Sure, you can throw together a lemonade stand by setting out a card table topped with red Solo cups, a plastic pitcher and a paper towel roll. But if you really want to spruce up that stand, the sky’s the limit on what you and the kids can craft together.
No organization has seen more examples of outstanding lemonade stand ideas than Lemonade Day, a national organization formed in 2007. Each year, youth in participating cities can participate and experience entrepreneurship by setting up their business during their city’s community-wide Lemonade Day.
Prepare for a successful stand
The Lemonade Day model teaches kids to run a successful stand. That means not only having a great look and product but also building a business and financial plan. For their business plan, kids should know important things in advance: what they’re going to sell, what their goals are, who they can approach for a starter loan, how much they need to earn to turn a profit and how much they can market their stand. They also determine how much of their profit to spend, save and donate.
Encourage little entrepreneurs
Leigh Christie’s two daughters, Lily and Ivy, participated in Lemonade Day for five years. While their stands were simple, their elaborate and creative handmade signs drew people in, and their enthusiasm and ability to talk about their stand’s goals made them a success, Christie explains.
Christie is the director of the Entrepreneurs Foundation, which supports Lemonade Day efforts in Austin, Texas, where the foundation is based. “I talk to a lot of entrepreneurs in my line of work, and it seems like they all had something when they were young that really sparked the entrepreneurial spirit,” she says. “Whether it was a mowing business or lemonade stand, it was something that gave them the confidence and skills they needed to get started.”
Get inspired
Get kids excited about the possibilities of a lemonade stand by having them help build one. Need some lemonade stand ideas? Here are five awesome ones that can make your lemonade stand the coolest on the street:
1. Theme it
Your lemonade stand doesn’t have to be just an ordinary lemonade stand. Get creative by giving your stand a theme that gets your stand noticed. Makes yours a magical unicorn stand and decorate it with rainbows. Kids can dress up as their favorite characters, historical figures or superheroes. The ideas are endless.
2. Make it a party
Momstown has some great ideas for turning a lemonade stand into a memorable party, such as adding a photo booth, making a lemonade bowling game and having a chalk drawing contest.
3. Build it
See Vanessa Craft offers a full tutorial on creating a crate lemonade stand. This low-cost stand looks wonderful, and kids can easily personalize it in the theme of their choice. Store it, and let them repaint year after year for a new upcycled look. If you have some extra wood in the garage, More Like Home provides a step-by-step tutorial to building a stand.
4. Box it up
Have a big box that’s been calling for a creative use? Turn it into a lemonade stand like this one on Oh Happy Day. Add bunting and a banner to two poles (even broomsticks would work) and attach them to a card table. This stand will get noticed from a distance!
5. Go with printables
AlphaMom helps take the work out of the process by providing free printables to make super-cute bunting and a banner!
Now that you’ve got some ideas, go forth, and turn lemons into lemonade!
