After 29 years and thousands of students, Clyde Aikau closed up his surfing school and concession stand at Duke Kahanamoku Beach in Waikiki for the last time yesterday afternoon and walked away from the only business he's ever known.

"When you've been doing something for that long and then you don't do it anymore, it's a little tough," Aikau said, speaking over the din of the beach, crowded with sunbathers and squealing kids. "It's been a great ride."

Aikau, brother of legendary surfer Eddie Aikau, said he hopes that some of his 10 employees will find positions as surf instructors with Hilton Hawaiian Village. The hotel is taking over the concession stand.

Aikau was paying the state $18,109 monthly to operate the concession on the beach, according to the Department of Land and Natural Resources. That bid, approved last year, topped the next highest offer of $16,888.

As he was preparing to shut down his concession yesterday, Aikau criticized the state, maintaining that his expertise and tenure should afford him a break in rent.

"I think the state should be thinking more about culture than thinking about money," he said. "The city and the state have really lost their vision."

DLNR Chairman Peter Young countered that Aikau, owner of C&K Beach Service, has no one but himself to blame for being unable to make the concession profitable.

"We did not tell anybody what rent to suggest other than a minimum, and then it was competitive," Young said. "We would hope they would evaluate their respective business plans and bid responsibly."

In 2005, Aikau closed his concession stand on Kuhio Beach after failing for months to pay the city's monthly rent of $30,000.

Aikau said he secured a $100,000 loan to pay the city.

Also last year, Aikau declared bankruptcy. With the money he makes selling his concession's lease to Hilton Hawaiian, he plans to pay off his creditors.

In addition to the surfing school, C&K Beach Service rented out watercraft, beach chairs and umbrellas.

Aikau said surfing lessons, which were priced between $50 and $100, made up about 30 percent of his business.

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.