Hana Pa'a Hawaii

How did Hana Pa‘a start and how has it grown over the years?

My father was an avid fisherman, and he used to always shop at this store called Phillips Fishing Supply. When he heard the owner was selling the business, he decided to buy the business. I was working at another job, but I went over to help him because he had invested so much. That was back in 1993, and it was just me and my father running the store at the beginning.

Over the years, we got more involved in diving, too, and that led to Hawaii Skin Diver magazine. We don't publish the magazine anymore, but we still have our TV show, which has been going for over 20 years.

Why did you choose to work with Hawaii National Bank?

Hawaii National Bank helped finance us to purchase the store, and we've been with them the whole time since 1993 when we started the business. That's the thing at Hawaii National Bank, they're more like friends than anything else. I'm very comfortable talking to them and just calling them whenever I need anything. Like I tell people, I'm on speed dial.

I've worked with different people over the years, but Lou has always been a constant. I usually go to the Kalihi branch, and I'm in there once or twice a week, so the staff know me by name. It's just a pleasant experience.

What does it mean to be a family business?

For me, it's just everybody kind of helping each other out. When my dad and I first bought the store, it was just the two of us running it. Then, after my dad passed away, my mom came in and helped out a lot, especially when my kids were young. My wife, Traci, helps with all the importing and keeping things organized in the office, and my son, Brayden, comes in and helps out when he's home from college. So, everybody kind of has their part in it. And we've also had employees who've been with us for over 20 years, so they're pretty much family, too. I think that's a big part of it, just having people you can count on and working together to keep the business going.

What excites you about the future of your business?

We're trying to do more online and digital things. It's new, probably within the last five years, so we're still learning as we go. There are challenges, but I think it's working out. For now, our focus is on growing what we have and continuing to serve the fishing and diving community rather than opening more physical stores.

My son and his friends are also working on social media and creating content around fishing. I see it being very successful, what they're working on. I'd like to see the younger generation continue the business. I think it would be pretty good if the kids can take over and continue. That would be ideal.