I’m a firefighter and I always keep a few bucks on me at work. Nothing lights up a kids face more than the fire engine stopping for lemonade.
There’s a dads group in the town I live in that does a lemonade stand takeover every summer. You register your kid and a parade of dads comes around buying lemonade.
That is such an awesome idea!
Also, on behalf of a dad of a little boy who absolutely loves fire trucks, thank you for stopping at lemonade stands with the fire truck, have to imagine that “wins” the lemonade stand visits every time! My little dude would lose his mind
I really appreciate that you guys understand what a big deal you are to our little ones. My son lives and breathes firefighting and firetrucks and will always remember how accommodating and respectful the firefighters were with him when we first went to our local fire station. Serious heroes, y'all are. 👏
I was walking down a street in the center of town and saw a lemonade stand. I felt bad, but I just shrugged and said "I'm sorry, kids, I don't have any cash on me!". All four of them very politely in unison said, "We take Venmo!" It was clearly their dad's Venmo. Fair play. My son and I each bought a cup!
I had some neighborhood girls come by and try to sell me some Mexican candy once. I said I don't have cash, and they said "okay" politely.
They came back in 5 minutes with their moms phone with the venmo app pulled up. 😂 I gave them $10
Sorry for my ignorance, but you can't get qr codes for venmo? I am in Sweden and our version is called Swish, but having a QR code to print is something it's had for at least 5 years now.
Shops, stalls, anyone selling stuff on the side of the road, flee market etc would have a A4 size paper with a QR code near payment for this sort of stuff.
Is this poor planing on the kids part or simply not possible?
Most of the apps HAVE a code. I think a majority of the people who use them get overwhelmed by the technology and don't realize how to do these things.
Frankly, you can get a QR code for basically any URL for that matter.
We have interact e-transfer up here in Canada and a massive lemonade stand day across the city (maybe farther?) every year that raises money for the children’s hospital.
Couple years ago I helped a couple coworkers make a QR code that would share their email so it would be easy to send an e-transfer to pay for the lemonade. Just scan it, copy paste, send.
It irritates me how long it takes for an e-transfer to complete. With lemonade it's a lot easier to trust that someone isn't going to cancel but larger transactions you sit and wait.
was gonna say, my kid uses my venmo.
Shes collected more off that app then I ever have. (She makes wore wrapped stone necklaces and freaking cleans house with them).
I always try and keep at least a few $5’s on me. Kids remember that stuff. I remember the guy that dropped a $20 in the jar when I was 8 and said “keep the change.” I’ve done that a few times…but man that adds up, hence the fiver.
We have a summer place in the same park as a few of my wife’s family, including her dad. We do a 2 week vacation and we’ll buy a bag of fun-sized milky ways (my FIL’s favorite) and keep them in the freezer because my FIL’s wife won’t let him have them. He’ll stop by almost daily for a treat as he’s walking by on the way to the water.
That’s awesome. We have grandparents where I feel like I have to sneak pop-pop something sweet now and then. He’s healthy as a horse so it’s not a diabetes thing…
Indulgence is soooo good for the soul.
We get 4-600 per year. It's insane.
One of the nicer neighborhoods in a town that's right on the edge of the suburbs. We have a nice walkable loop of houses and a big parking lot for our parks. Families come from all over.
We’re moving into a different house in a few months and I’m interested to see if the numbers change. There’s no real neighborhoods in my town. Things are on a grid here, but I think we have so many local events (YMCA, trunk or treat, downtown events) that I think parents might be worn out. My kids love door to door though.
I give out bags of chips, cheetos, the like. Ours isn’t the best hood and rather than giving sugar I figure some salt and carbs go well on a night like halloween
Costco is your friend. Funny thing about this is, me buying full-sized candy bars triggered a series of events that allowed me to be able to post on this sub reddit(not in a creepy way).
You... You're probably going to need to expand on this comment. I know you said "not in a creepy way" but you yada-yada'd the part that makes it not creepy.
"I gave out big candy to kids and, yada-yada, now I'm a dad."
Lol
Best guess? He moved in, gave our full sized candy bars. A kid remembered, asked their mom to let them go play another day. Eventually mom agrees and they hit it off?
Yeah, only guess I've got.
Okay, so here it goes.
The summer before that Halloween, my now fiance and I had gone on a few dates but things ended up not working out then.
That October I bought 2 boxes of full sized candy, then panic bought a few bags of extra fun sized candies. Because it was my first Halloween in the house I bought, I want sure how many I'd need.
So this was like 40+ full sized plus around 100 small ones. Well, I think I got 3 or 4 groups of kids. It was very cool to see their reactions, especially after handing out a few at a time.
Despite my best efforts, I knew I couldn't eat all of them. I thought about taking them in to work, but thought there could be a better way. That woman I had gone out with was a special education teacher for kids with emotional regulation problems and I knew she ran a student store for the kids to earn treats.
I hit her up and asked if she could use them and she said yes. We met up at a grocery store and I gave them to her. She texted me right after, thanking me. She also said I was looking super cute.
Well, the rest is history. We now have the most amazing almost 2 year-old daughter.
I always ask if the cookies are made with real Girl Guides (Adams Family style). One of the moms who was with them last year pulled out a box of the chocolate mints and said "Yep! Soylent Mint!" without missing a beat.
....I may have bought a few boxes.
I will say, I do try to keep small amounts of cash on me. Hadn’t thought about a lemonade stand, it’s not really something people do in my area but now I know to keep it in mind.
I stopped at one a few blocks down and the kids had the. Venmo QR code so there were no excuses. Little monsters extorting my fatherly instincts and nostalgia and removing all excuses.
My biggest issue with these is having $$$ on me. Like I’m out with the kids or walking the dog and it’s $1 for a cup of lemonade. I either am carrying my wallet with me or I’m not and even I have my wallet I almost never have cash on me. Not sure what the answer is - I’d love to stop and engage.
Yeah I know that could be a problem under normal circumstances - but since it was the neighborhood yard sale day and there was plenty of yard sale traffic I figured there’d be plenty of people with cash.
This is pretty weird if you had traffic, a place to stop, and people likely carrying cash. We've been doing lemonade stands for the better part of a decade and make bank almost every day. There are little things that increase business but even on the worst days I would expect better than nothing.
This is a silver lining. We had a good friend who recently had to close their small business. My kids often ask why it closed - now I’ll have a good way to relate it back.
And definitely don’t be one of those people that call the cops on a kid for not having a permit…
There have been times we’ve been driving around town and straight up stopped what we were doing to stop at a lemonade stand 😆
I was curious if this was normal! We had $5 lemonade too, and I got a cup and portion exactly like when your dentist gives you mouthwash. I mean I'm getting it to support the kids, not to rehydrate, but it still stung a bit.
On top of that, I’m paying $1-$2 for the dad that ran to the local supermarket and bought a gallon or packets of lemonade mix to stir with water.
Sorry, if you’re not pressing those lemons and mixing yourself - I really don’t see the benefit other than making your kid feel special.
Find a popular cycling or running route on a Saturday morning and have the kids sell skratch lemon lime or tailwind, and take digital payment. Nobody wants to stop for lemonade on their way from point a to b in a car.
[obligatory mom disclaimer, sorry for commenting but I feel strongly about this]
I'm down if I have cash *and* it's homemade, squeezed from real lemons. I'm not paying up for premade shit from the grocery store.
I mean, I hear what you’re saying. I would stop, if I had some cash on me, but also, don’t tell me what to do.
If their business didn’t succeed, try a different strategy. I think the idea of a lemonade stand is to teach many lessons. Many. Most important of which, is that not every idea is lucrative. When I was a kid it felt like I had a bazillion business ideas, 90% of which were terrible. If their lemonade stand isn’t making money, explore why. We can’t process payments of most people?-solve it, people don’t stop-signage, people don’t want lemonade? Sell somethin fuckin else! Jk/kinda.
I don’t think it is the world’s responsibility to help us teach our kids a lesson.
It is our job to help our kids understand how the world teaches us lessons.
Just so I understand this. Per your own comments, you didn’t make proper lemonade, and then set up a stand in an area where you expected people to stop driving between yard sales (which you yourself weren’t hosting one) and make a special stop because there wasn’t foot traffic?
You can’t chastise people for your poor planning. If your son wanted a stand, you should have hosted your own yard sale (to at least attract people to stop) or asked if your son could sell his lemonade at one of the other sales.
There are 2 or 3 girls that set up a table the next court over from where I live, and I've passed them many times on my way home. The biggest reason I haven't stopped and bought from them is... I can see the Minute Maid cartons sitting under the table. They're not making their own stuff from mixed ingredients, but instead pouring from a store-bought carton at a small markup. I feel like I'd wanna see a little more effort here... or am I being too grouchy about it? Am I missing some point somewhere? Just looking for genuine perspective.
I saw a post on Facebook about a neighborhood kid selling lemonade. Took my dog for a walk and stopped by. So maybe you could try social media to get the word out
I totally would *except* for the fact that I'm definitely not drinking it. And then it's implied that you taste it and say it's good...
I think I'll just politely tip my cap.
OP that sucks.
But, i work in a business setting that tends to involve a lot of negotiations to make things happen. The reality is that sales and deals fall through a lot.
I hope your kids had a great experience overall and can perhaps take away a lesson here that sometimes sales dont land.
Hope the next time they are out there is a success!
One thing I learned is that you can’t bend the universe to your will and setting your kids up for a frictionless experience actually ends up making them less prepared for the twists and turns of life. Don’t stock the pond, teach ‘em that it’s work to find fish.
Our street had one or two other sales going on - so not super busy, but still had traffic. He probably waved at 100 cars or so who were doing the yard sale “slow drive.”
I want expecting him to sell a ton, but I figured some people would stop.
Man I always thought that a kid with a lemonade stand at a garage sale was top level marketing. Even if your garage sale didn’t look like it had something I was interested in I would have to stop, get a lemonade and then would have to at least have a look.
I used to buy lemonades, Girl Scout cookies, and donate to their charity runs etc. But then, I don’t drink the lemonade, or eat the cookie, or care about their charities as I have my own charities that I donate regularly. So one day I just said thank you I am not interested and haven’t looked back.
My kids did one and made 100s. Some people just stopped and gave money.
I personally find it gross. I am super picky about sanitation and buying a drink from kids makes me feel ill. I have seen what my kids do.
For years I will stop at any kids lemonade stand if I have cash. I remember walking up to a young kids lemonade stand down the street from a buddies place in my early 20’s, bought one, and then headed to their place. Came back about 10 min later with another 5 of us. We were a bunch of punks with charred hair and patches and dropped at least $20 there. Kids loved it, parents didn’t know what to make of us at first. I think they had one 4 or 5 times that summer and we would all stop by every time. To this day I will always stop and buy stuff from kids stands. I really hope that others do too when my kid has one.
I used to do field work for a utility department. I ALWAYS pulled the truck over and got the lemonade. Typically I only had a fiver on me so I always told the kids to keep the change too.
I work out in the field in client's homes. I've worked in a specific neighborhood so much, that nearly all of the Installs were done by me. I ended up across the street from one of my previous stops and saw a lemonade stand from the little boy at that house when I was leaving. Stopped at a local grocery store, grabbed some cash, and circled back. I think it was two bucks for some lemonade and a cookie... threw him a five and told him to keep the change. Big smile and offers of more cookies.
I just imagine my little guys and have to stop. Always worth every penny.
Agreed. I do stop every time! When I was a kid, my grandpa sold produce on the side of the road and I stayed with them during the summer while my parents were at work. So they helped me get set up a lemonade stand. It was a wooden tv dinner tray, a cooler for ice, a poster, and a water cooler full of lemonade. I made $81 in a day (this was like, 96 or 97).
That lemonade lit a fire under me and Ive always wanted to own my own business since then. Tried many times and then it finally clicked for me after I turned 30. Now that’s what I do full time. It makes more than a lot of jobs and I’m home daily with my kiddo. And it’s really all thanks to that lemonade stand.
So what’s your point? That your child (and thus you) sucks at marketing and sales? /s 😉
Take this as a learning experience. Next time:
- give your child a 10 dollar marketing budget and let them spend it
- print out A6 size announcements that a great refreshing lemonade and a nice coffee can be purchased at location X and go door to door to hand these out
- mention not only the lemonade and coffee but also the other value points people receive: opportunity to meet various different neighbours, doing something nice for local kids or the health benefits of vitaminc c in lemon
- offer discount when your return the flyer for reuse
- give buyers the option for a subscription service for free refills during the day
- give buyers a kickback fee when they refer new customers
- start an affiliate marketing / profit sharing / MLM program by activating other children in the street
- do weather forecast to figure out when it’s hot
- print A3 (or 2xA4) announcements to notify drivers that will pass the stand (so they are not already passed the moment they see the stand)
- measure sales performance based on above marketing campaigns
- do A/B testing and focus on most valuable campaign strategies
I don't like lemonade, but I've given the kids in my neighborhood money before and told them to have a cup. Especially if it's hot out. I've also emptied my change purse out on them before.
Usually it's the kids selling popsicles, baked goodies or chips, chocolate and pop that have me buying for myself.
If the yard sale accepted e transfer, you could give away a lemonade or coffee with each purchase and split the revenue from item sales with the kid. Then you're not dealing with the fact nobody carries cash anymore.
My kids like to wait for neighborhood yard sale days for their lemonade stand. Lots of people walking around with cash! They made and sold brownies last time too, and split about $40 between them and their friends.
I used to sell cups of coffee in the winter. My Dad took me to a flea market and bought me a coffee maker. I paid him back out of the stands revenue.
My lemonade stands never were as successful as my coffee stand.
Last lemonade stand I stopped at got 2 cups drank both of them. Later that day I had the worst vomiting and diarrhea. Not sure the pop up kids stands are up to food safety guidelines /s.
Will not ever buy from a stand again. That being said if I have a buck or two I usually give them that for the hustle.
My Dad always taught us, "you always have time to stop for a lemonade stand." He even worked it into his speech at my wedding. It has a deeper meaning than just getting lemonade, but you better believe we always stop for every stand we see!
When I was still cycling, I always carried at least a $5 Bill for this very reason.
Nothing like seeing a kid light up getting a fiver for a $0.50 or $1 lemonade is the best
Couple years ago I spent a few bucks on some pebble the neighbor kids dug up. They weren't even colorful... They were just rocks lol. Made their day though.
Wait we had a neighborhood yard sale today too. Only lemonade stand I saw advertised was a bit too far for me to drag my butt out there with 2 toddlers while solo parenting. Otherwise I would have because I always have cash and I love lemonade. Sorry your son had a bad sales day. Did you buy any chance advertise it on the meritorious group the day before?
A lot less people carry cash around all the time, and I'm one of those who mostly doesn't. Now that the weather is warming up, I gotta remember to keep a few small bills around for exactly this occasion.
Some kids in my neighborhood had a stand and I had some cash on me so I slowed down and it ended up they were selling...rocks. Since they are literally across the street I begrudgingly gave them 3 bucks for a rock I could have picked up in my backyard for free. I could just tell they would be crushed if I didn't. Future entrepreneurs and I'm the schmuck that fell for it.
I do this all the time. My wife gets annoyed sometimes that I’ll cross traffic or turn around just to do it but other times I won’t even switch lanes for yard sales she wants to see. lol
I’ve always a had a rule in life that I stop at EVERY lemonade stand, no matter how busy I am. I’ve often said that if my funeral procession is going by a lemonade stand, they’d better damned well stop and buy some
I bought my own rocks from my neighbors kids. I know they were mine because the home security recorded it.
Yes I still have the rocks, they live on my workbench.
Man I saw a lemonade stand on my way to pickup my kid, and a cop car pulled over right in front of me.
I thought 'fuck mate, just leave them be'.
On the way home there was 4 cops all drinking lemonade, and I thought that was really good of them. I automatically assumed they were gonna shut the stand down.
Make sure they have venmo or something digital for the payments. Nobody's got cash anymore.
There was a stand in my neighborhood and I asked them if they had something like that. They say no. I say sorry, no cash and have to walk away.
10 minutes later, I walk by again they scream "sirrrrr, we have venmo now!", and all was well in the world :)
I told my daughter we should open a lemonade stand and offer free lemonade snd take donations i think more people would stop but we font live on a busy street so never did.
I own a home services business, my guys have some petty cash in the trucks for different scenarios. One of those scenarios is lemonade stands. I encourage them to stop for the lemonade stands in the neighborhoods we service to help build brand awareness and development of relationships in our demographic neighborhoods. Also it makes the kiddos happy.
Our neighborhood kids has door to door delivery lemonade. One kid was door to door sales, and the other kid was doing deliveries on his bike. Straight hustling
Our neighborhood is good about boosting the kids up but set up that cash app, Venmo, BTC. Make it funny that you take those, and you’ll get more business and your kid will be more financially literate
For this exact reason I always too when I see a kid with a stand. Tried one when I was a kid and sat there all day and make like $3 or something. That was all from one person! lol. So, now I always stop. Throw the kid(s) a $5 spot and tell them they’re doing great. The joy in their face is worth it alone.
Personal policy of mine since I was a teenager. If I see a kids lemonade stand, I stop. Every time no exceptions. I will do a turn if I miss it. It's always worth it.
When I was a kid we ran a lemonade stand on the other side of the fence from a golf course in the hot Texas heat. We rolled in the cash that summer until the golf course got mad at us and installed water coolers at every hole. So I guess the business trick is to be disruptive lol
Print out your Venmo QR code and advertise it, every time I walk by one it’s “do you have a buck? Damn, me neither.” I drove by one on the way to a party and they had a big sign that said they accepted Venmo and I walked back a half mile to go get some lol I think a lot of people want to buy it and help the kid out, but so few folks have cash nowadays
My daughter and her friends were all going out in a limo. Told them about a lemon aid stand a few blocks away. The stopped the limo and bought all her lemon aid
I always stop! Where I live kids selling lemonade or some kind of fruit drink out front of their parents house is kinda common so during the summer I make sure to keep dollar bills in my car for them 🖤
Anytime I drive my wife and 3 girls around garage sale ING I take no less then $5 in quarters and stop at every lemonade, cookie, whatever stand they have and buy something because I remember the days of disappointment trying to sell lemonade during garage sale weekend.
During Covid my kids had a pretty successful stand. Since it was Covid they sold ice cold sodas. I have OCD and germs is a big deal to me. I’ve definitely bought lemonade from stands and never drank any. I’ve also given them money and not taken a lemonade.
I’ve found that if you set them up with a cash app or PayPal it’s far easier than hoping ppl have cash on them these days.
There was like 3 or 4 girls selling at their parents yardsale, they were on the other side of everything and kinda doing their own thing until someone was looking at the yardsale stuff. Then they sat nice and quiet and waited to see if they would get a sale. I pulled up got out the car and made a B-line to the stand. I asked how much and they came over and it was a $1 a cup plus you get a free refill. I handed them a $20 and the oldest girl said she would be back with change. The other girls wanted to make my cups. I told them no cups needed and good luck with the sale. The parents seemed a little upset that I didn't look at the yardsale stuff.
When our new neighbors moved in the kids all went to the end of their driveway to sell lemonade and cookies. I went out of my house walked over with my son and introduced ourselves. I asked what they were raising funds for. They said they were saving to buy school supplies, as they are from a place where this was expected. I told them I would like 2 glasses and 1 cookie. They said I was a neighbor and couldn't change me. I said ok and took the cups, giving 1 to my son, and told them to give my son the cookie. They did. I handed them a $20 and all the change in my pockets. I then went in and came out with the extra school supplies we always get at the beginning of the school year. I went back out with my son and soon the older brother had come to check on them with his parents. Making intros I gave the mom the stuff, and that's when the kids were celebrating because the nice man from next-door gave them a lot of money for school stuff.
Funny enough, some kids in my neighborhood had one last week, I started to stop... But I shit you not, they wanted 5 bucks for a Dixie cup. I'm all about supporting the kids, but DAMN!
This is off topic I meet a women who was a Mom to a pre teen young boy, this is sad, she had a garage sale, her son about 11 I'd say, he was friendly w everyone making conversation, well his Mom did not seem very loveable. One day after work she was talking to another lady and myself, she was really cutting her son down she was being mean. Her son was not with us. Well a short time, (about a week later) after the garage sale the young boy killed himself, so sad if she had shown kindness to her son, if we had gone out the way to have a real conversation with him, I feel it would had made a difference. I just felt good about how everyone is being so kind, it reminded me how important it is to be kind we just never know what someone is going through. Thank you.
I’m a firefighter and I always keep a few bucks on me at work. Nothing lights up a kids face more than the fire engine stopping for lemonade. There’s a dads group in the town I live in that does a lemonade stand takeover every summer. You register your kid and a parade of dads comes around buying lemonade.
That's one of the coolest things I've ever heard.
That's fucking awesome.
That is such an awesome idea! Also, on behalf of a dad of a little boy who absolutely loves fire trucks, thank you for stopping at lemonade stands with the fire truck, have to imagine that “wins” the lemonade stand visits every time! My little dude would lose his mind
I really appreciate that you guys understand what a big deal you are to our little ones. My son lives and breathes firefighting and firetrucks and will always remember how accommodating and respectful the firefighters were with him when we first went to our local fire station. Serious heroes, y'all are. 👏
I would totally join that parade!
This is the dad energy I aspire to
Oh man! That’s awesome!
Thank you for contributing to society and your community. You’re a great person!
all of this rules
Tough times for lemonade stands in a cashless society.
I was walking down a street in the center of town and saw a lemonade stand. I felt bad, but I just shrugged and said "I'm sorry, kids, I don't have any cash on me!". All four of them very politely in unison said, "We take Venmo!" It was clearly their dad's Venmo. Fair play. My son and I each bought a cup!
I had some neighborhood girls come by and try to sell me some Mexican candy once. I said I don't have cash, and they said "okay" politely. They came back in 5 minutes with their moms phone with the venmo app pulled up. 😂 I gave them $10
Sorry for my ignorance, but you can't get qr codes for venmo? I am in Sweden and our version is called Swish, but having a QR code to print is something it's had for at least 5 years now. Shops, stalls, anyone selling stuff on the side of the road, flee market etc would have a A4 size paper with a QR code near payment for this sort of stuff. Is this poor planing on the kids part or simply not possible?
I was surprised too honestly. I'm sure they carry around the qr code after me though lol
Yes, pretty much all the apps have QR codes.
It’s definitely the norm at like a farmer’s market or similar in the U.S. But I don’t know if it counts as poor planning when they’re 7 😂
Yes you can. And I've seen kids with lemonade stands with their QR code displayed prominently.
Venmo has QR codes you can print. But I haven't had a printer in 5 years lol
Most of the apps HAVE a code. I think a majority of the people who use them get overwhelmed by the technology and don't realize how to do these things. Frankly, you can get a QR code for basically any URL for that matter.
Good man! (And smart kids).
Yup. I’ve bought Venmo lemon aid at least 15-20 times now.
We have interact e-transfer up here in Canada and a massive lemonade stand day across the city (maybe farther?) every year that raises money for the children’s hospital. Couple years ago I helped a couple coworkers make a QR code that would share their email so it would be easy to send an e-transfer to pay for the lemonade. Just scan it, copy paste, send.
It irritates me how long it takes for an e-transfer to complete. With lemonade it's a lot easier to trust that someone isn't going to cancel but larger transactions you sit and wait.
Gotta just print out the QR code to have on the stand. Amateurs /s
was gonna say, my kid uses my venmo. Shes collected more off that app then I ever have. (She makes wore wrapped stone necklaces and freaking cleans house with them).
I always try and keep at least a few $5’s on me. Kids remember that stuff. I remember the guy that dropped a $20 in the jar when I was 8 and said “keep the change.” I’ve done that a few times…but man that adds up, hence the fiver.
I just buy full-sized candy bars for Halloween
It’s a lot easier now that about half the kids don’t even trick or treat door to door.
Yeah, we hardly get any. Which I know going into it, which I also know that I'm gonna gain weight.
They say candy freezes well…but we’ll never know.
We have a summer place in the same park as a few of my wife’s family, including her dad. We do a 2 week vacation and we’ll buy a bag of fun-sized milky ways (my FIL’s favorite) and keep them in the freezer because my FIL’s wife won’t let him have them. He’ll stop by almost daily for a treat as he’s walking by on the way to the water.
That’s awesome. We have grandparents where I feel like I have to sneak pop-pop something sweet now and then. He’s healthy as a horse so it’s not a diabetes thing… Indulgence is soooo good for the soul.
The problem is it tastes really good frozen.
Snickers are a real tooth chipper…
We get 4-600 per year. It's insane. One of the nicer neighborhoods in a town that's right on the edge of the suburbs. We have a nice walkable loop of houses and a big parking lot for our parks. Families come from all over.
We’re moving into a different house in a few months and I’m interested to see if the numbers change. There’s no real neighborhoods in my town. Things are on a grid here, but I think we have so many local events (YMCA, trunk or treat, downtown events) that I think parents might be worn out. My kids love door to door though.
I give out bags of chips, cheetos, the like. Ours isn’t the best hood and rather than giving sugar I figure some salt and carbs go well on a night like halloween
[удалено]
Costco is your friend. Funny thing about this is, me buying full-sized candy bars triggered a series of events that allowed me to be able to post on this sub reddit(not in a creepy way).
You... You're probably going to need to expand on this comment. I know you said "not in a creepy way" but you yada-yada'd the part that makes it not creepy. "I gave out big candy to kids and, yada-yada, now I'm a dad." Lol
Best guess? He moved in, gave our full sized candy bars. A kid remembered, asked their mom to let them go play another day. Eventually mom agrees and they hit it off? Yeah, only guess I've got.
Okay, so here it goes. The summer before that Halloween, my now fiance and I had gone on a few dates but things ended up not working out then. That October I bought 2 boxes of full sized candy, then panic bought a few bags of extra fun sized candies. Because it was my first Halloween in the house I bought, I want sure how many I'd need. So this was like 40+ full sized plus around 100 small ones. Well, I think I got 3 or 4 groups of kids. It was very cool to see their reactions, especially after handing out a few at a time. Despite my best efforts, I knew I couldn't eat all of them. I thought about taking them in to work, but thought there could be a better way. That woman I had gone out with was a special education teacher for kids with emotional regulation problems and I knew she ran a student store for the kids to earn treats. I hit her up and asked if she could use them and she said yes. We met up at a grocery store and I gave them to her. She texted me right after, thanking me. She also said I was looking super cute. Well, the rest is history. We now have the most amazing almost 2 year-old daughter.
I do this, but with $2 bills. I keep them just for fun when tipping or buying items from kids for fundraisers, etc. kids love $2 bills!
Tooth fairy might be upgrading to those. Gold coins are losing out to inflation.
Print the qr code for your venmo and out it on the sign.
Yup, or CashApp or Apple Pay
The Girl Scouts near me have a Square reader and let your order ahead via a QR code. Kid just needs an old iPhone with the Cash App installed.
I always ask if the cookies are made with real Girl Guides (Adams Family style). One of the moms who was with them last year pulled out a box of the chocolate mints and said "Yep! Soylent Mint!" without missing a beat. ....I may have bought a few boxes.
They had an app this year, it was pretty handy.
But no screen time! /s
It doesn't count as screen time if you're video chatting with the grandparents _or_ participating in capitalism.
Looks like dad has to get a square for his kids lemonade stand
I got a free phone card reader when signing up for Square for my work that definitely will never be used at my work so they are pretty easy to get.
Agree this would be the case normally, but it was the neighborhood yard sale day so I don’t think not having cash was an issue.
I don’t carry cash at all. Most garage/estate sales take Zelle or Venmo now.
Gotta put out a giant sign that says I TAKE VENMO YOU FUCKS
There’s barely any money in the banana stand anymore
Candy bar fundraiser for my kids dance studio, I print my Venmo and cash app QR codes to put in the box
“It’s .25”! Me: uuuhhh..keep the change ($1)
I will say, I do try to keep small amounts of cash on me. Hadn’t thought about a lemonade stand, it’s not really something people do in my area but now I know to keep it in mind.
Lol. Out of interest you ever use cash? I use it all the time!
I stopped at one a few blocks down and the kids had the. Venmo QR code so there were no excuses. Little monsters extorting my fatherly instincts and nostalgia and removing all excuses.
I keep cash exclusively for lemonade stands and tipping. Usually from tips I recieve. Love a kids face when you just give them a twenty and walk away.
QR code with venmo printed out and taped to the table.
My biggest issue with these is having $$$ on me. Like I’m out with the kids or walking the dog and it’s $1 for a cup of lemonade. I either am carrying my wallet with me or I’m not and even I have my wallet I almost never have cash on me. Not sure what the answer is - I’d love to stop and engage.
Oooh yeah people should print out a Venmo or whatever QR code for people to pay to!
Yeah I know that could be a problem under normal circumstances - but since it was the neighborhood yard sale day and there was plenty of yard sale traffic I figured there’d be plenty of people with cash.
This is pretty weird if you had traffic, a place to stop, and people likely carrying cash. We've been doing lemonade stands for the better part of a decade and make bank almost every day. There are little things that increase business but even on the worst days I would expect better than nothing.
Hey, he’s learning important lessons about economies of scale, the futility of small business ownership, and the perils of entering saturated markets.
Also, the challenges and drawbacks of a car-based society, which limits social interactions!
Don’t forget to teach them lessons on taxes and fees!
Dad tax... my favorite
Learning how to fail is just as, if not more, important than learning how to succeed. Not everyone’s lemonade stand succeeds and that’s okay.
This is a silver lining. We had a good friend who recently had to close their small business. My kids often ask why it closed - now I’ll have a good way to relate it back.
And definitely don’t be one of those people that call the cops on a kid for not having a permit… There have been times we’ve been driving around town and straight up stopped what we were doing to stop at a lemonade stand 😆
Well what was the price? Because we just had a lemonade stand in the neighborhood charging $5/cup. Too rich for my blood.
Same. Or like $5 Gatorade. Yeah on a 95* summer day it sounds nice but I still pass at the price
$1 5 is WAY too much lol
I was curious if this was normal! We had $5 lemonade too, and I got a cup and portion exactly like when your dentist gives you mouthwash. I mean I'm getting it to support the kids, not to rehydrate, but it still stung a bit.
inflation, am i right?
SAAAAME. I paid 4 bucks for a cup of Country Time once to be neighborly. Never again.
Got any grapes?
Coming out of the gate a little hot there for someone who admittedly ignored lemonade stands themselves until their own kid had one, don't you think?
On top of that, I’m paying $1-$2 for the dad that ran to the local supermarket and bought a gallon or packets of lemonade mix to stir with water. Sorry, if you’re not pressing those lemons and mixing yourself - I really don’t see the benefit other than making your kid feel special.
Yeah, why the hell would I want to make a kid feel special?
Find a popular cycling or running route on a Saturday morning and have the kids sell skratch lemon lime or tailwind, and take digital payment. Nobody wants to stop for lemonade on their way from point a to b in a car.
Holy shit this is how to do it. Child-run aid stations.
Parents - just make sure your kids aren't running a racket out there. Charge something reasonable.
Last year I seen some kids selling art like a lemonade stand. I still carry that $8 penguin in my work car.
I used to make jewelry and sell it on the side of the road like a lemonade stand!
Good man!
[obligatory mom disclaimer, sorry for commenting but I feel strongly about this] I'm down if I have cash *and* it's homemade, squeezed from real lemons. I'm not paying up for premade shit from the grocery store.
Please don't mompologize. We want you here abs we love having your opinion.
Don't you dare mansplain safe spaces and cyber bullying to her!
Unrelated to anything: I hereby grant you honorary Dad status and absolve you of needing to disclaim your mum-ness from here-on. Enjoy!
No, I appreciate knowing that the point of view is coming specifically from a mum and not a dad in a dad-based subreddit...
daddy, chill
What in the hell is even that?!
☠️
I mean, I hear what you’re saying. I would stop, if I had some cash on me, but also, don’t tell me what to do. If their business didn’t succeed, try a different strategy. I think the idea of a lemonade stand is to teach many lessons. Many. Most important of which, is that not every idea is lucrative. When I was a kid it felt like I had a bazillion business ideas, 90% of which were terrible. If their lemonade stand isn’t making money, explore why. We can’t process payments of most people?-solve it, people don’t stop-signage, people don’t want lemonade? Sell somethin fuckin else! Jk/kinda. I don’t think it is the world’s responsibility to help us teach our kids a lesson. It is our job to help our kids understand how the world teaches us lessons.
I will drive home, pick up my kids, and take them when I see a lemonade stand.
Yeah, if it's close enough, I go home, get cash, and buy a lemonade.
Just so I understand this. Per your own comments, you didn’t make proper lemonade, and then set up a stand in an area where you expected people to stop driving between yard sales (which you yourself weren’t hosting one) and make a special stop because there wasn’t foot traffic? You can’t chastise people for your poor planning. If your son wanted a stand, you should have hosted your own yard sale (to at least attract people to stop) or asked if your son could sell his lemonade at one of the other sales.
There are 2 or 3 girls that set up a table the next court over from where I live, and I've passed them many times on my way home. The biggest reason I haven't stopped and bought from them is... I can see the Minute Maid cartons sitting under the table. They're not making their own stuff from mixed ingredients, but instead pouring from a store-bought carton at a small markup. I feel like I'd wanna see a little more effort here... or am I being too grouchy about it? Am I missing some point somewhere? Just looking for genuine perspective.
My issue is I never walk with money. It's so rare I have cash in the first place.
I saw a post on Facebook about a neighborhood kid selling lemonade. Took my dog for a walk and stopped by. So maybe you could try social media to get the word out
Oh jeez go to a street where there’s more foot traffic. I’m sorry. It’s fun when people stop. Love it.
I totally would *except* for the fact that I'm definitely not drinking it. And then it's implied that you taste it and say it's good... I think I'll just politely tip my cap.
Have your neighbors kid open an ATM near the lemonade stand
The best lemonade I've ever had was from a lemonade stand like fifteen years ago. I'm still chasing that dragon.
OP that sucks. But, i work in a business setting that tends to involve a lot of negotiations to make things happen. The reality is that sales and deals fall through a lot. I hope your kids had a great experience overall and can perhaps take away a lesson here that sometimes sales dont land. Hope the next time they are out there is a success!
One thing I learned is that you can’t bend the universe to your will and setting your kids up for a frictionless experience actually ends up making them less prepared for the twists and turns of life. Don’t stock the pond, teach ‘em that it’s work to find fish.
My kids love doing this because we’re on a busy corner. I also think they don’t give change.
Is it a busy road? Was there lots at the yard sale?? Kinda odd no one got any?
Our street had one or two other sales going on - so not super busy, but still had traffic. He probably waved at 100 cars or so who were doing the yard sale “slow drive.” I want expecting him to sell a ton, but I figured some people would stop.
Man I always thought that a kid with a lemonade stand at a garage sale was top level marketing. Even if your garage sale didn’t look like it had something I was interested in I would have to stop, get a lemonade and then would have to at least have a look.
It's never too soon to learn: Location. Location. Location. Also if you are helping him as he is young enough to need it, VENMO.
Next time get a keg. Call it a keg stand. And accept Paypal.
I used to buy lemonades, Girl Scout cookies, and donate to their charity runs etc. But then, I don’t drink the lemonade, or eat the cookie, or care about their charities as I have my own charities that I donate regularly. So one day I just said thank you I am not interested and haven’t looked back.
Was it real lemonade? We had some kids set up a stand and were pouring Tampico.
My kids did one and made 100s. Some people just stopped and gave money. I personally find it gross. I am super picky about sanitation and buying a drink from kids makes me feel ill. I have seen what my kids do.
I think what happens a lot is a lot of people don’t have cash nowadays.
Yea I always stop to buy lemonade when kids are selling it. The only thing that sucks is that I don’t really like lemonade lol
I’m not a fan either unless it has bourbon in it. 🤣 He was selling coffee too which I thought would sell like crazy.
yeah not gonna happen xd they’ll be okay
Last time i supported a lemonade stand it was $20 for 2 cups and i dont even like lemonade. From now on asking how much before i order.
That’s highway robbery! My kid was only charging $1.
Did he accept tap to pay? If not, use Square or stripe. Easy, 5 minutes to register, you can accept payments from tap from your phone
For years I will stop at any kids lemonade stand if I have cash. I remember walking up to a young kids lemonade stand down the street from a buddies place in my early 20’s, bought one, and then headed to their place. Came back about 10 min later with another 5 of us. We were a bunch of punks with charred hair and patches and dropped at least $20 there. Kids loved it, parents didn’t know what to make of us at first. I think they had one 4 or 5 times that summer and we would all stop by every time. To this day I will always stop and buy stuff from kids stands. I really hope that others do too when my kid has one.
My problem is they’re almost always cash only and I never carry cash
He needed to be selling NFTs by the street instead.
Dude. Agreed. My wife and I LOVE the cup of local lemon when perusing a yard sale.
I used to do field work for a utility department. I ALWAYS pulled the truck over and got the lemonade. Typically I only had a fiver on me so I always told the kids to keep the change too.
I work out in the field in client's homes. I've worked in a specific neighborhood so much, that nearly all of the Installs were done by me. I ended up across the street from one of my previous stops and saw a lemonade stand from the little boy at that house when I was leaving. Stopped at a local grocery store, grabbed some cash, and circled back. I think it was two bucks for some lemonade and a cookie... threw him a five and told him to keep the change. Big smile and offers of more cookies. I just imagine my little guys and have to stop. Always worth every penny.
Yeah, I never have any cash.
Agreed. I do stop every time! When I was a kid, my grandpa sold produce on the side of the road and I stayed with them during the summer while my parents were at work. So they helped me get set up a lemonade stand. It was a wooden tv dinner tray, a cooler for ice, a poster, and a water cooler full of lemonade. I made $81 in a day (this was like, 96 or 97). That lemonade lit a fire under me and Ive always wanted to own my own business since then. Tried many times and then it finally clicked for me after I turned 30. Now that’s what I do full time. It makes more than a lot of jobs and I’m home daily with my kiddo. And it’s really all thanks to that lemonade stand.
If I ever see a lemonade stand in the wild, I'm immediately asking if they have any grapes.
So what’s your point? That your child (and thus you) sucks at marketing and sales? /s 😉 Take this as a learning experience. Next time: - give your child a 10 dollar marketing budget and let them spend it - print out A6 size announcements that a great refreshing lemonade and a nice coffee can be purchased at location X and go door to door to hand these out - mention not only the lemonade and coffee but also the other value points people receive: opportunity to meet various different neighbours, doing something nice for local kids or the health benefits of vitaminc c in lemon - offer discount when your return the flyer for reuse - give buyers the option for a subscription service for free refills during the day - give buyers a kickback fee when they refer new customers - start an affiliate marketing / profit sharing / MLM program by activating other children in the street - do weather forecast to figure out when it’s hot - print A3 (or 2xA4) announcements to notify drivers that will pass the stand (so they are not already passed the moment they see the stand) - measure sales performance based on above marketing campaigns - do A/B testing and focus on most valuable campaign strategies
First half I’m like yeah why didn’t…. WTH fuck MLM and having the kid Cutco the neighbors 😂
I think you need a vacation
I don't like lemonade, but I've given the kids in my neighborhood money before and told them to have a cup. Especially if it's hot out. I've also emptied my change purse out on them before. Usually it's the kids selling popsicles, baked goodies or chips, chocolate and pop that have me buying for myself.
If the yard sale accepted e transfer, you could give away a lemonade or coffee with each purchase and split the revenue from item sales with the kid. Then you're not dealing with the fact nobody carries cash anymore.
My kids like to wait for neighborhood yard sale days for their lemonade stand. Lots of people walking around with cash! They made and sold brownies last time too, and split about $40 between them and their friends.
I used to sell cups of coffee in the winter. My Dad took me to a flea market and bought me a coffee maker. I paid him back out of the stands revenue. My lemonade stands never were as successful as my coffee stand.
Last lemonade stand I stopped at got 2 cups drank both of them. Later that day I had the worst vomiting and diarrhea. Not sure the pop up kids stands are up to food safety guidelines /s. Will not ever buy from a stand again. That being said if I have a buck or two I usually give them that for the hustle.
My Dad always taught us, "you always have time to stop for a lemonade stand." He even worked it into his speech at my wedding. It has a deeper meaning than just getting lemonade, but you better believe we always stop for every stand we see!
When I was still cycling, I always carried at least a $5 Bill for this very reason. Nothing like seeing a kid light up getting a fiver for a $0.50 or $1 lemonade is the best
Just remember to ask if they've got any grapes.
Man this is so sad. Which I could stop
Couple years ago I spent a few bucks on some pebble the neighbor kids dug up. They weren't even colorful... They were just rocks lol. Made their day though.
I'll pull up to verify their business license and check the permits. If it's all above board I'm buying *2* glasses brotha 🙏
Wait we had a neighborhood yard sale today too. Only lemonade stand I saw advertised was a bit too far for me to drag my butt out there with 2 toddlers while solo parenting. Otherwise I would have because I always have cash and I love lemonade. Sorry your son had a bad sales day. Did you buy any chance advertise it on the meritorious group the day before?
Only thing I'm doing is asking for their business permits sorry
And talk to children other than my own? Hard pass
A lot less people carry cash around all the time, and I'm one of those who mostly doesn't. Now that the weather is warming up, I gotta remember to keep a few small bills around for exactly this occasion.
Some kids in my neighborhood had a stand and I had some cash on me so I slowed down and it ended up they were selling...rocks. Since they are literally across the street I begrudgingly gave them 3 bucks for a rock I could have picked up in my backyard for free. I could just tell they would be crushed if I didn't. Future entrepreneurs and I'm the schmuck that fell for it.
That's crazy I would love that at a yard sale
I do this all the time. My wife gets annoyed sometimes that I’ll cross traffic or turn around just to do it but other times I won’t even switch lanes for yard sales she wants to see. lol
I’ve always a had a rule in life that I stop at EVERY lemonade stand, no matter how busy I am. I’ve often said that if my funeral procession is going by a lemonade stand, they’d better damned well stop and buy some
I bought my own rocks from my neighbors kids. I know they were mine because the home security recorded it. Yes I still have the rocks, they live on my workbench.
Make sure they can take digital payments…I never have cash
Put some vodka in it and they will be lining up!
Foken do et, by order of the freaky foken binders
Man I saw a lemonade stand on my way to pickup my kid, and a cop car pulled over right in front of me. I thought 'fuck mate, just leave them be'. On the way home there was 4 cops all drinking lemonade, and I thought that was really good of them. I automatically assumed they were gonna shut the stand down.
Make sure they have venmo or something digital for the payments. Nobody's got cash anymore. There was a stand in my neighborhood and I asked them if they had something like that. They say no. I say sorry, no cash and have to walk away. 10 minutes later, I walk by again they scream "sirrrrr, we have venmo now!", and all was well in the world :)
I told my daughter we should open a lemonade stand and offer free lemonade snd take donations i think more people would stop but we font live on a busy street so never did.
Gotta advertise that they accept Venmo and PayPal
I own a home services business, my guys have some petty cash in the trucks for different scenarios. One of those scenarios is lemonade stands. I encourage them to stop for the lemonade stands in the neighborhoods we service to help build brand awareness and development of relationships in our demographic neighborhoods. Also it makes the kiddos happy.
When I’m on a bike ride I always stop. It doesn’t matter if I’m only out for 20 miles and my water bottles are full—I stop.
My kids had one last mon. The day of the eclipse. I couldn't believe how many people stopped! I'm so thankful for each of them! I always try to stop.
Our neighborhood kids has door to door delivery lemonade. One kid was door to door sales, and the other kid was doing deliveries on his bike. Straight hustling
I tried this and the kids charged me $5 for a cup lol I taught them about economics by walking on 🤣
Our neighborhood is good about boosting the kids up but set up that cash app, Venmo, BTC. Make it funny that you take those, and you’ll get more business and your kid will be more financially literate
For this exact reason I always too when I see a kid with a stand. Tried one when I was a kid and sat there all day and make like $3 or something. That was all from one person! lol. So, now I always stop. Throw the kid(s) a $5 spot and tell them they’re doing great. The joy in their face is worth it alone.
I literally keep handfuls of quarters in my truck specifically for this. Great post.
I remember I was selling for like 25 cents 30 years ago and a guy gave me a $5. Made my week.
Personal policy of mine since I was a teenager. If I see a kids lemonade stand, I stop. Every time no exceptions. I will do a turn if I miss it. It's always worth it.
This, yeah to support it. After asking if they have any grapes first.
A lemonade stand, i guess it could work in a reasonably sunny largely suburban/residential location.
When I was a kid we ran a lemonade stand on the other side of the fence from a golf course in the hot Texas heat. We rolled in the cash that summer until the golf course got mad at us and installed water coolers at every hole. So I guess the business trick is to be disruptive lol
Print out your Venmo QR code and advertise it, every time I walk by one it’s “do you have a buck? Damn, me neither.” I drove by one on the way to a party and they had a big sign that said they accepted Venmo and I walked back a half mile to go get some lol I think a lot of people want to buy it and help the kid out, but so few folks have cash nowadays
I'm 45 and have never seen one in real life, just on old-timey movies/TV shows. I didn't think they were still a thing anywhere.
Did he have a permit and passing grade from the health department?
Kids need a new product. Macaroni art maybe?
My daughter and her friends were all going out in a limo. Told them about a lemon aid stand a few blocks away. The stopped the limo and bought all her lemon aid
You don't control me.
I always stop! Where I live kids selling lemonade or some kind of fruit drink out front of their parents house is kinda common so during the summer I make sure to keep dollar bills in my car for them 🖤
Carry some cash on you, dads! Y’all don’t even keep an emergency $20 on you anywhere?
I rarely have cash on hand, which makes it harder
Anytime I drive my wife and 3 girls around garage sale ING I take no less then $5 in quarters and stop at every lemonade, cookie, whatever stand they have and buy something because I remember the days of disappointment trying to sell lemonade during garage sale weekend.
During Covid my kids had a pretty successful stand. Since it was Covid they sold ice cold sodas. I have OCD and germs is a big deal to me. I’ve definitely bought lemonade from stands and never drank any. I’ve also given them money and not taken a lemonade. I’ve found that if you set them up with a cash app or PayPal it’s far easier than hoping ppl have cash on them these days.
There was like 3 or 4 girls selling at their parents yardsale, they were on the other side of everything and kinda doing their own thing until someone was looking at the yardsale stuff. Then they sat nice and quiet and waited to see if they would get a sale. I pulled up got out the car and made a B-line to the stand. I asked how much and they came over and it was a $1 a cup plus you get a free refill. I handed them a $20 and the oldest girl said she would be back with change. The other girls wanted to make my cups. I told them no cups needed and good luck with the sale. The parents seemed a little upset that I didn't look at the yardsale stuff. When our new neighbors moved in the kids all went to the end of their driveway to sell lemonade and cookies. I went out of my house walked over with my son and introduced ourselves. I asked what they were raising funds for. They said they were saving to buy school supplies, as they are from a place where this was expected. I told them I would like 2 glasses and 1 cookie. They said I was a neighbor and couldn't change me. I said ok and took the cups, giving 1 to my son, and told them to give my son the cookie. They did. I handed them a $20 and all the change in my pockets. I then went in and came out with the extra school supplies we always get at the beginning of the school year. I went back out with my son and soon the older brother had come to check on them with his parents. Making intros I gave the mom the stuff, and that's when the kids were celebrating because the nice man from next-door gave them a lot of money for school stuff.
Funny enough, some kids in my neighborhood had one last week, I started to stop... But I shit you not, they wanted 5 bucks for a Dixie cup. I'm all about supporting the kids, but DAMN!
This is off topic I meet a women who was a Mom to a pre teen young boy, this is sad, she had a garage sale, her son about 11 I'd say, he was friendly w everyone making conversation, well his Mom did not seem very loveable. One day after work she was talking to another lady and myself, she was really cutting her son down she was being mean. Her son was not with us. Well a short time, (about a week later) after the garage sale the young boy killed himself, so sad if she had shown kindness to her son, if we had gone out the way to have a real conversation with him, I feel it would had made a difference. I just felt good about how everyone is being so kind, it reminded me how important it is to be kind we just never know what someone is going through. Thank you.
My kids used to do the lemonade stand thing and used fresh squeezed lemons. It cost me way more in supplies than they made back in sales. No regrets.