If you’ve read our article on Reverse Travel, you’ll know that you can experience a place from faraway. One way to do that is buying local from a distance.
Supporting local businesses is always a good idea. You can make sure your money goes back into the community that you care about and your dollar (or yen or euro or local currency) is your vote of confidence and appreciation for a business that you like and value.
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So what if you want to support a local community that isn’t very local for you? Perhaps, it’s a place you want to live in the future. Or maybe it’s one that you like visiting whenever you can (but at the moment you can’t). Or possibly, you want to support a community that was hit by a natural disaster of some kind like Kauai was in 2018 and the Big Island as well.
Don’t let distance stop you from supporting a local community.
Kauai is one of my favorite places on Earth and these are some of my favorite businesses there.
If you do visit one of these places online (or in person), tell them Journeyed Worlds sent you.
1. Hoa Kai Surf
Hoa Kai Surf is known for their Turkish towels–these are hand-loomed luxurious towels and NOT mass-produced.
Hoa Kai Surf is a family owned business in Kauai and they support a local village in Turkey near the Syrian border. The hardworking families there supply Hoa Kai Surf, so when you buy from them, you’re essentially supporting two commuties (one in Kauai and one in Turkey).
They offer towels, blankets, and kid ponchos – I wish they made an adult size ponchos. Check them out if you need something for your trip to the beach or your next picnic.
Their website claims: “These towels are much more absorbent, quick drying, light weight, sand resistant, multifunctional, and long-lasting then an ordinary terry cloth towel.”
Check them out.
2. Kauai Farmacy
https://shop.kauaifarmacy.com/
I’m no doctor, but it’s pretty obvious that consuming natural and organic is much better than over-processed foods. And Kauai, being in a subtropical climate, can grow things that can’t be grown in other climates.
Kauai Farmacy offers herbal teas, honey, superfoods, spices, salves, balms, and more. They are another family run business that cares about the well-being of everyone they serve.
When you eventually do get to Kauai, they offer tours of their farm. It’s on my to do list for the next time I make it to the Garden Isle.
3. Hawaiian Organic Noni
If you don’t know what noni is, it’s a fruit packed with more antioxidants than you can sneeze at. And the best way to get the most health benefits from it is to consume it in fruit leather form. The innovators of this are Hawaiian Organic Noni, and their farm is located on Kauai.
I’ve been a customer of theirs for a while now. I didn’t take the noni for any ailment, so I can’t say it made be healthier, but I did enjoy it. They have many testimonials of people who did see vast improvements in their health conditions.
And just like Kauai Farmacy, if you can make it out to Kauai, they offer a tour of the farm.
Check out their website for more details.
4. Talk Story Bookstore
https://www.talkstorybookstore.com/
The western-most bookstore in the U.S. If you like books and bookstores like I do (see my other site StoriedWorlds.com), you’ll love the charm of this place. It’s small but densely packed with great books. If you visit them online, you can’t see everything they offer online, but you can get merch and browse (and buy) some of their inventory–
And some of their inventory of books is online here at Amazon.
5. Kauai Juice Co.
This is another company from Kauai that’s committed to doing good and providing people with a local choice that’s healthy for their bodies and their local community.
Unfortunately, you can’t get your juice or kombucha or just anything you want sent, but you can get hot sauce, official Kauai Juice Co. merchandise, and a few other things.
6. Kauai Coffee
I’m not much of a coffee guy (that’s probably why I put the teas from Kauai Farmacy at a higher spot on this list), but a lot of people love coffee. When I bought some Kauai Coffee for my friends and family as souvenirs, they loved it.
7. Bubba Burgers
http://bubbaburger.com/index.html
The best burger on the island? Probably so.
Can you get them to send you a burger to the mainland? Absolutely not.
But you can still get some cool Bubba’s merch here:
https://bubbamerch.bigcartel.com/
BONUS: The Big Island:
Big Island Bees
Big Island Bees have been around since 1972.
I took a tour here when I was on the Big Island. They were friendly people and very informative. Of course, they sell their local products there and online. It’s not just honey, but other products like soap.
They also have some great artwork for sale.
Check it out.
Big Island Candies
https://www.bigislandcandies.com/
They’ve been around since 1977 and are headquartered in Hilo. They also have a location in the Ala Moana Center in Honolulu. Big Island Candies has some of the best brownies I’ve ever tasted. Be sure to get the chocolate covered mint ones.
What are some of your favorite local places that you shop from afar?
Be sure to check out our other Reverse Travel ideas here.
Need a web services for your local business? I can help you here.