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April 15, 2015

Windward Oahu will get double dose of Island Snow

By Erika Engle

Island Snow is back on an expansion track and is building out a second Windward Oahu location in the former Mary Z's space in Kai­lua Shopping Center.

Island Snow once had several locations around Oahu, but then closed all except its flagship near Kai­lua Beach, made famous by holiday season visits by President Barack Obama.

"The date got pushed back a little bit," but the second Island Snow in Kai­lua should open in the beginning of next month, said Brockton Kodama, director of operations and son of founder James Kodama.

The roughly 1,600 square feet will have a slightly different feel than the location frequented by the president and the first family during their Christmas vacations here.

"If you're familiar with our past stores in Ala Moana and the Royal Hawaiian Center, we're bringing back a little more of that feel," Kodama said.

"We don't want to do exactly what we're doing at the other location and have a redundancy," he said. The shopping center location will have a bit more focus on clothing retail, though it will, of course, serve shave ice.

The new store will be more of a shopping destination than is the beach store, and it will have "a lot more dedication to women's clothing," Kodama said. "Probably a 50-50 split between men's and women's clothing."

Both the flagship and the new store will be overseen by Richard Whaley, who regularly is interviewed on TV news about the first family's visits.

The company has had only the one Kai­lua location for about the past five years. The Wai­kiki store closed when the elder Kodama retired, though he still spends time on company matters. It is under his father's supervision that Brockton Kodama is taking Island Snow "to the next level," Kodama said.

As for Mary Z's, owner Terrie Far­ma­kis closed the store at year's end to retire.

"Terrie has told me it was an honor to serve the lovely ladies of Kai­lua and that she loved every aspect of owning her store," said her sister, Mary Zana­kis.

"She has reached that magical age and now retires with great memories of her adventures" as a longtime Kai­lua retailer, she said.