Grand openings are often quite grand for businesses in Hawaii. Customers rush to get the first look, the first taste and all those introductory specials. Though famously brand-loyal, Hawaii consumers get so excited to try something new. We love it when it’s the first Hawaii location for a mainland chain. We adore it when it’s the first Hawaii location for a Japanese-based brand. There are long lines of eager customers waiting at the door, friendly features in local media, excited lunchroom conversations about the new restaurant, new clothing store, new airline.

Think of the long lines when Daiso opened in Hawaii last year, or the giddiness over Southwest Airline specials, the devoted throngs queued up for hours outside Uniqlo.

The only thing that compares to those crowds and all the public adoration in the beginning is the reaction in the end when a business shuts down. Devotees come out of the woodwork to stand in line for the very last whatever that won’t be available anymore. There are heartfelt tributes on social media and a kind of desperate hoarding of logo items. Think of the last days of Wailana Cafe or the last days of the Willows. People who hadn’t been to Libby’s Manapua in years were suddenly Libby’s biggest fans when news got out that their pork hash days were over.

The success of a business, though, is not based on how much buzz the opening generates or how many tears the closing inspires, but what happens in the middle.

Ask go! Airlines about the middle.

Ask Yauatcha, Baku and Kona Grill at the International Market Place about the middle.

Ask Beard Papa how things went when the massive lines around old Shirokiya stopped and it had to offer free samples in Foodland to remind people that they were still around and still tasty.

The middle, those months and years when the novelty wears off and a business settles into the right scale of work and goes about developing a following, is where a company lives or dies. It’s when consumers decide whether they like how they’re treated, approve of the parking situation and value the product or service. It’s where owners figure out whether they can navigate Hawaii’s notoriously twisted regulations and all the economic complications of operating in a remote island state. It’s when Yelp reviews start to add up and Facebook rants go viral or, most crucial of all, word-of-mouth reviews from friends and relatives build a brand more effectively than any marketing campaign. Uncle says, “Yeah, it’s good. Go check it out.” Auntie says, “Nah, don’t believe the hype.” Those reviews are crucial.

Southwest Airlines will enjoy the initial rush of interest that comes with a mainland company that deigns to select Hawaii as a place to make money. Discounted fares will win instant fans. But in a place where we’ve seen interisland airlines come and go over the past two decades, the test will be in the days when the newness wears off, the realness settles in and the everyday reviews of ordinary people outweigh everything else.

Reach Lee Cataluna at 529-4315 or lcataluna@staradvertiser.com.