Hāna Hosts Its Premier National Entrepreneurship Week

With the goal of advancing its mission of supporting the local business community, the Hāna Business Council is partnering with Maui Business Brainstormers to sponsor National Entrepreneurship Week for the first time in Hãna.

The two-day event will be held on Feb. 21 and 22, with free admission for local startups, entrepreneurs, business owners and managers.

“Hāna is a faraway place, virtually the fifth island of Maui County, and we feel the need to be self-sufficient in many ways,” said Andrew Rayner, president of Hãna Business Council. “Thus, there is a need for our business people to grow food and provide all sorts of local services as well as look after the tourist market and in several cases export products and services to other parts of the county too. Help with the mysteries of starting and managing businesses in this complicated world is greatly appreciated.”

Tuesday, Feb. 21

Guest Speaker Zachary A. McNish. MBB photo.

From 1:15 to 3 p.m., “How to Manage Risk as a Small Business Owner” will cover various legal aspects of running a business (entity, contracts, business insurance, employment matter) with guest presenter Zachary A. McNish, Esq.

McNish is the owner of McNish Law, a Maui-based law firm providing legal services in the areas of business law, nonprofit law and energy law. McNish was born and raised on Maui.  He returned home in 2016 after 10 years on O‘ahu, where he held numerous business and legal positions, including associate attorney at the law firm of Alston Hunt Floyd & Ing, legal counsel at the residential solar company RevoluSun LLC, and most recently, executive vice president and general counsel of the commercial solar company Distributed Energy Partners LLC.  He currently lives in Ha‘ikū with his wife and two young children.

Guest Speaker Lori Fisher. MBB photo.

From 3:15 to 4:45 p.m., “The Effect of Customer Experience on Your Business Success” will cover techniques to optimize the experience that your customers have as they try to find your product or service, get started with it, and begin using it, with guest presenter Lori Fisher.

Fisher is an experienced executive, manager, author, lecturer, presenter and mentor in the communication and user experience fields. Her areas of specialization are clear and effective communication, ease-of- use and customer experience, and aligning communication with business strategy. Her professional background includes 30 years in the software business as an executive at IBM, managing usability, design and technical communications. She also taught management and business communications at UC Santa Cruz for over 20 years. She and her husband brought their Fisher & Fisher Consulting to Maui full-time in 2014. She lives in Lāhainā.

From 5 to 7 p.m. the “Bravissimo, Brave Entrepreneurs” talk-story event moderated by Andrew Rayner and Lori Fisher is scheduled. Over dinner, several Hāna entrepreneurs will share their unique experiences from their business journey in Hāna.

Wednesday, Feb. 22

“Find my Biz on the WEB” is an opportunity to get started with your online presence (Facebook, Twitter, website). Any entrepreneur who books a one-on-one session with the MBB team will receive free help to get their business online or to improve how they get found online.

Participants need to book one-on- one in advance with HBC (form will be provided).

Pre-registration required by email ([email protected]) or phone (248-4950).

Partners, sponsors and supporters include Maui Business Brainstormers, Hāna Arts, Valley Isle Tour, High Technology Department Corporation, SCORE Maui, HI Small Business Development Center – Maui office, Maui Native Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce, Ala Kukui – Hana Retreat, Maui County, Mayor’s Office of Economic Development.

About Hāna Business Council (HBC)
Hāna Business Council exists to support business endeavors and to create business and employment opportunities within the special culture and traditions of our East Maui area.

About Maui Business Brainstormers (MBB)
MBB is a B2B support network and grassroots group operating across Maui. MBB had the opportunity to learn the needs, wishes and expectations of the members of the HBC when it went to Hāna for the first time in February 2016 with its popular Business in the Think Tank (BiTT) program. In May 2016, MBB helped to take the Maui Small Business Week to Hāna and now, in February 2017, MBB is stepping up with more support by helping HBC to host the first ever N.E.W. in Hāna.