Kainoa Daines, who was honored earlier this year by Hawaii Business magazine as one of our “20 For the Next 20” young business leaders of 2011, has been named the new director of sales for the Oahu Visitors Bureau. As such he is responsible for global sales initiatives and travel trade curriculum development, according to an official news release this morning from the OVB.

“Kainoa offers a wealth of experience in working to perpetuate and promote the Hawaiian culture, and we are excited to tap into his knowledge and incorporate his ideas into our marketing initiatives,” said OVB executive director Les Enderton in a statement.
Daines has served as executive director of the King Kamehameha Celebration Commission; director of sales/cultural director for the Queen Kapiolani Hotel; and a sales manager at the Miramar in Waikiki. In all of these roles he focused on creating authentic experiences for visitors to the Islands.

In his profile published in the March issue of Hawaii Business, Iolani Palace executive director Kippen de Alba Chu had high praise for Daines. “Kainoa is striving to bridge the gap between the visitor industry and our host culture…He has consistently sought authenticity and appropriateness by the industry whenever it has used Hawaiian culture to attract visitors.”

Daines is a graduate of Kamehameha Schools, and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in hotel administration from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.