Posted on: Friday, October 26, 2001

Island Voices
'Hawaiian Dollars' to the rescue

By Rick Davis
Former publisher of Aloha, The Magazine of Hawai‘i

Hawai'i should print its own money to buy advertising. These "Hawaiian Dollars" would then be used to buy advertising around the country.

The holders of these dollars could exchange them for goods and services, but only in one place — Hawai'i.

For example, the Hawai'i Visitors and Convention Bureau places $100,000 in advertising on TV in Chicago. It sends $100,000 in "Hawaiian Dollars" to the TV station in payment. The TV station has a sales contest and the winner gets $5,000 in "Hawaiian Dollars" as a prize.

These dollars have value in one place, remember? That's Hawai'i. So, the winner calls a travel agent in Hawai'i and buys his air tickets with "Hawaiian Dollars." He arrives, tips the porters at the airport, takes a cab to his hotel, stays five days, experiences all we have to offer in tours, food, drink, recreation and shopping.

At the end of his stay, he checks out of his hotel and pays, as he paid everyone else, in "Hawaiian Dollars." All individuals and companies now holding these "Hawaiian Dollars" take them to designated exchange offices and trade them in for the greenback.

Let's go a step further. After the TV stations in Chicago have used as much as they need internally (seems they needed some new computer equipment, so they called a computer retailer in Hawai'i and made a $20,000 purchase, paid for in "Hawaiian Dollars"), they go to one of their large advertisers, such as a supermarket, and say "Look, you spent double X dollars with us last year. If you spend triple X with us this year, we will give you $30,000 'Hawaiian Dollars' as a bonus."

The supermarket, after having its own contest and making its own retail purchases, in Hawai'i of course, finds itself with $15,000 unused "Hawaiian Dollars." What does it do? Starts its own sales promotion. Can't you see it now? A supermarket in Chicago with banners hung around the store that say "Get the lucky cash register receipt and win a $5,000 credit in Hawai'i."

The possibilities are endless.

A new idea? No, it's been done before, but not around here. Objections? I'm sure the naysayers are working overtime already, but there aren't any that can't be overcome. In this case, it takes all of us in the state to buy off on the program and be willing to accept "Hawaiian Dollars" for goods and services provided.