 Aloha, and welcome to this week's edition of Business in Hawaii. I'm Deila Nyanyanegida, and we're broadcasting live from the ThinkTech studios in Pioneer Plaza in downtown Honolulu. If you want to tune in, we are live at www.thinktechhawaii.com. If you want to subscribe to our programs or get on the mailing list, please go to thinktechhawaii.com and sign up. The theme of Business in Hawaii is to bring you stories of businesses and people in Hawaii. Our guests share with us how they were able to build successes in a challenging business environment. And today I'm honored to have Terri Funakoshi in the ThinkTech studios today. Terri is the director of the Patsy T. Mink Center for Business and Leadership. Terri, welcome to the show, and thank you so much for taking the time to join us today. I know you've been on the show previously, but for those who missed that show, tell us about the center and what you folks do and what you folks are up to. Thank you for having me back. Yes, I'd love to share. So the Patsy T. Mink Center for Business and Leadership, we're a women's business center. We're funded in part by the SVA, the Small Business Administration, and a program under YWCA O'ahu. So our mission is really to help women succeed in business, so we help them start a business, grow the business, or help them with leadership skills. And we've been doing that here for about five years in Hawaii, and we are the only women's business center in the whole state. It's amazing, amazing. Tell me about the types of people that the center has been helping. I know there's a focus on women, even young women. Tell me about the type of people that you folks support. So we, in our programs, I kind of like to divide it like 50-50. So half of the time we do leadership programs, where we have like our Patsy T. Mink Leadership Alliance, which I'll tell you more about, but that helps emerging women leaders in the corporate area help them to get to the executive level. And then we help the youth in leadership. So we have a girl's summit, and we go to high schools and bring the public and private schools together, and we do like a one-day summit, similar to a wahine forum network. We have a keynote speaker and then breakout sessions. And then we just had one on our theme was STEM. So we do leadership, and then on the other side, we do entrepreneurship. So we have like Launch My Business, we do a start class. You just have an idea starting out, or we have a girl class where you've been in business for a couple years, and you just need that extra help from experts to take it to the next level. So we do that. And then on the entrepreneur side, we also do Launch My Nonprofit. So Nonprofit is also like a business. So we have Launch My Nonprofit, and we do a start where we kind of talk about your nonprofit and build that. And then we have a second part, which is really like grant writing. Like everybody needs grants to help fund your nonprofit. So we kind of do that. And then like we were talking earlier, because we're a program under YWCA, we also help the women that come through our economic development programs. So we help women coming from incarceration really help them transition back into the community. So we teach a lot of classes on job retention, sometimes entrepreneurship. Skill building, soft skills. So we do quite a bit at the center, but that's the type of people we help. That's amazing. So many lives to touch with that scope. Tell me a little bit about how you got involved with the center. I know you have quite an illustrious career, retail. And I know you have a degree in marketing and merchandising. Tell me how you found the center. We kind of found each other. So like you said, my background is in retail. So I've been in the industry for 30 years, kind of a long time. And toward the end of my career, I started to work with local practitioners and artisans. And I really felt like they needed help in marketing. They had wonderful products, great ideas. So I started talking to them, and then I kind of created my own association as a Hawaii Culture and Retail Association. And I had that for several years, and I worked with them. And the one problem that we had was really funding, getting that access to capital so that they could grow their business. And because I was just networking with many people, the center came around, and they actually do exactly what I was doing, but they have an arm for funding and grant writing and all of that. So I said, it was a perfect marriage. They accepted me, luckily. Knock on the door. And I joined them, and I brought all my clients over. And since I've been there for about a little over two years, and we've just expanded. So I mean, it's wonderful. The partners are great. Well, the center was very fortunate to find you. I'm lucky. I'm lucky. Tell me about some of the success stories. I think our audience would love to hear about those success stories that you don't. There are so many. I always say that, especially women, there's so many problems, and we're always trying to solve problems. So the entrepreneurs I work with, they're like problem solvers. If there's a problem, they'll find it. I worked with several women who, like their kids, had allergies, gluten allergies. They forgot a way to make gluten-free flour from taro and other things so they could cook, and then turned that into a business. And I have smart women who say, you know, I have a passion, and this is my passion, but I know I can't do that unless I make some money. So they research. They're good researchers. Research businesses make them successful so they can do what they love. And I always, one of my favorites is Jessica. She wouldn't give up. She runs High Cravings, and she started from her garage. She has a great start from her garage to a food truck, to a retail store, location. And she hit her million dollars last year. So from the garage to a million dollars, we can't beat that. From passion to action. Exactly. And I think there are a lot of people, a lot of people, men and women alike, who have great ideas. They just don't know how to turn that into something that they envision. I had a chance to visit your center. Beautiful space. It's a great space for thinking and for collaborating. Could people visit your center? Tell me about the center, the physical center. So the center, we're located at YWC Oahu on Richard Street. And I just kind of converted it. If you take one of our programs, we graduate. We're doing an alumni program, or you participate. I opened the center at least one to two days to be a resource, Wi-Fi, meeting areas. It's a very nurturing, safe space. So I'm developing it as we go along, because now that we've done a few launch my business and launch my nonprofits, we need a space to meet and network. So it's evolving. But yes, anyone can come and visit the center. We have workshops and classes always going on. They can check us online at mcbl-hawaii.org. We have all our events and programs going. And besides that, we're located in YWC Oahu. So it's a beautiful venue. We have Cafe Julia. We have a health and wellness center. So there's many things to do there. And it's a historical building, too. So if you haven't, I know you've gone, but if you haven't seen it, it's beautiful. I know that there are also a number of resources for people. So a lot of times, people are just thinking, right? Thinking out loud. And I thought what was really nice was the center and all the folks that work in the center are there to hear out the thought process, but also guide you to some resources. So I do know that immediately at the center, there are a host of handouts and pamphlets for people who are in need of resources. Tell me about some of those resources you folks provide. So we have free business counseling and also free legal counseling. We partner with the BLC. So basically what happens is you come into the center, you have an idea. Like you said, we have all the resources, but you can make a counseling appointment. So it's a one-hour, one-on-one free appointment. And then we just sit down, myself or our counselor, sit down with you, and then we go over what you're needing. And then that way we can refer you to the right resource or maybe a class, workshop, or you maybe just need to talk over an idea. So that's really, I can't stress, that's important. Get a free business counseling. I mean, it's free. And then sometimes when we go through that, we realize that they might need legal services because too often I see people going to commercial leases or partnerships, and that they didn't really know what to expect. So if you can take the tools that we offer and save money and time, that's huge. So free legal service and free business counseling is a must. Right. I know it's really, it's almost scary for someone who knows they want to start something up, but also having the sounding board to really the honest sounding board about whether or not this is really an idea that's going to take off. So I know that you also offer some classes to guide people through a thought process, even to build their business plan. Tell me about some of those programs. Right, so I was saying launch my business is our signature course. I think we're on cohort 11 now. Yeah, we're just signing up. If people want to come in, they can still call us. And it's really good. It's a seven-week course, and it's 45 hours. So we do it in the evening and on weekend because we know people might have other jobs or daycare needs. So that takes you from A to Z on the business. And after that, when you graduate, we just don't forget you, we developed alumni programs so they can come back and we still have resources to help them because it's tough. I have, I think Sarah Rice, who owns Bucks and Beauty, she was on the show recently and she is a graduate and she also has a master's degree in business. But yeah, she said, you know, once you start and your hands on, it's so different. And being part of a cohort and at our center, we actually help each other. So I know a lot of her classmates help her open her retail store and just resources to go back and forth. So it's just things that you can't get. I can't stress enough that it's free resources that you have to take advantage of. How many people in a cohort? We usually like to keep it the most 15, 10 to 15 because we need that tight bond. So everyone moves through the program together? Yes. Everyone's at the same pace. Right, so what we realized that we did too, right? We did the start and the grow so that we have a similar like-minded people in the groups and it really helped. But throughout the process, we always have that counseling. So, you know, that also helps too. And another thing we just started is with the banks. You know, we've been working with American Savings Bank and Central Pacific Bank because along the west side, people can't come drive to town. So once a month I've been going out to the banks on the west side to come into some counseling and help them. So, you know, again, there's no excuse. If you need help, come see us. We definitely want to help you. Speaking about the finance side. So do you walk your cohorts through building that strategy, that budget, how to apply for a loan, all the different resources that may be out there for them to fund their business ventures? Exactly, that's usually the hardest part. We always have the creative ideas and the marketing is the fun part. But the financing is always the scary part. So we do have a, we start off with a business model canvas and we kind of walk everyone through that process so that by the end of the canvas, you can get a loan if that's what you desire. And, you know, being a part of the small business administration, they do have favorable loans too. So we make sure that, you know, all your things are checked off, your boxes are done so that when you need to apply for that loan or get access to capital, it's not a scary process, you know, so. In that application process, or sometimes they're applying for financing, but sometimes they're applying for grants or whatnot to fund their ideas. Does being a graduate of the program give them any advantages in that? Well, I always say that being a graduate, that is an advantage because you have your toolboxes full, we give you all the tools you need really to get to that next level, but we're always there to help. So, you know, depending where you are, you know, you might not need a loan, you might just need a line of credit, you know, you might need, you know, a small loan for appliances versus, you know, just products. So again, we work with everybody individually and then so we can tailor it to them. Sometimes a lot of clients think they just need a loan, they just need money to have, but, you know, we help them with a strategic plan to make sure that they make the most of their money and invest it wisely. So after they launch the business, they're graduates, right, of your program, so they launch their business, what about their journey in the first year? Yeah, that's really hard. That's why they gotta come back constantly. That's why I need a friend, yeah, exactly. Yeah, it's not easy, you know, we say like in the first, you know, three years, after you hit the three year mark, then you can really tell if you're gonna be successful or not, right? So, again, it's crucial that we keep in touch with them and, you know, that's what we're here for, and we do, and that's why we have, you know, these networking, so we have our alumni group, and even tonight I was telling you, we have a networking, which we invite our alumni to come and they have like five minute mic, so we all kind of pass referrals, talk about how we're doing, new topics, new marketing, so again, it's invaluable. Very nice, very nice. We are gonna take a break, but when we come back, we also know that the center helps the youth and some disadvantaged groups, so let's talk about that and all the great things that are coming up from the center. This is Business in Hawaii, we'll see you back here shortly. I'm Jay Fidel, Think Tech. Think Tech loves energy. I'm the host of Mina, Marco and Me, which is Mina Morita, former chair of the PUC, former legislator, and Energy Dynamics, a consulting organization in energy. Marco Mangelsdorf is the CEO of Provision Solar in Hilo. Every two weeks, we talk about energy, everything about energy. Come around and watch us. We're on at noon on Mondays, every two weeks on Think Tech. Aloha. Hey, aloha, everybody. Thanks for joining us on Think Tech Hawaii. I'm your host, Andrew Lanning, the security guy. I host a program called Security Matters Hawaii, and I hope you'll join us on Fridays. We air at 10 a.m., and we're gonna be talking about those security things that really should be important to you, and maybe get behind the scenes on some of the things that you may not know about the industry or about products, or even about your habits. Security's all about people, processes, and products, and we hope to bring that to you in an informative and hopefully a useful way. So again, 10 a.m. on Fridays, Security Matters Hawaii on Think Tech Hawaii. Join me. Thank you. Welcome back. This is Business in Hawaii, and today we're talking with Terry Funakoshi, director of the Patsy T. Minks Center for Business and Leadership. You have told us so many great things about the programs that the center offers, and it's focused on entrepreneurship and startup businesses, but you also help women in incarceration. You also help young people. Tell me about those programs. Sure, so like I was telling you earlier, Girls Summit is one of our favorites, so it's kind of modeled after the Wahini Forum. So we have a keynote speaker, and then we do breakout workshops. So this past year, we had Jingjing Fernandez. She's our keynote speaker, and she's in the transportation area. So it was really cool. She was talking about how she traveled around the world and made differences in transportation. So she was talking about, we're gonna have flying cars soon, so the girls are really excited. And then that kind of led into our workshop. So we had coding where we did autonomous car coding with OceanNet, so we actually wrote some code and saw the cars going around, it's really, really cool. And then we also did design thinking. So thinking outside the box to get tasks done, that was awesome. And then we always have a financial literacy piece because the girls need to know about the budgeting and everything. So this program is wonderful. We partner private schools with public schools just so the girls can network also. And I've been trying to raise funds so that I can spread out and do more public schools. So this year we had Farrington and McKinley join us, along with Sacred Hearts and the Priory. So luckily I got some funding from Wolcott Hospital, so we're gonna go to Kauai, and also we're gonna go to Maui with Maui Economic Development. So again, just spreading out, and trying to reach more public schools. So if anybody wants to help us out, I'm always looking for volunteers. So there's no costs to the program? There's no cost to the public schools, because we try to get donations and funds to do it. So in the last year we branched out to the outer islands. It was just on Oahu, but now we've gone to all the other islands. So that's amazing. So I'm still constantly looking for supporters to the public schools. You must get a lot of request for volunteers or people wanting to volunteer. Is there a way that they can get in touch with you? Do you constantly take volunteers? How does that work? Yes, so you can always contact us online on our website, and we have so many different ways to volunteer throughout YWCA and through our center. So we have a why connect, meaning we have a little lunch and we invite people over to tell them what we're doing so they can see how many different ways they can volunteer. So yes, please just contact me and I can always put somebody through our why connect and which they can see what we do. Always looking for volunteers. I understand that. So I know that there, again, are just a plethora of programs that you folks put on, but I do know that you have the Patsy T. Mink Leadership Alliance. Tell me about this program because I was perusing your brochure, and there are a number of topics that are very, very relevant today. Very, actually very new. So tell us about that. Yeah, the Patsy T. Mink Leadership Alliance, we started in 2016, our first cohort, we had 14 wonderful women, it was six months. It was such an amazing program and people loved it. We really found that there was a need for this program. So what this program is, is it's for women in the mid career level and we're helping them get to that executive level because our goal is to really see more women executives in Hawaii. So we're actually the only one in the state that has an all women program. And so what we found after the first cohort is that one, they wanted it longer. So the second cohort is 10 months, which is currently going on. And it's really that we got everybody from different industries. So what I can say is like the best part of it, which they tell me is that we have all these wonderful women from different industries in a safe environment where they can share and learn together. Like you said, we have so many great topics from change management, strategic planning, design thinking, entrepreneurship in here. So emotional intelligence, I mean it can go on. I mean we have all the information online and like it's in our brochures. So right now we have 21 women in our second cohort and they're graduating, I think next week already, June 5th, so that's amazing. And we're working on cohort three. So cohort three is even gonna be better because we've asked the core two what we needed to improve on and we've added even more curriculum. So right now the applications are open. So if you go online, you can read all about it. And it closes on June 8th, so they have to go quickly. And so it's a pretty thorough application. It's very competitive, because we're only gonna take about 20 at the max because we really wanna have that tight knit group. But yeah, I can't say enough about this. It's a wonderful program. It facilitates all of these, I mean, such diverse topics. Do you get facilitators from the business community? Yes, so it's a 10 month program and we have subject matter experts from the community come in and teach the cohort. I mean it's wonderful, all the women executives and we have some men too that teach the courses. It's invaluable, we just finished our last session entrepreneurial thinking and we had someone from Cornell teach the class. So I mean it was amazing. Very nice. So yeah, this is the winner. So you're welcoming or you're taking applications for cohort three. So tell me a little bit about cohort one and the alumni and where they are today. So if you go on our website, I have cohort one and two on the site and it tells you all the, there are different jobs and everything. But I've seen about four or five women in our cohort one and two already switched jobs and already increased from when they started to where they are now. And some of them actually joined boards and are active in the community because our goal is really to get them, their personal and professional best. So I mean, it's really exciting and they keep in touch. And again, this one too, we have an alumni, they're working together on not only increasing their level in their corporate job or entrepreneurship, but also in the community. So they come together and they support, why do they say they volunteer and they do community work? I mean, it's all together, such a great, such a great program. That sounds so exciting. I can't wait to go to the website and look at all your cohort graduates and see where they are today. So the center also partners with the SBA, American Express. So I know that Shop Small Hawaii is something that's also going on. So tell me about this. Right, so American Express started Shop Small Saturday in 2010. So, you know, we have like Black Friday, Cyber Monday. So what about the Saturday? So they named it Shop Small Saturday, really promoting small businesses. Spend your money on Saturday, support small business. So the SBA partnered with American Express nationwide. And so of course, us in Hawaii, we're like, we gotta do something for Hawaii. So we created last year to the end of the year, Shop Small Hawaii. So we wanna get all the small businesses together and then really celebrate, you know, small businesses. So we're planning two events, the SBA partners. So it's SBA, Patsy Teemak Center for Business and Leadership, Small Business Development Center and VBOM, Veterans Business Outreach Center. We're doing two events one in October and then one in November to really celebrate small businesses. And what we're doing is we created a website and we want all the small businesses to go on and register their business because we're doing free promotion for them. So I mean, it can't get any better. So if you go on the website now and just fill it out, then we'll put your information on and we'll help to promote the businesses. So it's a work in progress right now because our goal is to get it out before Shop Small Saturday in November. So I would urge all small businesses to please check it out. Again, free services, come on, you can't go wrong. And yeah, let us help you and let us support you. So what's considered a small business? What qualifies a small business? Basically, 90% of all the businesses in Hawaii. I mean, if you go to SBA, it's like 500, if you have less than 500 employees. So Hawaii is made up of small businesses. We're basically here to help everyone. I think it's really nice that the center has such a tight partnership with the SBA and everyone knows Reg Baker who is the host of this show and his involvement with small business administration, national and local. And so my guess is that you folks work very closely together. Tell me about the partnership. Well, like I was saying, when I was on my own, this is the part that was missing. There are so many benefits to working with the partners. They offer so many free services here in Hawaii in their office and also online. You can research about anything you need to know about business online. So that's one area. And then you look online and if it gets too overwhelming because there's so many things, they offer workshops at their facility at restaurant row. And then as partners, we help each other facilitate those workshops and everything. So it's so many benefits. It's crazy and one of the big things too is the funding, right? So they do have the SBA loans. So that's important too. An export, I mean, entrepreneurship, all these things you can find, so. What about the Wahini Forum? Wahini Forum is also something that we partner with Hawaii Business Magazine. So they have that one forum in October featuring women's business. So what we did is we partnered with them and then from that topic, we do four luncheons throughout the year at YWCA, so at Fuller Hall. So we take those topics and then we do a little luncheon. So we have about 50, 60 people at the luncheon. It's open to anyone, the public. And we have panelists, we have speakers, just reinforcing the topics that are trending. Our next, actually our next Wahini Forum is in August. And one of the topics that we're covering is non-profit board. You wanna join a board? What's the board about? How can you help? All those different topics. So we'll have a really good panel talking about it. We're so right. We could go on and on and on about all of the wonderful things that your center does. But unfortunately, we're out of time. But maybe we can have you back again. You can tell us the rest or our audience can go to the website, just like you said, where all of that information is readily available. Exactly. So thank you so much, Teri, for joining us today. And a huge thank you to the great production staff here in the studio. Business in Hawaii airs every Thursday at two o'clock. And we look forward to seeing you here next week.