Yamagata's confidence is part of a ripple effect spreading through Hawai'i's small-business economy just in time for Christmas parties and company gift-giving. It's a buoyant mood that translates into good news for food caterers and companies that specialize in customized business gifts.

Christmas party food orders are coming in so fast that Paula Okamoto has had to turn away bookings at her parent's Ilima Catering Service in Mapunapuna.

Okamoto already has put up a hand-written sign telling lunch counter customers they won't serve lunch on Friday so they can focus on the catering side of the business.

"We're really busy," Okamoto said. "We have a lot of catering because a lot of companies started calling early, about a month ago."

Richard Chung, the manager of A Catered Experience, always "closes out," or refuses orders, on the Friday before Christmas. This year, he's also had to close out Dec. 12, 19, 20 and 21.

"We're so overbooked that we've had to close out more days, and close them out sooner," Chung said.

A survey of small businesses conducted by OPEN: The Small Business Network from American Express, found that the share of company owners who planned to give holiday gifts to clients and customers held steady at 41 percent this year, and their budgets were negligibly bigger, by 2 percent. The survey also found 43 percent planned to give bonuses and throw Christmas parties.

But the numbers may not tell the whole story. Alice Bredin, a business author, syndicated columnist, radio commentator and small-business advisor for The Small Business Network from American Express, hears anecdotally that small businesses are planning bigger Christmas parties and expect to spend more on gifts this year.

"A little more money for gifts, or a holiday party that's a little more festive and fancy than it was last year, is reflective that business owners have been having an easier time than they were in the last several years," Bredin said.

"Small-business owners usually find a way to do something," Bredin said. "Because their businesses are small, they're so close to the contribution that customers and employees make to the business all year long. They know the value of each check from a customer, and they know the value of an employee who's willing to work late to get a job out on time."

The survey polled only 787 business owners and managers in the continental 48 states.

Several Hawai'i small-business owners said they planned to spend much more this year on Christmas parties and gifts than the Mainland average — 10 percent to 50 percent more.

Yamagata, owner of Unitek Solvent Services Inc., measures the Hawai'i economy by the condition of the used tires that roll into his recycling business each day at Campbell Industrial Park.

Last year, tires were worn dangerously low, suggesting owners were putting off buying new ones, Yamagata said.

This year, the tires are coming in with just the right amount of leftover tread, meaning drivers are buying tires on time and pumping more money through Hawai'i's economy.

So, like small-business owners across America, Yamagata had the confidence to bump his Christmas party budget to $4,000 for his 55 employees, and double his spending on company gifts to about $1,000. "We're definitely doing a little more this year," he said.

Troy Guerrero, president of general contractor Pacific Hometech, plans to hand out company bonuses for the first time, and spend $6,000 on the first company Christmas party since he started the business seven years ago.

"We've gotten a little bigger," Guerrero said. "We're now 20 guys versus three guys. We've been staying really busy."

Mark Elwell, the owner of Bamboo Flooring Hawaii, will spend about 30 percent more on company gifts, in the form of 100 bamboo cutting boards laser-inscribed with his company logo.

"We didn't go to this degree last year on the goodies," Elwell said.

He's buying the gifts through Albert Perkins, who owns two companies that specialize in customized gifts, Custom Badge and Awards, and Wines & Designs.

Last week, Perkins said, "you couldn't even get us on the phone because we've been so busy.

People have really started buying early."

His customers are particularly interested in personalized Hawaiiana gifts costing about $25 each, such as motif glass ornaments, picture frames and bulk wines that come with personalized labels bearing company logos.

Rory Otto, owner of Island Collections, has had several customers spend about four times as much on company gifts this Christmas. He's had several orders for 1,000 laser-engraved koa photo albums at $100 each. Others want $90 to $100 candle shadow boxes made of koa that feature island themes. Some prefer koa night lights at $30.

"This year started stagnant because of the war and SARS," Otto said. "We were playing catchup for the rest of the year — and now we definitely caught up."

When the busy catering season is over, the four family members who make up Ilima Catering Service plan to hold their own company party, consisting of only Paul and Florence Suyat; their daughter, Okamoto; and her auntie, Linda Maikui.

It'll be an intimate affair, as always, for the company's four employees. But the family will be sure to make its own contribution to Hawai'i's economy.

"We'll just go out to dinner at a restaurant," Okamoto said. "We'll have somebody else cook for us for a change."