What has music got to do with good interior design for high-end Hawaiian residences? Everything, according to Richard Krajchir, founder and CEO of Pacific Orient Traders in Honolulu. Speaking with pride of his Gentry Design Center staff of 10...and of the dozens of craftsmen who create custom furnishings at his Mainland China workshop...Krajchir employs a musical metaphor.

"My job," he declares," is to be an orchestra leader. But I am privileged to lead a team of talented 'musicians' and together we create great 'music' in the form of inspiring furnishings and designs." As an example, Krajchir points to a new suite of luxury condominiums in the $1 million to $2.5 million range at Ko'lina. Pacific Orient Traders is furnishing these elegant homes and, according to Krajchir, most of the well-heeled homeowners don't want contemporary styles and themes.

"They want that Island feeling," he said. "When they come off that airplane and hit their condo, they want to feel they are in Hawaii! That is what we give them. Every residence is different. One has a nautical island feel; another is focused on seashells; and there many other tropical themes. We employe exclusively Hawaiian artists and supplies. The bedding we do is all handmade in Honolulu with fabric imported from the mainland."

Pacific Orient was founded just six years ago as the Hawaiian face of Krajchir's 35-year-old import-export company, which specialized in finding, restoring, and providing handmade wooden Qing Dynasty masterpieces, originally created centuries ago. When Krajchir and a partner opened their Mainland China workshop in the mid-1990s, its mission was to supplement Pacific Orient's antique imports business by designing and building new, high-quality pieces in the same grand tradition.

The company is understandably proud of its old-world craftsmanship and high-quality, eco-friendly materials. "We work with inlaid stone and mango wood," said Krajchir. "We also do a lot with rattan now, and we're really into bamboo since it grows very quickly and does not damage the rainforest." The company works with leading Hawaiian interior designers and developers, not only furnishing homes but also providing designs for showroom suites.

Pacific Orient Traders' own showroom and website were recast this spring, conveying an "East Meets West, Old Meets New" theme that reflects a sophisticated global sensibility. This raises the age-old question, what exactly is Hawaiian style?

Krajchir answers with another question. "Who and what in Hawaii constitutes what is Hawaiian?" he wonders. "Let's face it; everybody in the Aloha State dabbles. At Pacific Orient, we don't call our approach Hawaiian per se, but we do say that we have a strong feeling for Island interiors."