HONOLULU (KHON2) — A Hawaii-based initiative that grows local products to markets worldwide is teaming up with Build Native to launch a new program designed to help Native Hawaiian and Indigenous business owners build the skill sets, confidence and resources to achieve their goals.
Hawai’i Rising is also designed to help build a community around entrepreneurs and connect them to Shopify, one of the leaders in e-commerce.
Get news on the go with KHON 2GO, KHON’s morning podcast, every morning at 8.
“We had this incredible opportunity to expand our relationship with Shopify as they’re growing their Build Native with Shopify program given the amount of Native Hawaiian and other Indigenous entrepreneurs here, even more so due to the timing,” said Brittany Heyd, Mana Up co-founder. “With the pandemic affecting tourism and increasing consumers’ use of e-commerce, it is more important than ever to have an online presence.”
Companies that have gone through the accelerator get access to resources through this partnership to help grow their online sales. The program is free and runs from February to October 2022.
In addition to workshops, local entrepreneurs can attend monthly in-person meetups across the islands, one-on-one office hours with Shopify experts and access Build Native with Shopify’s resources and perks.
Register by Feb. 8 to be part of Hawai’i Rising.
Learn more about their program during info sessions over Zoom with Mana co-founders Brittany Heyd and Meli James.
“We’re excited that we were able to make this connection because these are global, super impactful resources that are only available in a few places now. The fact that we are one of those places is amazing,” said Heyd. “This is the best of the best coming to Hawaii and we hope a lot of founders are able to take advantage of it.”