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Hogan Entrepreneurial Program

Pushing Boundaries: Sushi with Attitude

September 8, 2020 by University Communications & Marketing

Remi Kohno '15

At Chaminade University, we talk a lot about adaptation and change—educating for adaptation and change is one of the five core tenets of a Marianist education. The concept is woven throughout our curricula, and our students learn about the importance of embracing change and adapting to meet it as they move through our programs.

Adapting to change is something that is very familiar to Remi Kohno ‘15. She came to Chaminade University from Pasadena, California to play basketball and major in elementary education. But after her first year, she realized neither of those were the right fit. She didn’t like the competition she found on the basketball court, and teaching wasn’t her passion. So she quit the basketball team and switched her major to communications with a focus in marketing.

Her junior year brought even more change when she joined the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program. It quickly started pushing her out of her comfort bubble, and it altered the way she reacted to pressure. 

“I saw all these great people join the Hogan program and I wanted to be just like them,” recalls Kohno. “Hogan definitely pushed my boundaries, which was nice. It really helped me grow as a person, both professionally and personally.”

Students who are accepted into the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program spend one or two years learning what it takes to become a successful entrepreneur. They mingle and network with some of Hawaii’s biggest business leaders, they travel, they participate in internships and they work with industry leaders to design their own business plans and fine tune their public speaking abilities.

The program helped Kohno break out of her shell and become more confident in her abilities to lead and engage.

One moment in particular stands out in her memory. Every Wednesday evening, Hogan participants gather to welcome and learn from a guest speaker from the Hawaii business industry. Guests range from Mattson Davis, the former president and CEO of Kona Brewing Co., to Chuck Cardinal, a former Colonel in the United States Army and the former Chief of Staff to a WWII Commander.

On this particular night, the speaker was Eddie Flores, Jr., the founder of L&L Hawaiian BBQ. Flores has an inspiring story—he’s the son of immigrant parents and the eldest of seven children. His family moved to Hawaii from China when he was a young child. His father worked as a janitor and his mother worked as a restaurant cashier and dishwasher. He himself struggled with a learning disability growing up that kept him behind in school. But as a young man, he worked hard, ultimately earning enough money to buy his mother a restaurant, in what would become the first L&L location. His restaurant chain now has over 200 locations and in 2019 it was ranked as the No. 1 Asian food franchise by Entrepreneur. 

Kohno had been designated as the evening’s notetaker, which meant it was her job to document Flores’ speech and at the end of the evening, stand up to present a recap to her classmates while Flores watched on.

She was just a little intimidated. “You’re listening and engaging, but you’re also taking notes so that you can structure it into a recap and presentation,” remembers Kohno. “After [Flores] was done, I had to go up in front of the whole class and do a quick overview of what was most important. It was nerve-wracking. But then I got to give him a lei, which was nice and helped alleviate any tension.”

Remi Kohno '15 at the American Advertising Federation’s Most Promising Multicultural Student program

Kohno’s senior year, right after returning from a semester studying abroad in France, one of her professors recommended her for the American Advertising Federation’s Most Promising Multicultural Student program. She was one of only a handful of students selected from across the nation to participate in the intensive immersion program, designed to connect diverse up-and-coming advertising talent with some of the largest advertisers in the nation. She once again found herself at the airport, ready to embrace the unknown, this time in New York City.

Luckily, she had learned how to network and interact with business leaders through the Hogan program. “We got to meet a ton of people and tour their facilities and headquarters,” says Kohno. “It was an opportunity to connect with businesses and send them your resume, and hopefully get a follow up interview to help jumpstart your career after college.”

Through all of the change and opportunity that came her way at Chaminade, Hogan taught Kohno to remain calm and collected, and cool under pressure. Through Hogan and her professors, she learned to see challenge as opportunity. It’s something that has served her well after college, particularly today.

Remi Kohno '15 with her family—Sushi With Attitude

Before COVID, her family ran a small restaurant stall called Sushi with Attitude at a night market in Los Angeles. While she has a full-time job at NBC during the day, she helps them on the side. When the pandemic shut down the market, they had to completely rethink their strategy and their focus. With Kohno’s help, they converted the business into a cloud kitchen model, meaning they are operating completely on delivery apps without a storefront, and launched a new product: the sushibi. It’s a combination of sushi and musubi.

“We wanted to offer musubi, but a lot of people in Los Angeles don’t know what they are,” says Kohno. “We also wanted to be able to show up in the sushi category on delivery apps—it is one of the most used keywords. So we rebranded our musubi to be sushibi to bridge the gap.”

The business has received a bit of media attention as a result, and Kohno’s Hogan training has come in useful.

Remi Kohno '15 and her family being interviewed for their family business, Sushi With Attitude

“Hogan helped me learn to speak and structure what I’m going to say, which has helped a lot with media interviews,” says Kohno. “I recently interviewed with KTLA news. I was really nervous because it was live, but it was nice to be able to do something that I wasn’t really comfortable with, and Hogan taught me how to do that.”

Kohno attributes much of her recent success to Hogan and the opportunities she had at Chaminade. “Definitely Hogan, all of the professors I had at Chaminade and being part of the American Advertising Federation, they have all helped me grow into this role that I have right now.”

She works full-time as a manager in paid social media at NBC. And only five years after graduating from college, she feels like she’s almost landed her dream job.

“I love what I do at NBC. They’re a really great company,” says Kohno. “I want to continue to grow and become a director, and continue to be knowledgeable about all the various platforms and their nuances and updates. That is my dream goal. I think I’m almost there.”

Filed Under: Alumni, Business & Communication, Featured Story, Hogan Entrepreneurial Program Tagged With: Communication

Hogan Board News 2019

June 8, 2019 by University Communications & Marketing

Rechung Fujihira

Rechung Fujihira, Hogan alum and co-founder of Box Jelly, was interviewed by Pacific Business News about his success and his thoughts about the recent “Cowork Boom” that has been sweeping the national and international market.


Glenn K. Miyataki

Glenn K. Miyataki, Owner of GKM, recently published The Journey from Within. It is a collection of powerful essays written by international leaders that offer a wealth of raw material for introspection and reinvention of the self. Contributors to the book include George R. Ariyoshi, a former state governor of Hawaii, Jean Watson, an American nursing theorist, Eleonora Masini, a humanitarian and futurist from Italy, Shawn Hu, across-cultural policy maker from the People’s Republic of China and Duane Kurisu Founder of AIO and Organizer of Kahauiki Village.


Ed Kenny

Ed Kenny, Chef and Owner of Town, Mud Hen Water, Kaimuki Superette and Mahina & Suns, was one of the semifinalists in the Outstanding Restaurateur category for the James Beard Foundation’s prestigious James Beard Awards.


Scott Schroeder

Scott Schroeder, Dean of the School of Business and Communication Department at Chaminade University, has accepted a new position as Head of School at Sacred Hearts Academy. He will be missed!


Peggy Friedman, Associate Professor of Marketing at Chaminade University, has announced her retirement. Dr. Friedman has been working for the University since 2001 and has been central to the advancement of the business area and establishing a wonderful culture and work environment. She will be missed!

Filed Under: Hogan Entrepreneurial Program

Hogan Alumni News 2019

March 29, 2019 by University Communications & Marketing

Abigail Nickell

Abigail Nickell, an MBA graduate from Maine, is now the Executive Director at Community Music School in Oakdale, Connecticut. She directs, administers, and coordinates the business and financial activities of the Community Music School.


Dan Mangum

Dan Mangum, a communications graduate from New York, is now the Marketing Director and Promotions Manager for Nextdoor, an event center and club in Chinatown. He uses his networking and marketing skills to throw big parties while serving good causes. On Thanksgiving Eve, his company sponsored a concert with Drake Bell in order to raise money for Honolulu’s homeless community. In addition, he organized a concert with local musician Mike Izon, which helped raised thousands of dollars for families who suffer from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord.


Bonita Dydasco

Bonita Dydasco, a biochemistry major from Guam, attended the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS). ABRCMS is a conference with over 4000 participants that gives researchers the chance to present groundbreaking research. Bonita was able to make connections with over 15 different graduate programs in the field of medicine, speak confidently before a crowd and ask challenging questions to presenters.


Vina Cristobal and friends

Vina Cristobal, a communications graduate from Hawaii, went on a mission trip to Thailand with Grace Bible Church Pearlside. She spent two weeks at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok in order to minister and build strong relationships with her students.


Krys Zyak

Krys Zyak, an MEd in instructional leadership graduate from Hawaii, had the opportunity to work on set with Magnum P.I., Hawaii Five-O, PBS-Hawaii, APEX (Godzilla vs. Kong), and The Wrong Missy, which is a Netflix/Happy Madison Production. Krys has been invited by the Screen Actors Guild to become one of its members.


Boris Jelic

Boris Jelic, an MBA graduate from Montenegro, recently caught up with a previous mentor and a great source of inspiration, the legendary American hotelier John Brogan, and wife Mary Lou.


Fawn Liebengood

Fawn Liebengood, an MBA graduate from Hawaii, received a scholarship from the Women Divers Hall of Fame for Advanced Dive Training. This scholarship will help to continue to support her work in marine plastic pollution removal and prevention by providing her with additional diving training and diving gear.


Dr. Becky Lord

Dr. Becky Lord, a biology graduate from Dayton, is a young woman with big dreams. Having lived through a PTSD-type neurological injury which led to years of inflammation-based symptoms, she now dedicated her life to helping people. She is a board-certified emergency medicine physician. Recently she created Fix, a program where she can teach people how to unlock the body’s ability to reduce inflammation.


Dr. Diep Vuong

Dr. Diep Vuong, a physical medicine and rehabilitation graduate from Vietnam, recently came to visit the Hogan Office. Diep said “I often think about the Hogan family and feel so thankful for their gift of education. I’m inspired by them to give back, so I would love to come back to speak to the Hogan students when the timing is right.”

Filed Under: Hogan Entrepreneurial Program

Hogan Student News 2019

March 29, 2019 by University Communications & Marketing

Esther Lambright

Esther Lambright, from Kapolei, Hawaii, owner of Captured Imagery Photography, collaborated with Kaimuki Studio to provide businesses and professionals with the opportunity to upgrade their portfolio with professional headshots. She was also recently featured on Hawaii Entrepreneur’s Instagram praised for her success as an up-and-coming entrepreneur.

Follow her on Instagram: @capturedimagery


Hogan students at the UH-HK-China forum with Major Kirk Caldwell

Cai Yan Fang, an international trade major from China, Lulu Jin, an MBA student from China, Samantha Mortimer, an environmental and interior design major from Wisconsin, Maddeline Smith, an accounting major from California, Elena Chen, a forensic science major from Hawaii, Mokihana Maldonado, an MEd graduate from Hawaii, and Lillianna Flynn, a business administration major from New York, volunteered at the 2019 US-HK-CHINA forum.

They are seen in this picture with Honolulu Mayor, Kirk Caldwell.


Pohaikealoha Artates

Pohaikealoha Artates, an environmental studies major from Maui, was chosen by Mitchell Steffey, Chaminade’s director of student activities and leadership, to talk about sustainability at a Native Hawaiian leadership conference called Hoopili Hou on Kauai.

She also started her own business called Oliko’s Collection. Her collection focuses on sustainable, Hawaiian inspired wear that helps one find the “sparkle in any darkness.”


Nikki Jang

Nikki Jang, an accounting major from Hawaii, visited Gyeongju city with her family, a popular destination site that is home to a large number of historical sites created during the Silla Dynasty. She visited a number of places including an ancient astronomical observatory, the Stone Buddha and the Heavenly Horse Tomb to name a few.


Ezekiel “Zeke” Bernardo-Flores

Ezekiel “Zeke” Bernardo-Flores, an accounting major from Hawaii, and owner of Thrift HNL and W/It, and Esther Lambright, from Hawaii, and owner of Captured Imagery Photography, took the dive to compete in a business plan competition conducted by EO – the Entrepreneurs Organization of Hawaii.  Esther Lambright took second place!


Nikki Jang, an accounting major from Hawaii, and Mailani Faniel, a business administration major from California, were among the first class of Chaminade business students to graduate from Hawaii State Federal Credit Union’s Pupukahi I Holomua Pathways Internship Program.


Chaminade students at National Chemistry Week event at Kahala Mall

During National Chemistry Week, Hogan students Yongfei Zhao, a politics & education graduate from China, Maddeline Smith, an accounting major from California and Elena Chen, a forensic science major from Hawaii, volunteered to help Carlos Gutierrez and Ana Acuna’s True Forensics Science booth at a National Chemistry Week event.  Ana and Carlos, Hogan graduates, started True Forensic Science to provide forensics training in Spanish to people in South America and beyond.


Tanea DalPivo

Tanea DalPivo, a psychology major from Hawaii, volunteers every Thursday morning at the Salvation Army Rehabilitation Center.  The Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center provides men with substance abuse problems, an opportunity to regain their self-respect and to acquire the life skills needed to take their rightful place in life.


Business students interning at HSFCU

Gabriel Garcia, a business administration major from California and Kai Rivera, a business administration major for Okinawa, became the newest interns at the Pupukahi I Holomua Pathways Internship Program at the Hawaii State Federal Credit Union. They will continue their journey as great ambassadors for Chaminade University and the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program.


Esther Lambright, from Hawaii, and owner of Captured Imagery Photography, volunteered as a program specialist for “East Meets West 2019,” a startup event in Hawaii that brings together investors and entrepreneurs from Asia, Hawaii and North America to talk about the Hawaiian startup ecosystem. She also led a group of guest and speakers on a tour, as well as organized the one-on-one meet-ups between for investors and guests.


Hogan students encouraged their peers to register to vote

Voter Registration: Did you know Hawaii has the lowest voter turnout in the country? The Hogan Entrepreneurs encouraged students to register to vote and make a difference. They shared the importance of voting and the responsibility of citizenship. Almost 100 students registered to vote for the first time.


Nikki Jang, an accounting major from Hawaii and Esther Lambright, from Hawaii, and owner of Captured Imagery Photography, volunteered at Dress for Success Honolulu. This was an event held at the YWCA Oahu. Its vision is to help economically empower and inspire underprivileged women.


Pohaikealoha Artates, an environmental studies major from Maui, has been volunteering at Hookuaaina Loi to give back to the aina (land).  Hookuaaina is a non-profit organization using Hawaiian traditions of kalo (taro) cultivation to improve the lives of today’s youth and build a healthy community.

Filed Under: Hogan Entrepreneurial Program

Hogan Marketplace

March 11, 2019 by University Communications & Marketing

In an effort to continue to facilitate the growth and success of student entrepreneurs, the Hogan Program Marketplace was created. This is a marketplace where Hogan students, as well as recent alumni, share with the community the products and services of their small businesses. The first marketplace was a success and some of the students who participated are listed below.

Nina Torio at the Hogan Marketplace

Nina Torio, a business administration major from Hawaii, recently started Toriogal Hand Lettering: Written with Love, where she sells signs that she stylized with calligraphy.

Follow her on Instagram: @shoptoriogal


Danielle Sheemesh at the Hogan Marketplace

Danielle Sheemesh, an anthropology/Latin American studies graduate from Israel, and founder of Gazoz, served up a farm to cup drink that uses fresh ingredients harvested daily to create a beautiful fizzy fruit beverage.

Follow her on Instagram: @drinkgazoz


Esther Lambright at the Hogan Marketplace

Esther Lambright, from Hawaii, and owner of Captured Imagery Photography, explained to soon-to-be professionals the importance of presenting a good image to companies and customers alike.

Follow her on Instagram: @capturedimagery


Pohaikealoha Artates

Pohaikealoha Artates, an environmental studies major from Maui, used the Marketplace to promote her up and coming Oliko’s Collection, a Hawaiian boutique that sells inspirational casual wear.

Follow her on Instagram: @olikos_collection


Kealohilani Wong at the Hogan Marketplace

Ke’alohilani Wong, a business administration major from Hawaii, and Lillianna Flynn, a business administration major from New York, were selling Krispy Kreme donuts to fundraise for their summer study missions.


Fabian Patterson at the Hogan Marketplace

Fabian Patterson, a psychology major from Hawaii, launched a new clothing line for his company Change-iz Fitness. His line is a symbol of commitment, that no matter what obstacles people face, they have what it takes to “Be Your Change.”

Follow him on Instagram: @changeizfitness


Savannah Delos Santos at the Hogan Marketplace

Savannah Lyn Delos Santos, a marketing major from Saipan, took this chance to utilize a skill she developed on her study mission to India. At the Marketplace she created beautiful and intricate designs on customer’s hands with Henna.

Follow her on Instagram: @SavHenna


Lu Jin at the Hogan Marketplace

Lu Jin, an MBA student from China, and founder of Lulu Hawaii sold her extraordinary desserts and was kind enough to provide people with free samples.

Follow her on Instagram: @lulujinhawaii


Kai Rivera provided entertainment at the Hogan Marketplace

Kai Rivera, a business administration major from Okinawa, with an interest in music and art, provided the Marketplace with live music, creating the perfect ambiance for a successful event. He recently released his music album Junkie.

Follow him on Instagram: @kai.emilio

Filed Under: Hogan Entrepreneurial Program

Sino Capitalism 2019

February 18, 2019 by University Communications & Marketing

Sino Capitalism Conference 2019
Sino Capitalism Conference 2019

Recognizing China’s ever-growing global importance, Chaminade University has worked to increase the awareness of the Asian giant’s social and economic dynamics. To mark these efforts, Chaminade has established an annual forum to explore a facet of Sino-Capitalism, China’s unique form of capitalism. The Hogan Entrepreneurial Program acts as the secretariat for the event. This opportunity is funded in-part thanks to an Asia-Pacific Speaker endowment established by the late Stanley W. Hong, a Chaminade Regent.

A rich and challenging discussion was led by Dr. Christopher McNally, Chaminade Professor of Political Economy and Adjunct Senior Fellow at the East-West Center. The title of his talk was The US-China Trade War: Causes, Prospects, and Implications. Dr. McNally’s research focuses on comparative capitalisms, especially the nature and logic of China’s capitalist transition.

Filed Under: Hogan Entrepreneurial Program

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