A lemonade stand business plan for kids

Why a lemonade stand needs a plan

A plan is just the answers written down before the day instead of guessed at during it. How many cups, at what price, to make how much, for what. Kids who write it down make more money, because the sign, the batch and the spot all come from the plan instead of from the morning rush. And a written goal is the thing that gets a kid back out the next Saturday.

The one-page lemonade stand business plan

1. The nameWhat the stand is called. The lemonade stand names guide has a hundred to start from.
2. What we sellLemonade, plus one special flavor and one add-on at most.
3. Where and whenThe spot, the day, the hours. Who said yes, if it is not our own yard.
4. The priceOne round number, or two sizes.
5. The costsLemons, sugar, ice, cups. What one batch costs and how many cups it makes.
6. The goalA number and a reason: “$100 for a telescope.”
7. Who does whatWho makes the lemonade, who handles the money, who holds the sign, what the grown-up does.
8. What happens to the moneyHow much goes back into the next batch, and how the rest is split: save, spend, give.

A filled-in example

Here is the plan for a made-up stand, with the arithmetic done the way a kid would do it at the kitchen table:

• NameSunny Sips.
• What we sellFresh lemonade, and strawberry lemonade as the special.
• Where and whenOur driveway on the street to the park, Saturday, ten to two.
• Price$2 a cup.
• Costs40 cups at about 42 cents each in lemons, sugar and ice is about $17, plus the cups. Call it $20.
• If we sell all 4040 × $2 = $80 in. Take off $20 and about $60 is profit.
• Goal$100 for a telescope. That is two good Saturdays.
• Who does whatMaya pours, Leo makes change, Dad carries the cooler and stays close.
• The money$20 back in the tin for next week’s batch, the rest in the telescope jar.

Is a lemonade stand profitable?

Yes, and by a lot for its size. A fresh cup costs about 42 cents to make and sells for one to three dollars, so most of every sale is profit. What decides the day is how many cups go: a stand where people are already walking by sells forty cups before lunch, and a stand on an empty street sells eight. That is why the plan’s “where and when” matters as much as the price. The lemonade stand prices guide has the numbers for every price, and the where to set up guide picks the spot.

Copy this plan

Write it on one sheet of paper, or copy it into a notebook, and fill in the blanks together:

• Our stand is called
• We sell
• We will be at
• On (day and hours)
• Our price is
• One batch costs, and makes how many cups
• Our goal is, and it is for
• Who does what
• What we do with the money

Then put the stand on the map. Listing on The Squeeze is free, and the Starter Kit has how to start a lemonade stand on one page.