Hard Work, Good Fish Paying Off

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Small Business winner Alan Young (left) and his
nominator Greg Sokolowski. Photo courtesy of the
U.S. Small Business Administration.

Alan Young has worked in his family’s business all his life, and this year the Kailua resident was recognized for that commitment as well as his business acumen.

The U.S. Small Business Administration honored his eatery, Young’s Fish Market in Kapalama, with the 2007 Family Owned Small Business award for the City and County of Honolulu.

“We were very honored to be nominated in the first place,” said Young, 54, whose 35-seat shop sells 1,000 handmade laulau a day and about 500 pounds of kalua pig a week. Weekly sales of chicken long rice and squid luau weigh in at 150 to 200 pounds.

“We were nominated a couple times (before) but we’re very honored to be considered again.”

The category recognizes a business that has passed from one generation to another, has been around for at least 15 years, shows success as measured through sales and profits, and offers employment opportunities for relatives and others.

Young’s secret to a successful business - now in its 51st year - is “hard work for one thing ... finding your niche” and the ability to evolve.

Originally a fish market, the business added Chinese food and Hawaiian food to bring some stability in a volatile fish market. Over the years, its selection of Hawaiian food, especially the laulau, increased in popularity, and the family went with it.

“It slowly took over the fish business to where now we’re basically Hawaiian foods and the only fish we sell is the poke style to back up the Hawaiian food business,” said Young, who moved to Kailua with his wife, Jeanie, in 1979.

As a director in the Pali Lions Club, Young helps with service projects like Kailua’s annual Fourth of July parade. He also funds a $500 scholarship for a deserving Kailua High School Leo club member who shows a commitment to community service and academics.

Not one to forget his roots, Young also continues his relationship in the area he grew up. He remains a member of the Liliha-Palama Business Association and contributes to its Christmas parade.

Young and his sister, the late Barbara Connelly, took over the business in 1979. From his parents, Wilfred and Charlotte, Young learned the value of good customer relations.

“It wasn’t as easy in the beginning, but because of the way they treated the customers, the way they handled the business we got a very loyal customer base, and we just continued that on, my sister and I,” said Young, whose three children, Andrea, Amy and Daniel, graduated from Kailua High.

Young’s Fish Market employs 24 full-timers, including 20-year-old Daniel, who is being groomed to take over, and a nephew. They sell plate lunches, homemade foods in bulk portions for taking home and also do catering from 1286 Kalani St. It had two locations running (at various sites through the years) until the original Liliha operation closed in 2002.

Young and other award winners, including MidWeek’s Linda Dela Cruz, who was named Oahu’s 2007 Small Business Journalist, will be recognized at the 20th annual Statewide Small Business Awards luncheon April 27 at Hyatt Regency Waikiki.

Young plans to take his mother, who he said was “very proud and happy with me being honored this way. I told her it’s a reflection of what they started.”

A limited number of seats are available. Call the Hawaii Women’s Business Center at 526-1001. Mailed forms and payment ($40 per person) must be postmarked by April 22.

Registration may also be done online at www.hawaiiwbc.org.

Small Business winner Alan Young (left) and his nominator Greg Sokolowski. Photo courtesy of the U.S. Small Business Administration.