- Eight Point Distributors
- Autosource
- Royal Kitchen
- Alert Alarm Hawaii / National Fire Protection
- Island Topsoil
- Honolulu Eye Clinic
- Local Joe
- The Pig & The Lady
- T&C Surf
- Aloha Personal Training
- Magnum Helicopters
- Goldwings
- AW Dental Group
- GreenPath Technologies, Inc.
- Heaven on Earth
- Honolulu Coffee Co.
- L&L Hawaiian Barbecue
- McKinley Car Wash
- MD Restoration
- Mountain Apple Company
- The Pâtisserie
- Scott Hawaii
- Sig Zane Designs
- The Systemcenter, Inc.
- Town Hospitality Group
About the Entrepreneur
In 1976, Eddie Flores, Jr. and his business partner purchased a small restaurant called L&L Drive Inn® for $20,000 as a gift to his mother. Over the last 40 years, Eddie has turned L&L Hawaiian Barbeque into a multimillion-dollar franchise with close to 200 locations throughout the U.S., New Zealand, China, Indonesia, Guam and Japan. L&L has been recognized on a local and national level as an industry leader.
In 2002, L&L Hawaiian Barbecue® was named one of the “50 Regional Powerhouse Chains” by Nation’s Restaurant News. Entrepreneur magazine also ranked L&L’s parent company, L&L Franchise, Inc., at No. 165 in the top 500 U.S. franchises in 2005.
More with Eddie
What is your advice for anyone running a family business?
Before any of my children come to work for me, I advise them to work at a big mainland company for several years first, because it will give them invaluable experience and training. Instead of me investing to train my children, I’d rather have someone else train them for me.
What is the hardest part about having your children work for you?
Telling them what to do and having them listen to me. Quite often they have a lot of new ideas they want to tell me, and being an old man I’m usually pretty stubborn. But it is good to have my children bring new ideas that I can learn from so I can improve my business and expand my operations.
What are the most important qualities to look for as a business owner when choosing a bank?
Banking is very important to me. Most banks offer the same services, but I need a banker who is very personable – who knows me, so when I walk into the bank I get the same, trusted service day-in and day-out.
What do you love about banking at Hawaii National Bank?
When I walk in, everyone will say "hi" to me. They’re so friendly, and everyone knows me. It’s a small, personable bank, but it provides the same services I can get from a bigger bank.