Mele Kalama-Kingma
School: Kamehameha Schools - Kapālama Campus
Career: Entrepreneur, Owner of Mamalani
Ever since she was a little girl, Mele Kalama-Kingma strove to live her life based on the Hawaiian values her kūpuna taught her. So when it came to naming her business, Mele knew Mamalani was the only choice. Named after her grandmother, Mamalani is a Hawaiian body care business that tells a story of aloha. All of Mamalani’s products are hand-made, low-waste and created using local, natural ingredients.
Mele never planned on running a business; she just hoped to serve her community. Working as a dietician at the Waimānalo Health Center, she began reading about the harmful ingredients in deodorants. So she decided to create her own powdered deodorant right in her home kitchen. Mele shared it with a cousin and her paddling team, and through word of mouth, demand for the creation grew.
With help from friends and family, Mele gained enough confidence to start her own company. She had found a new way to serve her community.
+ Advice from Mele Kalama-Kingma
Whatever you do in life, you do it with aloha. You care about others and you care about your land.
