The street fair, hosted every Thursday from 3 to 6 p.m. at Kukui Grove Shopping Center, emerges as a venue that amalgamates over 20 vendors from the Kaua’i Made program, each contributing a diverse array of products and services. Lyndsey Haraguchi-Nakayama, introduces the fair, and converses with multiple vendors, presenting a varied tableau of offerings available to visitors. According to a vendor named Melissa, “Every Thursday, we’re here with 20-plus vendors from the Kaua’i Made program.”
The products presented, as per the transcript, span a range from culinary spices, some of which have been heralded as “Best Rub in America” and “Best Steak Rub in the world,” to affordable jewelry, which the creator conceptualized to be accessible, stating, “The concept of my business was to have affordable jewelry, so it starts from $5, only $10.” These offerings intermingle with other diverse products like “honey salt and maple coconut” and items from notable brands like “Billabong” and “Volcom.” The street fair also extends its stage to vendors who are rooted in the ‘Kaua’i Grown’ initiative, presenting a dual showcase of both local and global products.
In addition, some of the items, like the turmeric ginger and green papaya powder, are characterized by their palatable vibrancy, as one vendor illustrates, “Our turmeric ginger and green papaya powder are very good; you can taste the ginger, the turmeric, passion, wasabi, mustard.” Moreover, the products offered are not confined to mere consumables but stretch into functional and aesthetic realms, such as edible cucumbers utilized for a skin food line.
There’s a conscientious thread that seems to weave through the vendors at the street fair, embodied by entities like the Kaua’i Forest Bird Recovery Project which funnels its proceedings back into charitable endeavors: “everything we do just goes back to our teachers’ favorite charity.” This element of community and cause is expressed through varied vendors, not merely in their products but also in their operational ethics.
Melissa underscores the distinctiveness of the event, saying, “There is nothing like this on the island. We’re all local vendors.” Furthermore, this endeavor appears to stem from a foundational intent to furnish the Kaua’i Made members with a “consistent weekly venue”, which in its operation, not only provides a platform for vendors to showcase and sell their products but also, in a broader context, invites an interaction with and exploration of Kaua’i’s local production landscape.
Thus, the street fair at Kukui Grove Shopping Center, with its amalgam of diverse vendors, products, and underlying ethical currents, aims to weave a weekly tapestry that is representative of both the commercial and cultural threads of Kaua’i. A kind invitation is extended by Lyndsey: “Thank you so much for joining us here, and we hope to see you folks on Thursdays at the street fair from 3 to 6 p.m. every week at Kukui Grove Center.”