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Business & Tourism

The 32nd annual Made in Hawai‘i Festival opened its doors to the public and ready shoppers on Thursday.

The four-day event continues through the weekend and is expected to draw throngs of shoppers looking to support local artisans, crafters and business owners. There's plenty to choose from: handmade goods, jewelry, clothing, food, art and more.

Aloha State Daily joined in on the fun Thursday, speaking with a handful of the small business owners who set up shop. We asked them the same questions and here's what they had to say:

Samantha Kim, owner of Coopmonsters, has participated in MIHF for three years. Coopmonsters began offering dog products before branching out into local-themed hair claws.

As a small business owner, what does Made in Hawai‘i Festival mean to you?

Made in Hawai‘i is the biggest event for I want to say everyone in Hawai‘i, and we get so much exposure for so many people, so many opportunities. Three years ago, I got laid off from my job and I had Made in Hawai‘i the next month and that totally helped my business skyrocket. So I'm so thankful for Made in Hawai‘i and all that they do. I'm glad that we're here again.

What are some of the benefits and challenges to participating in a show like this?

Well, this year, we have a lot of long hours on our bodies, so that's going to be a big challenge for us to be here until 10 p.m. at night, but I hope you guys all come because it'll be worth it. That's the biggest challenge. Also, it takes a lot of work to just prepare for this. We prepare months in advance.

(ICYMI: Coopmonsters has collaborated with Zippy's to create a new collection for humans and pets. Read 

, which offers "elevated" mixes that can be used for pancakes, waffles and more, is a vendor at MIHF for the first time.

I think for me, Made in Hawai‘i is a show that everybody knows. ... If you want to start a business and it is made in Hawai‘i, you want to be here. I know it's also very hard. There's a number of people that come, so it's great exposure, and also I think it's really a place to be proud that yeah, you are made in Hawai‘i, that everything is done here and we do make the effort to [be] here, like all my neighbors here.

... Here, you don't know how much to gauge. How much do I have? What can I sample? So it's kind of second guess[ing] yourself as a small business owner, because you don't know. It's unexpected.

I feel like Made in Hawai‘i Festival allows me to connect with the local community. I really appreciate and I'm very grateful for the opportunity to get to know other vendors that are next to me, around me, but also the visitors of Hawai‘i [and] local people who like to really support local businesses all come together in one weekend, and I think it's such an amazing opportunity to really deepen that connection, but also make new connections.

One of the benefits of participating at the Made in Hawai‘i Festival is, again, being able to have that camaraderie among all the vendors that are here. Some of them are good friends of mine, so I get to really connect with them. ... We really get to go through it together and strengthen our bonds even more. So, I think that would be one of the best things about this festival is to further strengthen that bond among all the local business owners of Hawai‘i. I think that's very interesting and I think it's very important for small business owners to have that sense of camaraderie among each other.

[As for the] challenges of Made in Hawai‘i Festival, obviously I do the setup on my own, so I think it's definitely challenging for me to have to think ahead of time to see how much inventory I need, what are things that I need to reserve in terms of vehicles or equipment that I need to get everything into the festival. Do I need staff? Do I need someone that can help me? Who's available? All of those things take place months in advance. ... I think [the] personal challenge for me is to plan ahead and remind myself that I do really need to plan ahead of time to make it into a very successful weekend for everyone.

, which offers handmade clothing for babies and young children, says this is her third year at MIHF.

Made in Hawai‘i Festival means having the opportunity to showcase your business in such a big venue and with a large audience, but also showcasing what you ... create, just showing off your creativity.

The benefits are being exposed to more people, having the business being seen by a lot more people than opposed to a smaller market or just [an] online platform. For me, particularly, [the challenges are] the time it takes to sew and cut and ... label everything, setting up, trying to market.

MIHF is produced by the Hawai‘i Food Industry Association, or HFIA. The festival will run through Sunday. Find 

 drew approximately 70,000 attendees and generated approximately $10 million in sales in 2024. The festival saw about 70,000 visitors over three days 

 and vendors reported sales just under $10 million, festival spokesperson Olena Heu previously told ASD.

Aloha State Daily is an ‘Ohana Sponsor for the Made in Hawai‘i Festival. Stop by our booth to say “aloha,” play some games, win prizes and learn more about the work we do. You'll find us at booth S-3009, located in the same row as the Mahi Pono entrance.

MIHF opening day 2026

<title>Made in Hawai‘i Festival welcomes shoppers</title>

The four-day event began Thursday and continues through the weekend. Aloha State Daily spoke with a handful of small business owners who set up shop.

Made in Hawai‘i Festival welcomes shoppers

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Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

Fun fact: Selling homemade cinnamon rolls was not 

While the business is currently known for its warm, fluffy rolls, Jasmine “Jaz” Milam, who co-owns Hele Rolls with Brittany “Kawai” Lopez, remembers she started out with doughnuts.

“It was doughnuts to begin with; I’m no good at doughnuts and I already knew that, but I think she (Lopez) really likes doughnuts,” Milam says. “After a couple weeks, I was like, doughnuts are not working.”

Milam, who always loved baking, remembers making homemade cinnamon rolls regularly when she was deployed.

“I was making homemade cinnamon rolls every Sunday to share with my fellow service members,” she says. “It became a tradition that brought everyone together, and seeing how something as simple as a warm cinnamon roll could create that sense of comfort and connection has always stayed with me.”

Milam suggested featuring cinnamon rolls for Hele Rolls’ main product and, long story short, they quickly became a hit.

“Cinnamon rolls felt like the perfect fit,” she says. “They’re nostalgic, comforting, and have a way of bringing people together, which is exactly what we hope every customer experiences when they enjoy one of our rolls.”

Hele Rolls officially launched last June, shortly after Milam’s father died. The business was created as a way to honor his legacy and the values he believed in, especially the idea of food having the power to bring people together.

The business’s name pays tribute to Hele Nui, the food truck Milam’s father previously operated.

“Everyone says it (the business name) should be Jaz’s cinnamon rolls, and I didn’t want my name on it,” Milam says. “All of a sudden, it came to me — his food truck’s name was Hele Nui, so what about Hele Rolls? It’s using his name, but kind of paving my own path, carrying his legacy forward.

“Now, I tell everybody, this started off as a side hustle, but it’s turned into so much more,” she adds. “I have a legacy that I’m trying to continue with my dad. It’s more than just making cinnamon rolls for some extra cash; it’s making him, my family and my community proud.”

The family-operated business accepts pre-orders and pops up at various events across O

ahu, such as the Taste of Aloha Night Market at NEX and What the Truck?! in Waikele. The business’s first What the Truck?! market was recent, and Hele Rolls sold out of its cinnamon rolls in 45 minutes, according to Milam.

“I had about 220 to 240 rolls at What the Truck?!,” she says. “Taste of Aloha was the most I’ve done at a market; it was a little more than 300.”

All cinnamon rolls are handmade in small batches, according to Milam, who says the business focuses on creating that soft, fluffy texture and homemade frostings.

While the business’s original cinnamon roll continues to be a bestseller, it also offers specialty flavors which change every month, according to Milam. Previous specialty flavors include strawberry shortcake, chocolate haupia, ube and Oreo. In July, the business featured Oreo and lemon blueberry cinnamon rolls.

“We love keeping our menu fresh with rotating flavors inspired by Hawai

i, classic desserts and seasonal favorites,” Milam says. “One of our favorite things is challenging people’s expectations of what a cinnamon roll can be. They can be familiar, nostalgic and comforting — or completely unexpected.

“Lemon blueberry had our housemade blueberry compote, our icing, homemade whipped cream, fresh blueberries, lemon zest and blueberry shortcake, which is like cookies with freeze-dried blueberries,” she adds. “The Oreo one was like a cookies and cream. Our menu rotates regularly, so there’s always something new to discover. We put a lot of heart into everything we make.”

At markets, customers can buy individual cinnamon rolls or get sample packs, which include two original rolls and two specialty flavors. If customers pre-order, only packs are available. At markets, original cinnamon rolls cost $6 each; specialty flavors cost $8 each.

When asked about her favorite cinnamon roll flavors, Milam says she likes her kūlolo one — “I still need to perfect it a little bit more” — and also recommends the haupia flavor, which features original icing, toasted macadamia nuts and coconut shavings. 

Besides pop-up events and accepting pre-orders, the biz also offers catering for private parties, corporate events and celebrations. Customers can opt for the full-sized cinnamon rolls or the business’s Cinni-Maninis, or bite-sized cinnamon rolls.

Hele Rolls wasn’t even a year old when the biz was asked to participate in Food Network’s “The Great Food Truck Race.”

“One day, we were making cinnamon rolls; I was in the kitchen, and Kawai yelled my name,” Milam remembers. “It wasn’t a panic yell; it was more of an excited yell. I came to her, and she said, ‘Look at this.’ It was a casting agent who reached out to us through Instagram. Obviously, like everyone else, we thought it was Spam.”

“We thought it was Spam for sure, but we were like, ‘Who knows, let’s just take a chance,’” Lopez says.

Hele Rolls responded to the message, the agent got back to them, and from there, “it just snowballed,” according to Milam.

That was earlier this spring; Hele Rolls left to compete on “The Great Food Truck Race” in April. Hosted by Tyler Florence, this season follows eight food truck teams from across the country, as they travel through the Great Smoky Mountains. The winning team gets a $50,000 grand prize. Previous show episodes can be viewed on HBO Max.

Keeping the competition a secret was a huge challenge, especially since Hele Rolls has regular customers.

“We couldn’t tell anyone,” Milam says. “On Instagram, we said, ‘This is our last pick-up and preorder until further notice;’ we didn’t know how long we were going to be there. Our regular customers were like, ‘What are you doing? Are you done?’ It was crazy to see all of that play out.”

The current season of “The Great Food Truck Race” premiered on July 26. The teams started in Nashville, according to Milam, who still remembers the first day of filming.

“We were so starstruck because we knew what we were doing there; everybody was looking at us,” she says. “It was insane; I will never forget that feeling.”

Hele Rolls usually pops up in tents at events; the business currently doesn’t operate out of a food truck, though that’s a future goal. Creating new friendships with other cast members and competing teams was one of the highlights of being on the show, according to Lopez.

“Though it was a competition, at the end of the day, we respected one another and cherished that experience as a whole,” she says. “We got a lot of different advice from everybody, their companies and their brands. A lot of them were more experienced in business; we’re freshly new in business. It was a lot to soak in, and also a chance for us to really be OK with being ourselves.”

[{"type":"text","text":"For Milam, being on the show instilled a newfound sense of confidence."}]

“This show has given me the ability to see the worth in ourselves,” she says. “All these people believed in me and believed in us. Being selected to compete on Season 19 of Food Network’s 

has been an unforgettable experience and an incredible opportunity to represent Hawai

“We continue to stay humble, but we’re so proud at the same time,” Lopez adds. “I think the best thing to do is to take a chance on yourself. You never know what can come out of any experience.”

As the business heads into its second year of operation, Milam and Lopez are focused on new goals for Hele Rolls. Milam — now running Hele Rolls full-time — says they would eventually love to own their own food truck and have a storefront.

“We’ve done so much in year one that we never thought was even possible,” Milam says. “We’ve been so blessed in one year — all these things that happened to us.”

She remembers when one of her first goals — in the business’s early days — was just to “have a line.”

“That’s all we wanted — two to three people,” she laughs. “A line means people are willing to sacrifice their time to stand in line for us and for our product. Having a storefront would be (amazing) because I know I can pump out more for them and it would be better quality; that’s always the goal.”

Being involved with the community is also important to the Hele Rolls team, who is always looking for ways they can support Hawai

“We want to be known not just for cinnamon rolls; we want to be known as a business that’s supporting our community,” Milam says. “If somebody needs something, I want Hele Rolls to be in the front of people’s minds. It’s literally about family, food and community.”

No matter what the future holds, staying true to themselves and maintaining the brand’s mission is essential, according to Milam.

“Beyond the cinnamon rolls themselves, I think what truly makes Hele Rolls unique is the experience,” she says. “From the very beginning, we’ve wanted every customer to feel like they’re part of our ‘ohana. That sense of connection is just as important to us as the product we serve.”

“We’re incredibly grateful for the support our community has shown us over the past year,” Milam adds. “As a women-owned, LGBTQ+-owned and family-powered business, it means so much to see people embrace not only our cinnamon rolls, but also the story and values behind Hele Rolls. We wouldn’t be here without our amazing ‘ohana and community, and we can’t wait to share what’s next.”

For updates and information, follow the biz on 

Hele Rolls The Great Food Truck Race credit Food Network 080526

<title>Oʻahu-based family business is 'on a roll'</title>

Hele Rolls, known for its homemade cinnamon rolls, started its business last June. The biz regularly pops up at events across Oʻahu and accepts pre-orders. Hele Rolls is also competing on the new season of Food Network’s "The Great Food Truck Race," which premiered on July 26.

Oʻahu-based family business is 'on a roll'

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Katie Chang is the Executive Director of the Center for Tomorrow’s Leaders. She can be reached at 

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<title>Katie Chang</title>

Katie Chang

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