Page 7 - MidWeek - April 6, 2022

APRIL 6, 2022 MIDWEEK 7
It’s been a turbulent cou- ple of years for small, lo- cal businesses — to put it lightly — and that’s certain- ly no exception for Kabayan Hall, a Waipahu-based event space run by Derek and Mi- chelle Murakami.
BY GINGER KELLER
Biz Run By A ‘Party’ Of 4
W
Symbolizing Patience & Prosperity
Wed
dd
i
in
ng
32 Years in Business
CLASSIC CRANES
Customize Your 1001 Cranes
g • Yakudoshi • Anniversary
808.455.4455 or
8
8 808.221-1844
K
Ka Makana Ali‘i, Kaka‘ako and Kahala Mall
www.origamicranes.net
w
View our porfolio at Picture Plus locations in
V
The husband-and-wife duo debuted their biz in 2019, which, unbeknownst to them and the rest of the world, was unfortunate timing to start an event company, as just months later gatherings were not permitted.
Their motto is “run by a family for families,” and the foursome know just who to ring to hire DJs, entertainers, balloon vendors, decorators, photo booths and more, so that their clients get more ‘ohana time and less stress for their milestones worth celebrating.
Yumi, 23, and Linka, 16 — makes it easy, as they also have a coordination service (Murakami Productions) to help ease the whirlwind of- ten caused by event planning.
SPECIALIZING IN NEW HOMES & ADDITIONS
Over 30 Years of Exceptional Work
CONTRACTORS
OPEN HOUSE
Private Showing April10th,Sunday • 12pm–5pm Call 808-848-5010 to reserve a time *Not for sale
www.stanakaconstruction.com
S. TANAKA CONSTRUCTION
DESIGN BUILD • FREE CONSULTATIONS
Bonded & Insured Lic. # BC29857
1349 Mookaula St. • (808) 848-5010
“It was a lot of prayer, a lot of hope,” Derek says about how they managed to stay afloat during the pandemic. “It was very difficult because we don’t really have anybody to fall back on. It’s not like we’re a restaurant and we can call up on other restaurants to help each other out and get through it; we don’t really have anyone to call who does the same type of thing we do. So, we had to navigate it on our own.
“I think that’s what sep- arates us from other places is that you’ re getting us as a family for helping you do your family party,” Derek says. “We’re not looking at our clients as a number or a paycheck. At the end of the day, when the client is so pleased and thankful, that relieves us of all of our stress and makes it rewarding for us.”
(From left) Derek, Michelle, Linka and Yumi Murakami are the heart, muscle and mind behind Kabayan Hall. MARK GALACGAC PHOTO
“Lucky for us, through the grace of God, we were able to get through, and it does help that we have a wonder- ful owner here at the plaza, who was willing to work with us and make sure we’ re OK to see us through so we can open,” he adds. “We are hopefully at the end of the tunnel and we can see every- thing grow from here and put all of the bad things behind us.”
“I think the most reward- ing part is growing some- thing together that we can be proud of one day,” he says. “People don’t understand when we have a big place like this that it’s just us four. We don’t have the 20-em- ployee workforce. To clean the whole place, it’s just us. I don’t have two football play- ers to lift up everything — it’s just me and these girls who are lifting it up. It’s my wife, who is getting on her hands and knees and scrubbing the
It’s fitting, because the business was, in fact, born out of Derek’s love, pride and appreciation for his wife.
“When she was working regular jobs and I noticed something wasn’t correct, something wasn’t clicking in her, something was missing,” he recalls. “When she sang at that (competition), I noticed when we were coming home that she was smiling and there was this glow about her. She was in her realm.”
As local mandates come to an end, Kabayan Hall, locat- ed off of Farrington Highway, is gearing up to host events for all occasions from birth- days to graduation parties. In fact, the East O‘ahu ‘ohana — which includes daughters
The couple works together seamlessly and quite literally finishes each other’s sentenc- es, and have successfully found the sweet spot of mix- ing business with family.
Although, the Murakamis have faced challenges by running a family business — namely, not being able to “turn off” work when at home — Derek says it’s also brought them closer than they’ve ever been before.
floor; it’s my daughters, who are cleaning the toilets. What that also brings is the pride of having our own business. We can hire people to clean and do those things, but the rea- son why we don’t is because it has our name on top, and we have this pride that it has to be the best it can be.”
in her that was dulled at her current job, and made it his mission to allow her to shine bright once again.
A professional singer and dancer, Michelle struggled to find gigs after moving to Hawai‘i in 2014. She ended up working in the hotel indus- try, given that she can speak three languages (English, Ta- galog and Japanese), a skill that comes in handy often. But when she entered a sing- ing competition in Waipahu, Derek, who was working at Costco at the time, saw a light
Thus, Murakami Produc- tions came to be, followed by Kabayan Hall not long after.
For more information, call 808-726-7192 or visit kabayanhall.com.