As previously proudly announced by The Hansen Ohana, Christie’s International Real Estate, the world’s leading luxury real estate network, has awarded Affiliate status to our brokerage firm Maui Estates International LLC. Wholly owned by Christie’s, the world’s leading art business, Christie’s International Real Estate is represented in more than 40 countries. Maui Estates International LLC joins this carefully selected organization of brokerages with proven records of success in both high-end property sales and exemplary client service.

The additional exposure and contacts provided by this exclusion affiliation are unprecedented as evidenced in the following article.

MOST VALUABLE SALE OF JEWELRY IN AUCTION HISTORY

MOST VALUABLE PRIVATE COLLECTION OF FASHION EVER SOLD AT AUCTION

CHRISTIE’S FIRST EVER ONLINE-ONLY AUCTION – CONDUCTED IN PARALLEL TO LIVE AUCTIONS – FETCHES OVER $9.5 MILLION

26 ITEMS SELL FOR OVER $1 MILLION; 6 ITEMS FOR OVER $5 MILLION

New York – The landmark auctions of The Collection of Elizabeth Taylor at Christie’s New York from December 3-17 realized a combined total of $156,756,576 (£100,324,209/ €120,702,563) with every single item sold. The sale drew unprecedented interest from bidders throughout the world, with 36 different countries represented during the four days of live auctions. Christie’s flagship Rockefeller Center saleroom was abuzz with people competing in person, on the phone, on-line and by absentee bid to win one of the Collection’s 1,778 lots of jewelry, fashion, decorative arts and film memorabilia. The total far exceeded Christie’s pre-sale expectations for the sale as a whole and for individual items, which were frequently hammered down for five, ten, or even 50 times their estimate.

Steven P. Murphy, Chief Executive Officer, Christie’s International, commented, “The exhibition and sales of The Collection of Elizabeth Taylor in New York have been the crowning achievement to a very strong year at Christie’s. The success of these sales, with bidders participating from all over the world, demonstrated not only a recognition of the taste and style of Miss Taylor, but also the convening power of Christie’s.” This historic sale set a world record for the most valuable sale of jewelry in auction history, and set a new bar for the most valuable collection of fashion ever offered at auction. It also marked the company’s first-ever Online-Only sale, which ran in parallel to the live auctions at Christie’s New York and generated over 57,000 bids and $9.5 million in additional sales. In total, 26 items sold for over the $1 million mark, and numerous new world auction records were achieved – a testament to Miss Taylor’s expert eye for craftsmanship, rarity, and quality in all of the items she chose for her personal collection.

During this four-day event that captured headlines worldwide, record numbers of auction attendees were exposed to the Christie’s International Real Estate Bespoke Marketing Program through the prominent exhibit of property brochures on display in the lobby.
Article from: Christie’s International

Field set for 2012 Hyundai Tournament of Champions

By Maui Now Staff
Article From: Mauinow.com

The field for the 2012 Hyundai Tournament of Champions will include 28 champions from a combined 34 PGA TOUR events from 2011.

The winners-only field will compete for the first 2012 PGA TOUR title as the FedExCup regular season kicks off January 5-9 at The Plantation Course at the Kapalua Resort.

“The field includes an interesting continuation of what happened on TOUR in 2011, with established veteran players like Steve Stricker, THE PLAYERS champion K.J. Choi and David Toms playing at Kapalua,” said Nancy Cross, Tournament Director.

“The Hyundai Tournament of Champions will also host a number of players who emerged in 2011 and captured the imagination of our fans with compelling performances on big stages,” said Cross.

The Next Generation:

Young stars in the Hyundai field include: FedExCup champion Bill Haas, PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year and major champion (PGA Championship) Keegan Bradley, and multiple 2011 tournament winners Webb Simpson and Nick Watney.

Tournament officials say, of the players in the field, 13 won events in 2011 while they were still in their twenties.

Rookies included in the 2012 Hyundai Tournament of Champions lineup include: Jhonattan Vegas (Bob Hope Classic); Brendan Steele (Valero Texas Open); Chris Kirk (Viking Classic); Scott Stallings (The Greenbrier Classic); and Keegan Bradley (HP Byron Nelson Championship and PGA Championship);

The Veterans:

Steve Stricker, Bubba Watson, K.J. Choi, David Toms and Mark Wilson are among the veteran contingent. These five have a total of 39 TOUR wins between them.

Sticker will be playing in the event for the sixth time. Hi best performance on Maui was in 2008 when he recorded a playoff-loss to Daniel Chopra. Stricker won multiple times on the PGA TOUR in 2011, taking titles in both the Memorial Tournament and the John Deere Classic.

Watson won twice in 2011 with a victory at the Farmer’s Insurance Open, and the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Tournament officials say Watson had one of the more memorable shots in Hyundai Tournament of Champions history when he carved a driver off the fairway that reached the green in two on the par 5 18th hole.

Choi is playing in his sixth Hyundai Tournament of Champions and also has a runner-up finish, when he finished T2 in 2003 to Ernie Els. Choi defeated fellow veteran David Toms in a playoff at the famous island-green 17th hole at THE PLAYERS to qualify for this year’s field.

Of the players in the field, David Toms, 45, has the most top-10 finishes at this event (4). Toms 13 career PGA TOUR victories are also the most of any player in the field this week. This is Toms’ eighth time in his career appearance at the Maui event, with his best finish to date recorded in 2002 with a runner up spot.

Mark Wilson had victories at the Sony Open in Hawaii and the Waste Management Phoenix Open in 2011. He makes this his third trip to Kapalua

The Final Field includes the following:

Aaron Baddeley; Keegan Bradley; Michael Bradley; Jonathan Byrd; K.J. Choi; Ben Crane; Harrison Frazar; Lucas Glover; Bill Haas; Chris Kirk; Martin Laird; Bryce Molder; Kevin Na; Sean O’Hair; Scott Piercy; D.A. Points; Rory Sabbatini; Webb Simpson; Scott Stallings; Brendan Steele; Steve Stricker; David Toms; Jhonattan Vegas; Johnson Wagner; Nick Watney; Bubba Watson; Mark Wilson; and Gary Woodland.

***Fans and spectators are invited to come to the Aloha Kick-Off opening ceremonies at around 9:30 pm. (45 minutes prior to the first tee time) on Friday, January 6, 2012.

Tickets for competition rounds Jan. 6-9 are on sale now at http://www.pgatour.com/Hyundai. Limited spots in the tournament’s pro-am on Thursday, Jan. 5, remain available.

The tournament dates for official play for the 2012 event begin with the Pro-am on Thursday, January 5, continuing with four rounds of professional competition Friday, January 6, through Monday, January 9

Maui Visitor Spending, Arrivals Continue Growing

By Sonia Isotov
Article From: Mauinow.com

“Continued growth in visitor spending is a strong indication that Hawaii’s tourism economy is improving,” said Mike McCartney, the president and chief and executive officer of the Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA), in a written statement today.

For the state, visitor spending rose 15.1% to $11.3 billion during the first 11 months of 2011. On Maui, visitor spending rose 12.9% to $249.5 million during the same 11 month period.

Statewide, total visitor days for all visitors rose 4.9% and total arrivals remained ahead (+3.4%) of last year at 6,600,776 visitors, according to preliminary statistics released today by the HTA. On Maui, total visitor days for all visitors rose 4% and total arrivals remained ahead (+4.2%) as well. The HTA expects to end this year with year-over-year growth in visitor expenditures.

Total arrivals in November 2011 rose 2.6% compared to last November to 566,672 visitors, and Maui received 165,239 visitors compared to 162,153 visitors last November, or a 1.9% increase.

For the month of November 2011 alone, total visitor spending grew 8.2% (up $73.5 million) from November 2010 to $972.5 million, while visitor arrivals were up 2.6% from a year ago. Total spending by all visitors has risen every month since May 2010. Higher daily spending ($186 per person, up from $179 per person in November 2010) contributed to the growth in total visitor expenditures.

“The HTA’s focus on Asia and emerging markets is paying off with growth in visitor spending and arrivals from Asia, including Korea, China and Japan. In November, air seat capacity from Japan increased 10.5% due to increased service and an additional 5,796 charter seats to Hawai’i. The average daily spending from Japanese visitors also increased, resulting in a 20% growth in visitor expenditures,” added McCartney.

Total arrivals by air only in November 2011 increased 3.6% to 555,630 visitors. Japanese arrivals grew 4.7%, the third consecutive month of increases. Arrivals from Canada (+5.1%), US West (+0.6%) and US East (+2.0%) were also higher compared to November 2010. Arrivals by cruise ships fell 32% from November 2010 to 11,042 visitors.

For the first 11 months of 2011, total expenditures by Canadian visitors rose 26.5%, supported by strong growth in arrivals (+18.8%) and higher average daily spending. Total expenditures by US West (+6.9%) and US East (+9.5%) visitors continued to increase while US West (+1.9%) and US East (+2.0%) arrivals remained above year-to-date 2010. Total Japanese visitor expenditures increased 8.1%, even though arrivals were lower (-5.4%) than the first 11 months of 2010.

“The growth from these markets are helping to offset the drop in spending from the US West and US East that may be attributed to an increase in prices, as well as a recovering US economy,” explained McCartney.

November was also the month of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Week (APEC) which the HTA used to promote Hawai’i as a global meetings destination and highlight the Hawaiian Islands’ centralized location in the Asia-Pacific region. McCartney said, “As anticipated, overall arrivals during November showed modest growth compared to 2010, but the recent increases in arrivals and spending from Japan and other Asia are also indicators of the significance of the Asia-Pacific region and the potential long-term impact that APEC will have on our community.”

“It is also important to note that the visitor data for November 2011 does not include APEC attendees who arrived via private planes or government transportation that is not captured by our research, as well as ancillary business spending that includes security expenses, equipment rental fees, meeting rooms, private parties and other expenses,” said McCartney.

“As we head into 2012, we anticipate seeing an increased shift of our visitor profile with a growing number of visitor arrivals from the Asia-Pacific region. With new flights by Air Australia and Asiana Airlines, as well as increased service by Hawaiian Airlines to South Korea, we see potential to capitalize on opportunities and will continue developing these markets while building on recent gains that will help to provide jobs and stimulate our state’s economy.”

Wailea Substation Upgrade Supports Smart Grid Project

By Wendy Osher
Article From: Mauinow.com

The Maui Smart Grid Project will demonstrate and evaluate new technologies that will help residents better manage and reduce energy consumption during periods of high demand. It will also assist Maui Electric Company (MECO) operate the electricity grid more efficiently.

An advanced energy storage system will be installed at the Maui Electric Company substation in Wailea as part of the Maui Smart Grid Project.

Led by MECO and the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute, the Maui Smart Grid Project is designed to demonstrate and evaluate new technologies for operating the electric grid more efficiently.

The Grid Battery System is being provided by A123 Systems, a developer and manufacturer of advanced lithium ion batteries and systems. It is designed to deliver one megawatt of power for a full hour, reducing the peak energy load on the substation’s transformers.

“We look forward to working with MECO to illustrate the value of our technology within the framework of the next-generation electric grid,” said Robert Johnson, vice president of the Energy Solutions Group at A123.

“A123′s advanced energy storage system has demonstrated the ability to shift peak energy loads when demand is high to provide the consistent delivery of quality power, which is an extremely valuable service that supports MECO’s ongoing effort to increase the reliability of the grid and maximize the generation resources we have in place,” said MECO president, Ed Reinhardt.

“The Maui Smart Grid Project will enable us to evaluate new technologies for enhancing our operations,” said Reinhardt. He said the versatility of A123′s storage system will not only allow the utility to meet peak load shifting requirements, but also perform additional services.

Specific objectives include minimizing emissions, enabling greater utilization of renewable energy sources and improving grid stability.

Aloha Kick-Off to 2012 Hyundai Tournament of Champions

By Wendy Osher
Article from: http://www.mauinow.com

Golfers and spectators will be treated to a special opening ceremony for the 2012 Hyundai Tournament of Champions on Friday, January 6, on Maui.

The Aloha Kick-Off will commence with a Hawaiian blessing by Clifford Naeole, cultural advisor for the Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua. He will be joined by famed Hawaii musician, Henry Kapono.

There will also be a special presentation by the Polynesian Cultural Center, featuring highlights from their latest production, “Ha-Breath of Life.”

This spectacular show is an ancient, yet universal tale of a boy, Mana, born in a distant paradise and nourished by a village. He learns the ways of his people, finds love, and defends everything with heart-stopping bravery.

The Polynesian Cultural Center is located on the island of O’ahu. The special appearance of performers from the PCC at the opening ceremonies of the 2012 Hyundai Tournament of Champions was organized in part by the Hawai’i Tourism Authority and the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau.

The opening ceremony events are scheduled to take place 45 minutes prior to the first tee time at the Plantation Course in Kapalua.

For more information call (808) 665-9160.