Business plan for Arc of Hilo wins $1,000 prize

A team of students from the University of Hawaii at Hilo won the Shidler Business Plan Competition’s $1,000 Social Enterprise Award with a marketing plan designed for the Arc of Hilo's new Agricultural Product Development Center. Kehau Kali, president and CEO of the Hoike Group, coached the winning team.

The team was led by Naomi Ahu and included Brianna Snider, Shelsea Adrian, Jamielyn Martines, Maile Enriques and Kasie Rolon. It developed an operations plan for Arc's center and a list of potential products for the facility, such as lip balm derived from local beeswax and oils, medicinal beverages with extracts of noni and other locally produced products, salad dressing using locally produced fruits and oils, home fragrances derived from locally grown flowers and herbs, and specialty island-grown tea.