NATIONAL CONTESTS

BUSINESS RESULTS

BRAND YOUR STAND

For our next issue, we have decided we needed a little competition. So that means your kiddos will have to show off a little (don’t worry–it’s not bragging). We will begin taking entries for our next issue after Lemonade Day 2013. Details of the contest guidelines, deadlines and prizes to come, so stay tuned!  In the meantime, if you would like your youth to be a Featured Entrepreneur on our blog (and get their name out there so we remember them when they submit their contest entry after Lemonade Day…hint hint), share their Lemonade Day experience below!

Be sure to share through Google +, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest below so your friends and family can see how Lemonade Day empowers today’s youth to become tomorrow’s entrepreneurs. Sometimes tomorrow is sooner than you think!

Tweet

First Year: Dr. Lemon and his Lemon Lab

Complete with beakers, a white lab coat and dry ice!

Second Year: Labra Cadabra

He used his love for magic and drew customers over to his stand by advertising a free magic show! One of the tricks in his show was hypnotizing his audience to make them feel thirsty for lemonade.

Third Year: Clayton’s Big Top Lemonade

At his circus-themed stand his customers got to visit a caged gorilla, watch a flea circus performance, take a photo in the unicycle riding photo booth, a toy claw machine and cotton candy lemonade!

We were so impressed with the creative ideas Clayton came up with, but we were curious what all he has learned in his 3 years as a Lemonade Day participant. We recently caught up with him and this is what he had to say!

What was your favorite thing that you learned by participating in Lemonade Day?

I learned about philanthropy at a lemonade day workshop I attended.  I like the idea of giving part of your earnings to help others.

Why is learning how to run your own business important to you?

I would like to be an inventor someday.  I can use what I learned about running a business to sell my inventions.

How did you decide to spend, save and share your Lemonade Day profits? 

Last year I had planned to use some of my money to spend on a tablet.  But because I won an epad at the best stand contest I put all of my spend and save money in my savings account.  I chose to share 20% of my profits with a special needs camp in honor of my friend Emily who has Down’s Syndrome.

Would you consider Paying it Forward next year to make it possible for a youth in your community to become an entrepreneur just like you?  I would like to teach other kids at my local Children’s Home what I have learned from Lemonade Day.

A special thanks to Clayton’s mom, Janice, for letting us interview Clayton. We can’t wait to see what he comes up with his stand for this year!

Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for the next Featured Entrepreneur!

Do you dream of breaking into a new industry but lack the guts to just, well, go for it?

Are you too scared to make the leap even though you have evidence your idea is awesome?

Then look no further for startup inspiration than Jennifer (Jenny) Fleiss, President and Co-Founder of Rent the Runway. Jenny has a seriously incredible business background, with stints at Morgan Stanley and Lehman Brothers and a Harvard Business MBA. Not to mention starting a tutoring company in college.

What she DOESN’T have, though, is a fashion pedigree. (Other than great taste, obviously.)

And yet she co-founded Rent the Runway with her Harvard Business School section mate just 2 years ago… and already has over 1 million members, 150+ top designer brands, and an inventory of 25,000 dresses and 4,000 accessories.

That’s an incredible achievement after breaking into a brand-new industry. And we believe you can do the same, with a little advice from Jenny about testing the waters and executing your plan!

This Thursday, September 6th at 3 PM EST is your chance to pick Jenny’s brain about business plans (and why you don’t need one), testing your idea before you GO to market (she did it), the real value of an MBA for startup founders, tips on how to break into a brand new industry and revolutionize it — and finally, the dirt on what it really means to be a lifelong entrepreneur. Yes, we’re going to cover it all, or at least as much as we can, during our hour-long #StartupLab live chat presented by Citi.

Don’t miss this one — Jenny is a total rock star. (Don’t believe us? Check out this awesome blog post she wrote about pursing your idea — no matter how wild — and making it profitable.)

Got questions for Jenny? Bring them with you Thursday to the live chat! Click here to RSVP>>

Today’s highlighted entrepreneur story goes out to Nyla with Aahhh 2 J’s Lemonade! 

Nyla started her Aahhh 2J’s Lemonade Stand with a loan she took out from Young Americans Bank, where she has had an account since she was 6 months old! She has since paid back her loan and continues to run her lemonade business online. With the profit she makes from her lemonade business, she has decided to put it in the bank.

Woohoo! Our Groupon Grassroots campaign has tipped! Do you know what that means? It means we can now supply 100 children with both the entrepreneurial materials AND the opportunity to participate in Lemonade Day. 100 more kids that will learn lessons on business, finance, entrepreneurship and life. 100 more kids that will see what they were taught play out in their OWN lemonade stand business. 100 more kids impacted for life by Lemonade Day.

Thank you to everyone who helped support this campaign through donations, sharing, tweeting, posting, and, as always, word-of-mouth. This couldn’t have happened without you!

But wait! It doesn’t have to stop here. Now that our campaign has tipped and 50 donations are secured, the possibilities are really just beginning. Keep sharing and talking about Lemonade Day and our Groupon Grassroots campaign before it ends on Tuesday, August 7th, and let’s just see how many kids we can provide with the experience of a lifetime!

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Issue: Entrepreneurship Education, A Missing Element 

The lemonade stand, an American icon that symbolizes the entrepreneurial spirit of the United States, is the cornerstone of our educational program, Lemonade Day. We want kids to love business and to open their eyes to the possibilities. Through the program, students receive fun, free educational materials that provide 14 lessons in how to open and operate a lemonade stand.  Kids work with a parent, teacher, or other mentor to learn and practice the business and personal skills emphasized in the program. They take the lessons beyond the classroom to have a real-life experience, actually making their own money.

The highlight of the program occurs on the annual Lemonade Day in May when participants all over the country open a lemonade stand for business. Now in its sixth year, Lemonade Day has grown from 2,600 participants in Houston to more than 55,000 and more than 160,000 nationwide in 35 other cities in the United States and Canada.

Lemonade Day: Our Kids

Each child embraces the concepts of Lemonade Day in their own individual way. Some enjoy setting a goal and then making, spending, and sharing their own money. For others, the taste of success, a caring mentor, and a supportive community changes their future outlooks. Read these examples of the impact Lemonade Day has made on an individual child’s outlook on their future:

Mari, 10, a four year participant in Lemonade Day, was recognized at the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards this year and has been invited to audition for Shark Tank, the ABC TV program highlighting entrepreneurs.

Clara, 7, and Eliza, 4, have taken their Cool Blast Lemonade stand above and beyond the Lemonade Day program by keeping their stand open all summer. They even made a Facebook page and website, which received national recognition on Fox & Friends.

Nick, an autistic 16 year old, is applying his Lemonade Day experience to a leather-making business that he and his parents hope will be a way for him to have a lifelong business to support himself.

The Campaign: Sponsoring Youth in Hands-On Entrepreneurial Program

Just $8 provides materials for two children to participate in this hands-on learning experience. The children you sponsor will receive a Lemonade Day backpack, filled with the Entrepreneur Workbook andCaring Adult guide that teaches them the 14 lessons of Lemonade Day including how to set goals, develop a business plan, secure an investor, create a product, make a profit, and give back to the community. If 50 people donate just $8, we can provide these materials and experience to 100 kids!

We couldn’t be more excited to get to work with Groupon Grassroots to help spread our message, and we are happy to see they feel the same way! “We are thrilled to have Lemonade Day as one of our many Back to School campaigns running this week!”-Kyle Klatt, Campaign Organizer, Groupon Grassroots

Please take a moment to share and support our campaign with friends, family and colleagues to allow at least 100 kids get to experience Lemonade Day!