Whaler's Fine Jewelry - Rising from the Ashes
Ask Tien Doan about what it is like to start over – and he will likely ask back: which time?
Doan’s remarkable life has required several hard re-boots.
The most recent one being when he lost nearly everything – one of his two Lahaina jewelry businesses, and his home, and villas by the Maui wildfires on August 8, 2023 – which spared his second business but laid waste to everything else he owned and loved.
During those terrifying hours, Tien attempted to save his home and business from the scorching flames that engulfed the property of most of his neighbors, leaving death, despair and destruction in its wake.
Doan stayed for a couple of hours trying to hose his properties, before being pushed back by the relentless inferno.
He witnessed death around him and with tears in his eyes describing the moments of trying to survive. Since he was a child, he has been in survival mode for his family.
A Vietnam immigrant, Doan, began his heroic journey in 1975 to the United States as a refugee escaping from the Vietnam war and communism at the age of 15 years old – having to start over at that early age. Through his trials and tribulations in his life he learned how to endure adversaries and always prepare himself in the terms of survival. So, when the flames approached everything, he built in Lahaina, Doen’s first instinct was to fight back and defend what he owned.
Recovery was slow – but steady
During the six-month commemoration of the Maui wildfires, SBA Administrator Isabel Guzman, along with SBA Region IX Regional Administrator Elmy Bermejo, and Hawaii SBA District Office Deputy District Director Hazel Beck visited businesses that were impacted.
One of the businesses, was Whaler’s Jewelry. Tien and his wife, Amy, shared their story with Administrator Guzman and showed video coverage (from his tablet) of what he faced that day from the wildfires.
Doan explained to Administrator Guzman that while he lost almost everything, he was fortunate one of his businesses – Whaler’s Jewelry – survived.
At this difficult time, he told Administrator Guzman, that SBA came in a crucial part in his life and family. He told her he applied for his home and businesses, but that the application process appeared to be without end.
However, there were major setbacks due to the lack of tourism and people fearing to come to Maui, he explained, causing him economic distress. Fall and winter were the seasons where his business was at its peak. During the winter, tourists travel to Maui.
Administrator Guzman was moved by his story, and how he and his family survived the wildfires, and made a point of personally following his case file. Administrator Guzman shared this with everyone on Maui she spoke with and on her media platform.
She noted that Whaler’s was truly a business rising from the ashes. A true testament to how a business survives from such devastation. Doan thought he was going to lose everything and if it was not for the SBA he would have.
Once funding came through and a path forward emerged, Doan wrote an email thanking SBA Administrator Guzman and ODR&R customer service representatives for their help. “I am writing to inform you that we have received the disbursed fund in our account today,” Doan said. “What a happy day for us to receive this much-needed support. I wanted to express our deepest gratitude from the bottom of our hearts for your assistance throughout this process,” Doan continued.
“This fund means a great deal to us, especially after the devastating wildfires that affected us eight months ago. Your support and guidance have been invaluable in helping us navigate this challenging time, and we are truly thankful for the assistance provided by the Small Business Administration. It will play a crucial role in helping our small business survive and recover from the impact of the wildfires. Your support has given us hope and a renewed sense of determination to rebuild and move forward,” Doan wrote.
In close, Doan saved his most heartfelt praise to the entire SBA organization that mobilized in Hawaii for this wildfire disaster. “I would also like to extend our gratitude to the entire team at the SBA who have been supporting us from day one, providing guidance and assistance every step of the way,” he said. Doan named every single person who had assisted him from the SBA on the email.
The Path to the United States was Narrow, and Littered with Setbacks and Danger
To hear him tell it, his whole life has been a struggle for doing what is right.
Tien, his brother, and cousin escaped his country, Vietnam, by walking to Cambodia. During that period, it was communism and the Vietnam war. His father was jailed due to not being a communist in Vietnam.
Vietnam and Cambodia were communist countries around the 1970s. Many were forced into reeducation camps to convert them into communists. Tien and his family were democrats and suffered in those camps. Throughout their escape route, he avoided land mines and managed to make it to Thailand where it was considered a safe zone.
In 1987, while in Thailand Tien was captured and put into a refugee camp. He was jailed for 3 months. After his release, he stayed a couple of years in Thailand where he was able to learn English. He had an aunt already in Honolulu and that was his goal to have a better life and opportunity as they say the “American Dream.”
In 1990, Tien Doan immigrated to Honolulu, HI for freedom. He went to high school in Honolulu and then attended college. This is where he met his wife. His father and the family left Honolulu and partnered with his uncle who was already in Lahaina on Maui. He and his uncle began the jewelry business in Lahaina. He and his brother worked 7 days a week and even slept in the business. Through the family’s hard work, they were successful and able to have a better future.
Continuing the family legacy, Whaler’s Fine Jewelry was established in 2006. Tien and his wife Amy continued the same work ethic working seven days a week continuously until today.
His businesses are everything to him, and he wanted to have a better life for his children. He stated multiple times. As Doan has stated numerous times, I don’t want my children to go through the difficult challenges that I endured.