Island Investors Help to Save Koholā Brewery on Maui, Reopening Planned

In a time of shut downs, canceled events and struggling business, there is a bright spot in Lahaina where investors are helping to keep Maui’s Koholā Brewery afloat.

The small independent brewery was hit extraordinarily hard by economic impacts brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Not only did they have to close their Lahaina tap room, the business reports that the demand for beer fell by about 90%.

In May Koholā closed its doors, stopped making beer and laid off all employees. Three months later, the company has found new Island investors to infuse capital and avoid bankruptcy.

A developer from the Big Island of Hawaii and a West Maui resident teamed up to inject enough capital to address past debts, restart operations and have a cash reserve to last through the pandemic. The business reports that several suppliers and partners also contributed substantially to the recovery of the company.

“Koholā brewery makes excellent craft beers and has a strong local following. The products quickly became some of our favorites. We didn’t want to see a loss of the startup work, nor the loss of a popular local brand. We see this as an exciting opportunity to fund the next phase of growth for Koholā,” said Mary Anderson and Greg Lang from Lahaina.

“We’re excited about helping Koholā recover and expand its presence to the rest of the state and beyond, Our decades of experience doing business on the islands will ensure the company can truly scale,” said Julie and Greg Brown.

Koholā will start brewing beer in the next two weeks and prepare the tap room to welcome guests once again. The business is targeting a re-opening in approximately three weeks.

Koholā Brewery is a local, independent craft brewery located in Lahaina, Maui. Founded in 2014, Koholā specializes in pale ales and lagers “made with aloha.”