Registration Open for Small Business Week in May

The lineup of free educational sessions for the opening day of Maui Small Business Week, Monday, May 9, is now available online.

Maui Small Business Week registration is also open online.

Maui Small Business Week will be held May 9 through 13, 2016, in Central Maui. Additionally, for the first time, Hāna, Lāna‘i and Moloka‘i will each host a related event on one day during Maui’s SBW.

Maui’s Small Business Week will kick off at the Kalihi Golf Course in Wailuku with an opening ceremony emceed by hosts David Kapaku and John Hau‘oli Tomoso, with a complimentary continental breakfast included.

The featured speaker for the opening ceremony is Kainoa Horcajo, Hawaiian cultural ambassador at the Grand Wailea and an emerging leader in the field of cultural tourism, specializing in the application of Native Hawaiian values, principles and practices to a holistic visitor experience.

As a sought-after trainer in Hawai‘i’s visitor industry, Horcajo has instructed thousands of executives and employees from the state’s largest resorts, including the Westin Maui, Sheraton Waikiki, Four Seasons-Lāna‘i, Outrigger Resorts and others.

Local representatives of the Maui Office of Economic Development will also address the audience.

The first two sessions following the ceremony will focus on core skills for business success.

”Last year’s event was well-attended, with something for everyone to learn,” said David Kapaku. “We expect this year to be even better, with a wide range of practical topics.”

After the opening ceremony, local communications consultant, educator and former Silicon Valley Executive Lori Fisher will lead off with a session on creating and delivering powerful business presentations.

Attendees will learn how to apply the ancient and yet relevant principles of classic rhetoric, how to adapt a message to various audiences, and how to say more with less. Fisher weill offer tips relevant to both business presentations other communication media, such as press releases or social media.

After lunch on Monday, Alan Pollock, Mike Hulser and Kent Untermann will present “Business Basics for the Future,” exploring such topics as how to attract new business and keep current customers, understanding the speed of change in business, key financial strategies to drive sustained profitability, and the three “Founder Traps” and what to do about them.

Pollock is the O‘ahu-based principal of Marketing Strategies, a marketing and business development firm working with nonprofits, local and mainland operations, and advertising agencies. Prior to that, he started a business that grew to be one of Hawai‘i’s major ad agencies, working in such diverse industries as tourism, technology, retail, and banking.

For almost 10 years after that, Pollock was vice president of marketing for Oceanic Time Warner Cable, where he introduced a myriad of new products and services while growing their Internet service to become the largest in the state.

Hulser owns and operates O‘ahu-based The Biz MD, helping small and medium size businesses improve their financial performance, profitability and cash flow.

In the late 1990s, Hulser entered the turnaround/crisis management consulting industry, where he was named the “Top Turnaround Manager in the United States for 2000.”

After Untermann’s days with UH football, he became the owner, operator, franchisee, licensee, and and affiliate or founder of over 20 unique businesses in 30 years, generating over $500 million in sales.

The week will continue with prominent speakers from California, O‘ahu and the Maui business community.

Topics will include: pricing strategies and the role of pricing in your marketing mix; six different kinds of crowdfunding and how each one works; honing marketing techniques, such as use of effective tag lines and a polished elevator pitch; an introduction to lean techniques for product and service businesses; and improving operations and expanding a small business through focus on a business plan.

Local Maui SBW Organizer Grace Fung encourages members of the local business community to attend, adding.

“Please join in this unique opportunity, right here in Maui County, to network, learn how to grow your business, create more 21st century jobs, drive innovation and increase Hawai‘i’s global competitiveness,” said Fung.

Across the Aloha State, the Small Business Administration Hawai‘i District celebrates SBW with award ceremonies on each of the islands. Nationwide, business award ceremonies and free educational events are scheduled during the first half of May.

Beginning in 2014, Maui County officials began participation in the national tradition of SBW, linking with the Maui Business Brainstormers initiative to hold an inaugural week-long event—the first on Maui and in the state.

The event offered five days of free, educational events to benefit local small businesses owners and managers, and was repeated again in 2015 with strong attendance and positive participant reviews.

With the official support of the Maui County Office of Economic Development, Maui Business Brainstormers is leading the event again this year with an entire week devoted to educational workshops and seminars.

The office of Maui Mayor Alan Arakawa has proclaimed the week of May 9-13 as “National Small Business Week” for Maui County.

View the full program online.