UH Alumni Makers’ Market returns on Oʻahu; portion of proceeds to help student food insecurity

A University of Hawaiʻi alumni event aimed at helping address student food insecurity at the university’s 10 campuses is returning this fall.

The Alumni Makers’ Market is scheduled for 6 to 9 p.m. Aug. 9 at The Royal Hawaiian Resort in Waikīkī on Oʻahu, with with nearly twice the number of alumni-owned small businesses planning to participate compared to last year’s inaugural event. The event is presented by the UH Office of Alumni Relations in partnership with the UH Alumni Association, will donate a portion of the proceeds to help address student food insecurity.

General admission tickets can be purchased online. Admission includes food, drinks and the opportunity to purchase merchandise.

“Last year was really, really fun. It was nice to be able to work alongside other UH alumni entrepreneurs,” said Justin Udom, who founded Pop Culture Artisan Pops. “It was a really nice community and it made me proud to be a UH alumnus.”

Almost all of the businesses that participated last year along with several new businesses are among the nearly three dozen that will be at this year’s event.

Participating food and beverage vendors include:

• Beer Lab
• Highway Inn
• KōHana Distillers
• La Vie
• Nami Kaze
• Pint + Jigger
• Pono Potions
• Pono Wines
• Pop Culture Artisan Pops
• Rainbow Drive-In
• Sage Creamery
• The Lei Stand
• The Royal Hawaiian Resort

Participating small businesses include:

• Belly Rub Kitchen
• Choco leʻa
• David Shepard
• Eden in Love
• Green Tea Leaves Design
• In4mation
• Jules & Gem Hawaiʻi
• KINdom
• Kuʻuipo Collection
• Mari’s Gardens
• Norae Ceramics
• Old Queen Street Stadium
• Premier Barbershop
• Ports and Paws
• Phases Hawaiʻi
• Roots Roll Reggae
• Sweet Enemy
• Tanioka’s
• Ten Tomorrow

“All of us from Eden are UH alumni, so it’s an honor to be part of an event for the university that helped shape our foundation as business owners, creatives and entrepreneurs,” said Tanna Dang, co-owner of Eden in Love, in the press release. “The years we spent on the Mānoa campus created lifelong values that helped Eden become the company it is today.”

Several businesses also will feature exclusive UH-licensed products such as shirts and bags, including Eden in Love’s “Eden x UH Mānoa collection,” which is available at the UH-Mānoa bookstore as well.