About Hawaiʻi FoundHer

Founding Principles

Investing in women’s education and funding women-owned companies is good for the economy and good for everyone.

Women should be able to access funding at the same rates as men and feel empowered to ask for more!

Having kids should not be a barrier to entry in entrepreneurship.

Cultural grounding is a precursor to entrepreneurial success.

Women deserve to take up space at the table.

Exits are not the primary indicator of a startup’s success.

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Meet the Founders

Bella Hughes Shaka Tea Founder

Isabella Hughes

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Hughes is the co-founder and President of Shaka Tea, a Hawaiian tea company that brews a zero cal/sugar māmaki herbal tea that is only found and grown in the Hawaiian archipelago. Hughes is a winner of the Judges' Choice Award CPG Foodbytes! San Francisco 2019 by Rabobank; a member of the 2018 Pacific Business News '40 Under 40' class; winner of the Burt's Bees Natural Launchpad Cohort 3; a member of Blackbox Powered by Google for Entrepreneurs Cohort 20; a winning Trailblazer for Food Vision USA 2016; and New Beverage Showdown 12 finalist for Bevnet powered by Coca-Cola's VEB.

Gloria Lau Headshot

Gloria Lau

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Gloria is a leadership transformation consultant, with over 30 years of executive management experience at leading nonprofit and financial services organizations, with business experience in both the U.S. and internationally. She was formerly the CEO at YWCA USA, CEO and President of Charles Schwab Tokio Marine (Japan), and Senior Vice President of Consumer Banking at Citicorp. She earned her MBA from Harvard Business School and Bachelors degree in Economics and Political Science from Sarah Lawrence College.

Operating Team

Darien Siguenza Headshot

Darien Siguenza

Program Director

Keoni DeFranco

Director, Mālama

Naomi Yoshida Headshot

Naomi Yoshida

Marketing Specialist

Angel Permito-Kaheaku

Program Coordinator

Ashlynn Miyashiro

Visual Designer

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About Purple Maiʻa Foundation

Since 2016, the Purple Maiʻa Foundation (PMF) has successfully run several statewide entrepreneurship and innovation programs that have empowered local, underserved, Native Hawaiian founders to generate over 50 new ideas and a dozen companies. Its founders and staff have also been directly involved with most of the recent Hawaiʻi-based companies that have gone on to participate in other local accelerator programs.

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