Salty Wahine Finds Sweet Success By Joan Conrow After retiring from a 30-year career with Budget Rent-A-Car, Laura Cristobal faced the big question: what now? The answer turned out to be Salty Wahine, a line of Kaua‘i-made gourmet sea salts that she’s parlayed into a highly successful business. “It went global in just three years,” she says. “I still pinch myself every day.” Still, she says, “it didn’t happen overnight. It took a lot of hard work to get to this place.” Cristobal whipped up her first batch of seasonings at age 11 when she prepared spaghetti for her fam-
ily “and they’ve made me cook ever since,” she says with a laugh. She named that initial creation the Hawai‘ian Rub, and it’s now her best-seller. Cristobal invented another three variet-
cane sugar flavored with coconut or lilikoi. “I did a lot of product development in the first year,” she says. ”I talked to chefs about what they want, which is why I have the exotic ones.”
ies over the years, and then expanded to 16 flavors once she decided to launch her business. Now her line includes such taste tantalizing blends as mango java blend, passion fruit chili pepper, pineapple poultry, guava garlic and kiawe kick. She also offers
Cristobal also worked hard on the nuts and bolts of putting together a solid company. “I take a lot of classes through the SBA [Small Business Administration] so then I take what I learn and I put it to use.” She sought advice from her sister, Lori
Cardenas, who founded the Aunty Lilikoi line of Kauai-made passion fruit products. “I picked her brain because she’s been very successful,” says Cristobal, who gained useful business management skills while working in her mother’s bookkeeping and tax preparation company. Her nephew proved handy, too. “We were having a family vote on the name and he threw Salty Wahine out there. I thought, hmmm, that’s the one.” “I have good marketing skills and network pretty well,” she says. “I love to wala‘au and talk to everyone.” Cristobal also found see Salty page 18
Laura Cristobal with her Salty Wahine Gourmet Hawai‘ian Sea Salts. Photo by Anne E. O’Malley
Kauai Hula Exhibition Hula Hoike 2012
Performances by Halau Na Hula O Kaohikukapulani
Sunday, June 2nd Grand Hyatt Kaua‘i • call 335-6466 for more information
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