Its new name is ‘Royal Hawaiian Center’
Leaving out "shopping" is meant to widen its appeal
The Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center, at the midpoint of the state's most prominent shopping strip, is getting a new name and logo to go with its $115 million upgrade.
The shopping and entertainment center's name change to Royal Hawaiian Center is meant to highlight the 310,000-square-foot center's appeal as a gathering place for visitors and locals.
The logo, which features coconut trees, honors the site's unique history as the spot where Princess Pauahi Bishop bequeathed her estate to establish Kamehameha Schools - the owner of the Royal Hawaiian Center. Hawaiians once called the site, where a grove of more than10,000 coconut trees once grew, Helumoa.
"The Center has been transformed both physically and operationally as a more uniquely Hawaiian place, and this new logo reflects that change," said Rosalind Schurgin, chief executive officer of the Festival Companies, manager and developer of Royal Hawaiian Center.
The center's revitalization, which should be completely finished by spring, represents the first major shake-up in the 26-year history of the center.
Parts of the fortress-like concrete structure, which has blocked the sun and surf from view since it was built to cater to the upscale Japanese visitors of the 1980s and 1990s boom years, were bulldozed to create a center where consumers can learn about the host culture as they visit more than 110 retail, restaurant and entertainment venues.
"Dropping the word 'shopping' from our name indicates that we see ourselves as a true Center for Waikiki - for food, entertainment, as well as shopping," said Marleen Akau, Royal Hawaiian Center's general manager."
Improvements were designed to give locals and visitors alike "the opportunity to hoolauna, or find natural settings for warm interactions to mingle and share the aloha spirit, perpetuate the Hawaiian culture and strengthen our bonds with our guests," she said.