaii.com. Phone number five three one three one six five. Area code 8 0 8. Yeah. And feel free to come into the shop, you know? Yeah. We, we'd love to show, show people what we're all about as far as musically. Um, we play at the Outrigger Reef Potel in Waikiki every Saturday night.

[00:36:09] Bryan Murphy (2): I actually happened to catch Chris at the Nam show in Anaheim, which was cool while, while he was in town. It's, Nam is a annual trade show. it's organized by the National Association of Music Merchants and Kaka was, was there as a, as a vendor and it was cool being able to go and have an interview with them and, and seeing, their booth and, and all their new stuff and hearing.

[00:36:33] Bryan Murphy (2): Amazing musicians play at at their booth. So it was just such a cool experience. But I just wanna say thank you again for spending some time with me today and listening to all of these stories, all these local businesses, every one of them is, is so special and it's a part of what makes Hawaii feel the way that it does.

[00:36:49] Bryan Murphy (2): It's from the food, the art, the culture, the design, the conversations, the aloha you feel it anytime you walk through a local business like one of these that we've talked about today. So if one of these businesses stood out to you, you can check the show notes below.

[00:37:04] Bryan Murphy (2): I've linked every episode, every website in every way that you can support them this holidays season. So whether you're planning a trip or you just want to show a little love from home, maybe if even just following them on Instagram, as simple as that, showing some love, showing some aloha. When you choose local in Hawaii, it really does go further than you think.

[00:37:23] Bryan Murphy (2): It supports families, keeps traditions alive, and helps these small businesses continue to share what they do best. So until next time, my friend, as always, live with Aloha.


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Bryan Murphy

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Shorebreak Media Group

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