Lessons from Lemonade Stands
Lemonade stands, with their diminutive proprietors, are a summer staple. Recently, New York magazine interviewed a gaggle of New York City lemonade stand operators between the ages of 5 and 10.
Despite their youth, these kids clearly have some shrewd entrepreneurial instincts. (Maybe it’s city smarts?)
Check out these interviews, which were conducted by New York magazine writer Joanna Goddard. [Note the Agent Blog analysis after each one]:
Note that they have diversified their product line by offering fortunes. They also know to keep their money jar away from the public eye. Oliver says they’re not competitive—an indication of confidence!—and that they will patronize other stands. This means they’ll likely get some good competitive intel.Stand 1
REBECCA HORWITZ, 8, AND ARI HORWITZ, 5, SIBLINGS.
Location: On their stoop near Prospect Park in Park Slope.
Price per cup: 50 cents.
How do you make the lemonade? ELINOR: Real lemons, real sugar, and ice.
Do you sell anything else? ELINOR: We sometimes tell people’s fortunes.
What kinds of fortunes? ELINOR: We usually pick bad ones. Like this woman walked up and we said, “You’re going to grow a beard.”
Where do you put the money? OLIVER: In a jar, but you have to hide it under the table. Otherwise, they will say, “Oh, you already have too much money! We’re not going to buy lemonade!”
What will you do with the earnings? ELINOR: I like to wait for a rainy day. I’m saving for a car when I’m 16. I’ve never touched my piggy-bank money. Once I tried to count it, but it got away from me. I was like, “One, two, three, four, I’m tired.”
Do you go to other people’s lemonade stands? OLIVER: We’re not competitive. We’ll buy their lemonade.
Earnings . . . . . . . . . . $30 to $126
Stand 2Talk about ingenuity! ‘OREONADEOL’? Brilliant. And yes, Oreos and lemonade are a classy combo. Once again, they’re differentiating themselves by adding another item (cleverly spelled) to the menu. Also, it’s clear that their pricing structure isn’t willy-nilly—they know their client base and what they can afford.
ALSTON BIGGS AND FISCHER BODWELL, BOTH 10, BEST FRIENDS.
Location: On their stoop outside their Upper West Side apartment.
Price per cup: 25 cents.
How did you lure customers? WILL: We made up a word that was Oreo and lemonade: OREONADEOL.
Does it work? WILL: Sort of. We have a lot of customers, and a few were hobos. SAM: No customers were hobos.
How did you know what to charge? SAM: My personal financial advice is 25 cents, because everyone can afford it. Even if your allowance is $1, you will be able to afford four glasses. Also, you can make a classy combo with Oreos, or do three glasses for 50 cents.
Do you have advice about giving good customer service? SAM: You might want to joke with them. WILL: But not a lot. Sam does it too much. SAM: You know it’s good if they point their finger at you, “Ahahahaha.” Laughing is contagious.
Do you enjoy having lemonade stands? SAM: If there’s a definition of fun, that would be the definition of it.
Earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . .$20 to $30
These kids tested their product, tried alternatives, and thus were in a good position to know where to cut costs. And with their intentionally misspelled sign, these kids clearly know their market—adoring adults—and shamelessly cater to it. They also take lead generation quite seriously, sending Henry, who will work for pennies, into the park to wave a sign.Stand 3
SAM SCHILLER, 10, AND WILL SCHILLER, 8, BROTHERS.
Location: Outside Washington Market Park in Tribeca.
Price per cup: $1.
How do you make your lemonade? FISCHER: My family took lemons and squeezed and squeezed. We were sweating. But Alston’s family mixed powder with water. And the thing is, when you taste it, there’s really no difference.
Did you draw signs? FISCHER: Alston made signs and spelled some things wrong. ALSTON: When you spell things wrong, they say, “Oh, that’s cute.”
So you do it on purpose? We misspelled lemonade: LEMADE.
Does warm weather help sales? FISCHER: Last time, it got foggy. Not as many people came. They’d say, “We’ll come back in one hour.” One hour later, they don’t come back.
Do you share the profits equally? ALSTON: Last year, all his brother Henry did was sit back and eat cookies. He’s a sweet tooth. FISCHER: This year, we paid Henry to carry a sandwich board around the park. Like, slave wages.
Which are? FISCHER: We gave him $2.
Earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . about $20
Stand 4
WALTER GOLDBERG, 7, ELINOR WEISSBERG, 10, SIBLINGS, AND OLIVER GOLDBERG- LEWIS, 10, COUSIN.
Location: On the sidewalk outside their Dumbo apartment.
Price per cup: $1.
Who’s your typical Customer? ARI: Most are in their thirties or forties. Usually more boys than girls.
Do people give you tips? REBECCA: People will sometimes give you $10 and say “Keep the change.” Why? Because the lemonade is so good and the service is so good.
Maybe also because you’re cute? No.
Has the price of lemons this year affected your stand? REBECCA: Last year, we charged 25 cents for a half cup and 50 cents for a whole cup. But this year, we had to double our prices. My mom said she was shocked at the priceof lemons.
What’s the best age to have a stand? REBECCA: The best age to start pouring is 6. Or 5 or 4. Or 5 and 6. Or 7 and 8.
Do you enjoy selling? REBECCA: Sometimes I worry that the bakery across the street will get angry because we steal their business. ARI: Rebecca is freaking. We’re really not stealing their customers because we’re not taking them without asking.
Earnings . . . . . . . . . . $92 to $240I love the confidence these kids have in their product and service. I also like Ari’s take-no-prisoners attitude when it comes to stealing customers from his competition. Can’t take the heat? Get out of the lemonade stand.Check out the full article, and accompanying pictures, here.
[Tip of the hat to Megan for the link!]
