Larry Ellison Bought an Island. Lifelong Locals Are Being Pushed Out

In hindsight, Chris Andrus says, the Nobu opening was a bad sign. It was 2012. Andrus, a bald, goateed, self-proclaimed hippie, was living on Lanai, a Hawaiian island of about 3,000 people, helping an old friend start a woodworking company. Then Larry Ellison, the eccentric co-founder of Oracle Corp. and the 11th-richest person in the world, bought the island—its businesses and the land too. Overnight, Ellison became almost everyone’s boss, landlord, or both.

One of the first things Ellison did was build a Nobu, the definition of an ultra-high-end restaurant chain. Andrus was invited to the soft opening because Lanai Woodworkers had helped build the place. He met Ellison on his way to the bathroom and introduced himself by way of his handiwork, pointing to the hostess stand and wooden walls. Ellison shook his hand and told him, “We’re gonna do great work together,” he recalls.