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TheBuzz
Erika Engle
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Oh wow for Ala Moana; woo hoo! for Starr Seigle
HARKING BACK to an old advertising jingle -- ooh, ah, oh wow --
Ala Moana Center was one of only nine U.S. shopping centers that won a MAXI award from the International Council of Shopping Centers this year.
Twenty-four MAXIs went to shopping centers in places ranging from Canada to the United Kingdom and Denmark to Dubai.
Ala Moana was awarded for its "Christmas Gift of Aloha" program in the Sales Promotion and Events category for centers larger than 1.4 million square feet.
The center teamed up with nonprofit theatrical production group Ohia Productions to produce a book, "The Christmas Gift of Aloha," as well as a 30-minute stage production that was performed at the center.
Sales of the book earned the nonprofit organization more than $100,000 toward funding its educational programs for Hawaii's elementary school students.
The production also helped the center. Gift card sales were up 13 percent in 2004 over 2003, with gift card and gift certificate sales surpassing $10 million by the end of the year. Mall sales rose 12 percent in November 2004 and 14 percent in December 2004 from the same months the year before.
For 2004, total mall sales topped $1 billion, the first time the center had seen such a number since 1995, according to the council's Web site.
The show, the book and soundtrack CD are available at the center.
Agency closing, sort of
Starr Seigle Communications Inc. will close its doors at close of business Dec. 23.
Oh, they'll reopen them Jan. 2; it's just that the executive committee decided to give employees a week off with pay, which will not be charged against their vacation time.
"Woo hoo!" reacted Sukil Suh, account executive.
It is the second time the agency had ceased normal operation for the week between Christmas and the turn of the new year.
Some folks will be in the office, such as Mary Fastenau's StarrTech Interactive team. There also will be someone at the front desk to answer the phone, "but the idea is to give these good people as much time off as we humanly can, as a gift for working so hard," said Phil Wood, vice chairman.
Wood did not have an estimate of what the week's closure with pay will cost.
"None of us has ever sat down with a calculator to try and figure it out. ... I hate to think that a funny little calculator could change our minds."
On Dec. 23, the agency will stage its annual Holiday Party and Yule Store fundraiser. The Yule Store is stocked with donations from employees, clients, friends and family, which are sold in a silent auction. Proceeds this year will be donated to a former employee who is battling an illness.
See the
Columnists section for some past articles.
Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin. Call 529-4302, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached at:
eengle@starbulletin.com