BUSINESS BRIEFS
'Entrepreneurship Center' at HPU
Advertiser Staff
Hawai'i Pacific University's College of Business Administration has opened its new Entrepreneurship Center at the school's Downtown campus.
The center's mission is to promote entrepreneurial ventures by HPU students and the community through education, outreach and applied research. The executive director of the center is Bee-Leng Chua, associate professor in management at HPU and founder of the Center for Entrepreneurship at The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
"This is a fabulous opportunity for HPU to invite the community to help develop the future generation of entrepreneurs for Hawai'i and the world," Chua said. "We aim to prepare HPU graduates with the mindset and skills to start their own business or work successfully in fast-growing entrepreneurial firms."
Chua said she plans to launch projects to strengthen and promote HPU relationships with alumni and the community, including quarterly roundtable discussions, trade shows, and seminars led by entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, support professionals and government representatives.
DELTA ADDS LIHU'E, KONA FLIGHTS
Delta Air Lines said it will add new flights between Los Angeles and Lihu'e, Kaua'i, and Kona, Hawai'i, on June 5.
The addition of flights to Lihu'e and Kona marks another step in Delta's efforts to establish the world's broadest network of destinations for its customers, said Glen Hauenstein, Delta's executive vice president of Network Planning and Revenue Management, in a news release.
"These newest destinations will allow customers to explore the beaches of the Coconut Coast while enjoying the beauty of the Garden Island or snorkeling off the sandy shores off the Kohala coast, all with convenient flight connections through our growing Los Angeles gateway," Hauenstein said.
Delta said it will have nine daily roundtrip flights between the Mainland and Hawai'i with the addition. Flights will be operated with 757 and 767 aircraft.
S. KOREAN INSURER GETS AN 'A-'
Dongbu Insurance Co. Ltd. (USB) of Hawaii has received an A- financial strength rating from A.M. Best Co.
Dongbu was the first company to qualify for a Hawai'i insurance license under the state's 2004 Port of Entry legislation. Under it, foreign insurers that obtain a license, establish a trust account and meet other requirements here can do business elsewhere in the United States.
Dongbu, one of South Korea's leading insurance companies, plans to begin offering automobile and homeowners policies in Hawai'i.
KIHEI PLAZA UPGRADE PAU BY MARCH
The owner of Kihei Plaza said it expects to finish renovations to the Maui office building by March, completing a $250,000 upgrade being done in two phases.
Phase one, which began in February and was recently completed, included improvements to the lobby, hallways, parking lot and exterior paint.
The second phase, which is scheduled to begin by the end of this month, will include a large mosaic by Hawai'i artist Leah Rigg, a water feature and bathroom renovations.
Kihei Plaza is a 33,002-square-foot office complex built in 1981. Honolulu-based real estate firm MW Group Ltd. bought the two-story building in December 2000.
