For three of the last four years, children all across the Golden Triangle have built their own lemonade stands and made their own product to sell on a hot summer Saturday to help their community cool down.
Lemonade Day is coming back to the area on June 11, when children across the country are encouraged to join in on the day to learn early about running their own business.
Lemonade Day took off in Starkville in 2018, and it expanded to the Golden Triangle the next year as children saw the opportunity to show off their creativity and entrepreneurial prowess.
The special day is sponsored by Mark Castleberry, Cadence Bank and the Mississippi State University Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach.
“Lemonade Day is a national program based out of Houston, Texas, so you have to buy the license,” Jeffrey Rupp, director of outreach at the MSU CEO, said. “We’re very fortunate that Mark Castleberry, the developer, pays for the license every year. It’s several thousand dollars, and he did it the first year Starkville and he’s continued ever since. Cadence Bank also gives us some financial support, and it’s run through the Entrepreneurship Center at State.”
A business begins when young entrepreneurs, which can be up to 18 years old, decide they would like to participate in the day. For those in need of a little financial help, Cadence Bank will loan them $25 in seed money. This could pay for supplies for their product, the material for the stand or any other input cost. Those who took out the loan must pay it back the following Monday after Lemonade Day.
With the profits they make, children have three options: share, spend and save. They are encouraged to do all three. Rupp said most choose their local animal shelters as their charity of choice to share some of their profit with.
Participants can sell whatever they would like to at their stands, and everything is left up to them. However, they are not without direction.
“Once someone signs up, they will have access to an online interactive program that helps them with Lemonade Day,” Rupp said. “The J.L. King Center in Starkville, starting Monday, will have a workbook and work with kids through the process of starting their own business, buying the material, and making a profit.”
The online interactive program includes information such as “how to set a goal, make a plan, work the plan, and achieve their dreams,” according to a Lemonade Day press release.
Local partners of Lemonade Day include the Columbus-Lowndes Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Starkville Development Partnership and the West Point-Clay County Growth Alliance.
Barbara Bigelow, executive director for Main Street Columbus, said the day is one where kids can have fun and learn how to be successful business-minded individuals.
“This is a great way for kids to learn to be responsible but to have a lot of fun,” Bigelow said. “We’ve done it every year since 2019, except 2020 because of COVID-19, and we had a great response in Columbus itself. We’ve got kids out in the county that do it, too.”
Lemonade stands can be wherever a child would like to host it. According to Bigelow, some set up in front of their residents, a neighbor’s house or a business of their choice. Participants should network with businesses or other property owners before setting up their stands there.
“We want the kids to take initiative and think about every aspect of business,” Bigelow said.
The best way the community can support the kids is to show up and buy from the stands on June 11, Rupp said. There will be an interactive map on the Lemonade Day website, lemonadeday.org/golden-triangle, and those looking to support the small businesses can find where the closest stand is and what products they are offering.
For children interested in creating their own small business, they can register their stand at lemonadeday.org/golden-triangle. They must have a name and location picked out. After June 11, participants will update their business progress, and whoever made the most profit will win a bicycle. There will also be other prizes for those involved in Lemonade Day.
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You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 43 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
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