By Yasmin Anwar
Advertiser Staff Writer
Lately, the good works of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs have been eclipsed by a tough state audit and legal challenges that threaten the agency’s existence.
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| Maile Meyer’s store, Native Books & Beautiful Things, is a success, thanks to OHA’s revolving loan fund.
Advertiser library photo • Sept. 23, 2000 |
But innovative programs that offer Hawaiians a chance to build a home or start a business are still very much part of its mission, and many would hate to see them go.
Ask Maile Meyer, founder and president of Native Books & Beautiful Things. She says she used to poke fun at OHA until she needed a loan to expand her business.
Now she’s a poster child for the Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund, a 12-year-old federal program that offers loans to Hawaiians who want to start a business or expand one.
Meyer is among more than 150 Hawaiians who have received loans through the program, which has given out a total of $4.5 million.
Though a recent state audit found that OHA needed to improve management and oversight of the fund, trustees say it is nonetheless a priceless opportunity and want more beneficiaries to take advantage of it.
On March 22, OHA beneficiaries have been invited to hear local businesspeople share their survive-and-thrive tips at the second annual Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund Small Business Conference at the Radisson Waikiki Prince Kuhio Hotel.
Chef and restaurateur Sam Choy is the keynote speaker at the conference, which runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Seminars will tackle such issues as getting set up & started; grassroots marketing; creative press releases and promos; understanding financial statements and food service.
The program provides micro-loans of up to $10,000 and maximum regular loans of $75,000.
Already the successful founder and president of her own company, Meyer said she needed help curbing her compulsion to give away most of her inventory.
She says that once she got the $75,000 loan, OHA staff taught her to strike a balance between generosity and making a profit.
"OHA taught me you can do good works and make yourself profitable in the long haul," she said.
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