Ways to Turn Hawaii's Economy Around!!!!!! (Hilo: insurance, hotels, homes)

[VanHa]

There are lots of folks out there that are waiting for the economy to turn around (what ever that means) for them to find that plum job, make more money...or avoid getting laid off. What if....we take things in our own hands and in stead of WAITING for the economy to turn around we actually Do Something to change it? What if we can develop a list of actions that we can take to change Hawaii's economy from within as opposed to waiting for outsiders (visitors/investors/etc.) to change it for us? I will start the listing and let's see how many we can add...maybe...if this would help even just one of us do something different...maybe....just maybe...someone else/all of us will benefit! Here we go...here is my list of 5 things

1. buy local...don't order thing to be shipped in
2. Vacation local...Going to L.V./Reno only gives your money away
3. Start a service business for vacationers/investors...take money from the outside and keep it in Hawaii
4. Start and INTERNET based business to sell Hawaii products to the outside
5. If you can employ local...we have good talent in Hawaii, let's keep them here....
6. Send employees to local training...or get training to come to Hawaii

What can you add.....

[hotzcatz]

So far the list doesn't have anything other than services. Build or grow a product and sell that. Start small by selling or swapping whatever you produce to your neighbors. Then as you get more of whatever it is and folks seem to like buying it, then make more and sell it on Craig's List or at a local farmer's market.

Whatever you need in your daily life, figure out which parts of it you can make or produce yourself. Make two or three of whatever it is you are making and sell, trade or swap them for something else made by your neighbors. That keeps everything absolutely local.

There are also some invisible benefits. If you make something that you would have spent $100 on, it is actually worth $125 since you won't be paying income tax on having to make the income to spend on buying the item.

[VanHa]

Originally Posted by hotzcatz

So far the list doesn't have anything other than services. Build or grow a product and sell that. Start small by selling or swapping whatever you produce to your neighbors. Then as you get more of whatever it is and folks seem to like buying it, then make more and sell it on Craig's List or at a local farmer's market.

Whatever you need in your daily life, figure out which parts of it you can make or produce yourself. Make two or three of whatever it is you are making and sell, trade or swap them for something else made by your neighbors. That keeps everything absolutely local.

There are also some invisible benefits. If you make something that you would have spent $100 on, it is actually worth $125 since you won't be paying income tax on having to make the income to spend on buying the item.

Those are good ideas Hotz...I like the notion of the free marketing and advertising on Craig's list...anyone else got some thoughts?

[mdand3boys]

Hawaii needs any kind of light manufacturing (not heavy, industrial) to provide better paying jobs for more people. Note that the various incubator facilities for startup companies in the Hilo area are basically empty! One reason is that there are way too many rules, regulations and processes for a startup to follow in order to be able to use the facilities.

I have a tough time always hearing that things cost more in Hawaii because everything is shipped here. I'll bet 80% of the hard goods available on the mainland are shipped there, from places like China. So, why does Hawaii's stuff cost more when it is only shipped half as far?

[mdand3boys]

I will add that the current solar and wind energy usage is dismal when you realize the potential due to the amount of wind and sun that the islands receive. There is no reason why 50% or more of all homes should not have at least solar water heating! It is the cheapest to add and has the fastest payback.

Think of the good paying, "green" jobs that this state should already have!

[PacificFlights]

Originally Posted by mdand3boys

I have a tough time always hearing that things cost more in Hawaii because everything is shipped here. I'll bet 80% of the hard goods available on the mainland are shipped there, from places like China. So, why does Hawaii's stuff cost more when it is only shipped half as far?

Two reasons. One is because to the shipper, it's cheaper to ship a full load non-stop from China to California versus slowing down, making a stop in Hawaii and starting back up to California with less paying cargo. Many products go from Asia to California and back to Hawaii.
The second reason is piloting, docking, slip use, unloading services, etc cost money. On a per container basis, it's cheaper to unload 9,000 containers versus unloading 500. So if it cost lets say $1,000 to dock and unload 10 containers in Hawaii, that's $100 per container, passed on to the consumer price. But in California it may cost $15,000 due to the time involved, but if you're unloading 8,000 containers, that's under $2 per container to pass onto the consumer.

[KonaKat]

One thing that would help is if the state would become more business friendly. It is incredibly expensive to own a business in Hawaii compared to say, Nevada where I used to live (and happily owned a thriving small business). It's not rocket science folks, but the powers that be don't seem to "get it".

And the solar and wind industries...........yikes don't even get me started on that one! I think that we should not even need Helco with all that sunshine and wind, and geothermal power too, on these islands. Why is it not being developed by the state?

It is also difficult to keep quality folks here, whether "local born" or people that have moved here when medical care is in such a convoluted mess. Good doctors leave because of abysmal compensation by the insurance industry; good nurses leave because they cannot stand the conditions and politics; good people leave because they cannot obtain necessary care.

I did move here from the mainland and respect Hawaii and it's unique history immensely. I love it here and feel most fortunate to be able to live in such a place. I hope my family and I never have to leave.

[DreamworksSKG]

Film more episodes of LOST On Hawaii

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Build a bridge to California so more tourists can drive to Hawaii :-)
with ocean-side hotels along the way :-)

or build a underwater tube train from Los Angeles and San Fransisco to Hawaii :-) under the ocean

Oh and don't forget

Elect Obama Governor :-)

[Winter Hater]

Eh. The main reason Hawaii is suffering is due to lack of tourism. In times of a recession, us mainlanders take satisfaction in every penny we save, and IF we decide to take a vacation, there are numerous places with just as beautiful water, and friendly people much closer to our current locations... which in turn saves us a ton of money. Think Caribbean. (bahamas, grand turk, key west, etc) A plane ticket alone to hawaii from anywhere other than california is an extremely expensive ticket, 600.00+ in most cases. All of us in the midwest, and east coast will be forced to put hawaii aside, and find closer beaches.

Ways to fix your economy? Hell if I know. Here's a few ideas that will probably never be implemented.


Treat "haoles" better? After hearing, reading, and witnessing the prejudice against mainlanders, do you honestly think many of us want to buy an extremely expensive plane ticket, to come and give you our money? People who only want us to come, drop dollars, and then leave? "This is our island brah, come give money, and leave" meanwhile they can talk badly upon us in a language many of us can't comprehend (pidgin) right beneath our noses. What the hell happened to the aloha spirit? Think Thailand, as they've surpassed you in this category. Go back to your roots if you want educated visitors to return.

Create something new. Find something people on the mainland will need, and ship it to us. No offense, but poi isn't exactly on our top ten wanted items. We're the land of consumers, if Hawaii was the land of inventors you would probably not have this problem in the first place.

Go green. As it's already been said, I'm surprised nobody is hopping on the ball while it's rolling. The "green" movement has been growing with numbers since it's inception, and Hawaii seems like the perfect place to lead the movement.

Heard of Fiji water? How come Hawaii has no major water bottling company? Aloha water would sell to tons of people, and provide thousands of jobs there as well. Not sure if it's possible, but if nobody else has thought of it - you should have.

Changing a place that is slow and laid back... into a place where everything is sped up is not going to be easy, the only people who are not laid back are the people working 2-3 jobs to survive instead of living in a home with ten people, and surfing all day. In order to succeed, and get out of recession... you have to take some of our mainland qualities into consideration, adapt and change. Realize that not everyone should be lazy, slow, and care free... as much fun as it may be. Welcome advancement, technology, and "mainland" ways of business and organization. You're not a third world country.

I love Hawaii, but dislike what it's becoming... keep in mind that your way of life depends on us visiting, and many of us have come to realize we don't need to visit you. It's sad, but true.

[Winter Hater]

Also, regarding the OP's original statements... these are my thoughts on the issue.

1. We've been doing that on the mainland for decades, it's called helping your community instead of major corporations. Also associated with "going green" if you've looked into carbon footprints... I agree that more hawaiians should catch up to this concept, and believe many people already have by shopping at farmers markets, growing their own, etc.

2. You can only see so much on the islands, if you've vacationed more than 3-4 times in your life it probably gets old. Vegas is also hurting in the recession, so visiting vegas... in a way helps america as a whole. Hawaii has no strip like vegas, filled with casinos and entertainment... therefore I don't think this will change too much. Every once and a while, you have to leave the rock. People also visit family on the mainland as well.

3. There are more than enough services for tourists, you need to create more tourists before you create services to cater to these non existant vacationers.

4. Good idea... exporting items creates income. Create better inventions to export.

5. Once again back to the "this is our island, come drop money and leave" concept. If you don't employ from the mainland, you're lacking greatly in several areas where no offense (we have better training, experience, and work ethic)

6. Yes, create more schooling and better education there in Hawaii. Bring professors, teachers, and anyone willing to help FROM THE MAINLAND. It's definitely needed.