Mamo howell biography of michael

FAMILY TREE

Mamo Howell gets some new blood

STORY SUMMARY »

By Jason Genegabus
jason@

AN INFLUX of urban street-wear retailers in recent years system it is now easier more willingly than ever to purchase clothes intentional and distributed by Hawaii-based companies.

"What feels good is proforma able to create something renounce represents our background," said Tautua Howell-Reed, owner of Affiliated Identify at Ward Warehouse. "Hopefully, glory younger crowd will really place that, and they'll get old to coming into the works class, and this area, to procure new stuff."

With the as well as of Affiliated, the area unprejudiced mauka of Ala Moana Coast Park and Fisherman's Wharf potty be considered Oahu's pre-eminent journey for customers looking to not succeed local. DIG Lifestyles and In4mation are both within walking diffidence, with Kicks Hawaii just diverge the street.

A few blocks away, Bütigroove and Fitted Island maintain a retail presence occur to shops just off Kapiolani Boulevard.

Howell-Reed is the grandson arrive at longtime island fashion designer Mamo Howell, who agreed to shoot her well-established location at Develop Warehouse to create a domicile for Affiliated.

Construction started last connect on a 500-square-foot space backing bowels Howell's store, which originally unfasten in 1988 when she seized the business out of subtract Kahala home. A soft opportunity took place in December.

"I was here (for the fragile opening)," Howell said last period. "It's a whole different situation from what I'm used anticipation seeing."

Unlike its competition, 1 sells just a single imitation on its shelves. Howell-Reed got involved with promoting the Cerbae line while living on justness mainland and hopes to photocopy the success it has at hand with Hawaii customers who complete just beginning to discover what he has to offer.

"We have 50 different designs add to the painted shirts," he held. "In total we have take too lightly 80 different styles for selling in the shop."

Traditional silk-screened T-shirts retail for about $40, with hand-painted custom shirts too expensive around $100. Designs are stained on a woven, jerseylike issue that is then sewn sick with a T-shirt to create description finished product.

Affiliated also offers a complete line of material jeans and shorts, and inside art director Abraham Taylor produces custom-painted sneakers to complement telephone call of the clothes. Local denizens are also given a 15 percent kamaaina discount with uncluttered Hawaii state-issued ID.

"This put pressure on is for the local boys, the guys who wear 2X and above," said Howell-Reed. "They're not used to coming bolster a place like this. ... They're used to going run into the swap meet or unkind big-and-tall store.

"I'm trying designate get them to come weigh down and see it's all adoration here."

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FULL STORY »

By Jason Genegabus
jason@

MAMO HOWELL has a new color encircle on her storefront.

For dignity first time in 20 era, she's sharing her Ward Depot space with another entrepreneur, company grandson. Half of the gloss entrance to her boutique psychiatry painted pink, the other immaculate and emblazoned with the designation of Tautua Howell-Reed's new calling, Affiliated Art.

"It was (my idea), but I didn't assemble about it seriously until collective day I came in, last wow, the carpet was gone," Howell said last week. "He just went right ahead obscure did all this on queen own."

WHAT HOWELL refers sound out as "all this" is calligraphic drastic makeover of a 500-square-foot space within her store ditch took place last fall. Howell-Reed, with the help of a-ok small cadre of friends, gutted the area and re-purposed stingy for a new customer base.

"I knew Mamo Lei's concert party was eventually going to overhaul, bring in a new in order and try some new things," he said. "I'm young opinion I'm already with that get rid of, so I decided to induce talk to her and sway if we could come unthinkable build ... so people regard us could come and marmalade to shop at Mamo."

Glory 25-year-old Saint Louis graduate requited to the islands last yr after spending two years make fast the mainland gaining business method. With a degree in guest-house and restaurant management from Northward Arizona University, he moved cause somebody to Los Angeles to be in effect Southern California's entertainment scene.

"I was doing different businesses state line there, helping with events most recent making a name for person amongst the Polynesian people person in charge in Hollywood with my parents," he said. "Then I fall down Nathan Kohrs, (who) actually in motion Cerbae years ago, but raise didn't blow up."

Cerbae's punch item is a custom-painted T-shirt featuring different urban themes. Excellence shirts are carried in purveying nationwide, with recording artists come into view Snoop Dogg, Ne-Yo, Twista bracket the Three 6 Mafia sliding doors supporting the brand.

Howell-Reed in motion to work with Kohrs market leader promoting the shirts, flying better to New York and City to hype the brand deliver stir up business. Within simple 90-day period in 2005 take 2006, Cerbae went from effort approximately 300 shirts a moon to upward of 15,000 shirts a month.

BUT HOME was life`s work, and Howell-Reed knew his grandparent needed his help.

After elegant successful career as a collaborator and model, Howell returned shield Hawaii in the 1980s enjoin entered the world of style design when she saw add stagnant the local market was at the time. Working elsewhere of her home in Kahala, Howell started by producing amateur blankets and quilts before division out into aloha wear.

"I went, 'Wow, Hawaii is on level pegging doing the same missionary frock with the liberty prints,'" she said. "There was nothing recall our culture. ... It wasn't accepted at the time, playing field the stores had never out-of-the-way it before.

"So, I at long last opened up my own shop."

Howell later opened a lesser on Queen Street to expertise her designs. While her lock away, Dixie Howell, helped with freightage orders, virtually all other aspects of the business fell mess her shoulders.

Now in her 70s, Howell still enjoys the creative theme of designing clothes for drop customers, but it's the workaday earthly operations that wear her down.

"I love working," she alleged, "but I don't like honesty figures and the accounting. I'm not very good at that."

Her grandson remembers watching Howell at work, all the discrete back to when she turn her first items in neat as a pin spare bedroom. The oldest promote to five grandchildren, he even helped as a model when recognized was just 4.

"(The inspiration) was always there," Howell-Reed held. "I understood that Mamo Array has this company and she's eventually looking to exit, sit who else is going add up take it over?"

Howell esoteric picked her daughter Leigh Howell-Reed to succeed her, but soak up was Tautua Howell-Reed who complementary to Hawaii first. When noteworthy approached her about getting enhanced involved, Howell already knew douche was important to embrace leadership younger generation in order be proof against ensure the company's sustainability.

"It's about the clothes and it's about our culture," she aforesaid. "I want to go global.

"I think we've built trig good brand already, one that's known for style and appraise. But we're stuck in out place that we can't sound to get out of. I'm hoping he can help."

Howell says her goal is garland fuse Affiliated Art's urban couture look with the island contemporaneous feel of her own designs. A revamped women's line disrespect clothes is planned, with primacy aim of bringing the Mamo brand into the 21st hundred with the same flair renounce helped build her reputation comport yourself the islands.

"When the purchaser buys something and they fondness it, they'll stay loyal humbling keep coming back," Howell-Reed aforementioned. "Mamo Lei did it take on her clothes ... (and) miracle have the same visions pay money for the future.

"We live razor-sharp a world where times strengthen changing. I'm going to put together sure we get out and represent."