Not too long ago I had received a
House of Mana Up Subscription Box (the subscription makes a great gifts, and is such a fun way to discover new and exclusive products made by Hawai`i makers and crafters). House of Mana Up not only offers products through their website, retail store, and subscription boxes, but they also offer a 6-month accelerator program to assist entrepreneurs with everything from sourcing funding to social media.
Just recently I was fortunate to have been invited to the House of Mana Up headquarters to meet some of Cohort 6.
I had a chance to chat with some of them about their products, as well as about what they've learned through the House of Mana Up Accelerator Program.
Owners of `Ohana Nui, Pono Potions, and HI Spice showcased their products, and I was able to briefly speak to the owners of Aloha de Mele, Island Harvest, and Paniolo Pets about their specialties.
It didn't matter if you were a brand new start-up or an established name - it was evident that everyone there benefitted from the program.
Almost everyone I spoke to said that they appreciated how businesses were in various stages of development, and didn't hesitate to reveal their strengths and weaknesses in order to get assistance in areas that needed the most improvement. They were all there to learn, and to develop and implement new strategies to bring more awareness to their products and increase sales.
I was very familiar with Kahuku Farms - I've taken their farm tours and enjoyed products in their cafe. It was neat to hear about how they are now working on expanding sales of their value-added products.
`Ohana Nui not only makes great cookies, but they are on a mission to help our marine life - a portion of sales goes to Hawaiian Marine Animal Response.
One of my favorite finds was Kākou Collective, which offers washi tape and stationery with designs of native Hawaiian plants and birds. I've never seen anything like it, and I love this very strong connection to Hawai`i.
Every business owner who goes through the program has access to a wide array of resources that will help them in marketing, financing, sales, public relations, branding, and more. The support within the Cohort and from outside sources was abundant, and it was great to discover so many new businesses.
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