Bay Area native and owner of Lahaina's CocoNene shop Kent Untermann shares the loss and impact after deadly wildfires.When in Lahaina, locals and tourists alike visit the CocoNene shop on Front Street for everything from Hawaiian made home decor, wall art and photo frames.that swept through Lahaina destroyed that shop and hundreds of other businesses in the popular and historic area.
Kent Untermann is the founder and president of CocoNene and The Art Source Inc., the parent company. He and his wife Lori have been business owners in Hawaii since the 1980s. The two met after Kent moved from Marin, California to Hawaii on a football scholarship. Kent is now figuring out how to move forward after a total loss of the building and everything inside.
The value of the 9,000 square foot building is in the millions and the inventory inside of CocoNene and Tabora Gallery is valued at more than $1 million. Beyond the structural devastation and the items inside the business, he says three of his nine employees lost their homes. But thankfully all of them were able to evacuate the fires and are now safe.