Struggles to diversify tourism-dependent economies, develop solutions to workforce shortages, address how to make housing more affordable and pursue shared business opportunities took center stage at the Vegas Chamber Hawai‘i Business Exchange Summit.
The two-day event, which finished Wednesday, brought key members of the Vegas Chamber, the largest business association in Nevada, to meet with three chamber organizations in Hawai‘i, including the Chamber of Commerce Hawai‘i, Maui Chamber of Commerce and Kaua‘i Chamber of Commerce (which has a sister city agreement with the Vegas Chamber).
Vegas Chamber President and CEO Mary Beth Sewald said: “The entire experience was even more beneficial than hoped for. We learned so much, especially being the ninth island. We fancy ourselves sister communities. But we learned so many things, especially (Wednesday), that were really impactful and I think gave us a new appreciation for the culture here and the respect for that.
“We now share a lot of members. Businesses that are here in Hawaii are joining the Vegas Chamber, and vice versa,” Sewald said. “Some of our members are wanting to locate here. I think there are more synergies even than we hoped, which is great.”
The importance of the event was underscored by the presence of Nevada Secretary of State Francisco V. Aguilar, who as general counsel for management company Agassi Graf helped bring chef Michael Mina’s StripSteak to Waikiki.
“Now I get to say there are over 50 Michael Mina restaurants throughout the country, and so Honolulu was that test point for us to be able to prove the concept,” Aguilar said. “Business is important. It’s critical, and I think it’s an important alliance between Nevada and Hawai‘i that already exists. We just need to continue to do that.”
Paul J. Moradkhan, Vegas Chamber senior vice president of government affairs, said the Vegas Chamber and the Chamber of Commerce Hawaii, as a result of the event, now plan to work on a white paper seeking state and federal policy solutions for economic development, affordable housing, water and transportation investment.
Hugh Anderson, managing director at Hightower Las Vegas and Vegas Chamber vice chairman of government affairs, said, “We look forward to continuing conversations in the years to come. This is vital.”
Mark Perriello, president and CEO of the Kaua‘i Chamber of Commerce, said he hoped that the next Vegas Chamber Hawai‘i Business Exchange Summit moves to Kaua‘i, which has had a sister city agreement with the Vegas Chamber since 2021. Perriello said the sister city arrangement was an outgrowth of the pandemic, which highlighted how many similarities there were between the tourism-dependent Hawaiian Islands and Las Vegas.
Bennette E. Misalucha, executive director of the 41-member Workforce Development Council, which serves as the planning and policy adviser to Gov. Josh Green on workforce issues, told those gathered at the summit that 2022 data highlights a strong dependence on the leisure and hospitality sector, especially in Maui and Kaua‘i counties, where it constitutes 30.2 percent and 29.6 percent of jobs, respectively. Misalucha said government and retail trade are other major employment sectors across the state and counties.
Misalucha said Hawai‘i’s accommodation and food service jobs are projected to show the biggest increase between 2020 and 2030. She said these industries are expected to grow to 111,330 jobs from 69,750, an increase of 41,580 jobs.
“Hawai‘i is predominantly a low-skill and low-wage, service-based economy with a small job market and the highest cost of living in the nation,” Misalucha said.
She said estimates of a living wage vary in Hawaii, but the consensus is that Hawai‘i is falling short. Misalucha added that Hawai‘i is one of 10 states to lose population and has lost population for three consecutive years beginning in 2017. She said the state is committed to enhancing old and enabling new career pathways to living-wage jobs with the equitable upward mobility needed to build a globally competitive, inclusive economy.
Kuhio Lewis, CEO for the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement, told those at the event that more than 50 percent of Native Hawaiians now live outside of the state. Lewis said that’s why CNHA in 2023 in Las Vegas debuted a new annual mainland conference, the Western Regional Native Hawaiian Conference, from which a national intermediary voice is emerging.
In Hawai‘i, CNHA’s tourism-arm Kilohana now holds a $27 million multiyear contract from the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority to provide support services for destination stewardship. Lewis said CNHA’s vision for mainland expansion includes everything from workforce, business and cultural development programs to loan programs.
“Las Vegas is home to the third-largest population of Hawaiians,” he said.
Lewis said having the conference in Las Vegas was a means of empowering Hawaiians with their identity and supporting them culturally and in other ways. He said it also was a way of ensuring that as the population shifts, the “resources that are intended to support and uplift our culture and our people continue to go to that demographic.”
