Although some of you know I play my KoAloha and Kamaka 99% of the time, my Kanile'a has a very special place in my heart, as my first "real" ukulele. And as much as I love it for its sound, and looks, it is the special customer service of Joe and Kristen Souza that will make me a Kanile'a fan for life.
I bought my ukulele in December of 2008 in California, but decided to tour their factory in May of 2009. I ended up taking the bus from Honolulu to Kaneohe, and got off at the wrong stop. I ended up walking about a mile to their factory, in the Oahu heat (I guess I should be happy I was on the windward side of the island!) and when I arrived, Joe and Kristen couldn't have been nicer. Kristen even said I should have called, they would have picked me up at the bus stop!
Joe took about an hour out of his day, to talk to us and take us through the factory -- it was a terrific experience, as I had the chance to see up close and personal the steps of ukulele creation from koa wood log to finished product. I was also lucky enough to see the custom Kanile'a that Joe was building at that time for one of my favorite uke players, Aldrine Guerrero of Ukulele Underground!
The most amazing part was that even though I only met them once, I was shocked when I ran into them at the October Southern California Ukulele Festival, and Kristen shouted, "Joe, look it is Staci!" I couldn't believe they remembered not only my face, but my name.
I know the KoAloha folks have out of this world customer service (the stories here at UU certainly prove that), but it is hard for me to imagine two nicer folks in the ukulele industry than those at Kanile'a. The people at Kamaka were terrific, but the people at Kanile'a make you feel like family. Here are just a couple of the photos I took that day...
When I first arrived, Joe and I posed in the front of the factory. We both are wearing Kanile'a Ukulele tshirts.
A stock of koa wood, ready to be turned into musical goodness.
The best use ever of binder clips.
"Waimea" my Kanile'a K2 tenor gets the drill from Joe as he installs her strap button. I was trying not to faint, like an expectant parent.
Joe Souza, "Waimea" and I pose in front of the hall of fame in their shipping area, filled with Kanile'as and some other brands used in the ukulele lessons in the nearby Windward Mall.
I can't thank Joe and Kristen enough for giving me a wonderful day, and making me feel so special when I saw them again in October. My KoAloha may be my favorite ukulele to play, but my Kanile'a will always be special to me because it came from some of the nicest people in the ukulele industry.
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