Kurt Matsumoto To Oversee All Lanai Business Operations

Kurt Matsumoto has been appointed chief operating officer at Lanai Resorts. Photo courtesy of Lanai Resorts.

By Sonia Isotov

Lāna‘i Resorts, LLC, today announced the appointment of Hawai‘i resort industry veteran Kurt Matsumoto as chief operating officer.

Matsumoto was born and raised on Lāna‘i and, as vice president of resorts and administration for Lāna‘i Co. Inc. from 1991 to 2000, was in charge of The Lodge at Koele and the Manele Bay Hotel, as well as the island’s two signature golf courses.

“We are very happy to welcome Kurt as COO of Lāna‘i Resorts at an exciting time for the island of Lāna‘i,” said Paul Marinelli, vice president of parent company Lanai Island Holdings, LLC in a written statement.

“We took the time and proceeded very thoughtfully to find someone with the professional qualifications and background to be Lāna‘i Resorts’ top executive in Hawai‘i. Kurt embodies the Lāna‘i Resorts cultural standard – professional excellence, community awareness, deep appreciation of the island’s past, and a strong commitment to an amazing future.”

Matsumoto will be leaving his position as general manager of The Club at Kukui‘ula on Kaua‘i, where he has been for the past five years, to assume the Lāna‘i Resorts, LLC, position on December 1.

“I’m honored to join Lāna‘i Resorts, LLC,” Matsumoto said. “Lāna‘i is my home. I never imagined I’d get an opportunity like this.

Matsumoto’s roots are deep on Lāna‘i. His parents, Yukio “Shoe” and Matsuko (Kaya), were married on Lāna‘i in 1952. Kurt and his older brother Colbert both left the island after graduating from high school.

Lanai. Photo courtesy of HTA.

Kurt has had a distinguished career in the travel and hospitality industry. Aside from running the two world-class resorts on Lāna‘i, and serving as general manager of The Club at Kukui‘ula, Matsumoto was also general manager of Mauna Lani Bay Hotel & Bungalows on the Big Island of Hawai‘i.

“I’ve worked on the mainland, in the Caribbean and on three different Hawaiian islands,” Matsumoto said. “It’s as if those experiences were leading me to this place and preparing me for this position.”