Susan Seaman: The Lemonade Day Results Are In – June 29, 2011
Susan Seaman
Arcata Economic Development Corporation
ARCATA – Saturday, June 4 was a sweet day for dozens of young entrepreneurs in Humboldt County. Lemonade Day gave kids the opportunity to try their hand at running a business for a day by creating and running their own lemonade stand.
Sixty stands were featured on the Lemonade Day map of Humboldt County, and 13 of those stands were in Arcata, featured prominently on the Plaza, in front of grocery stores, in neighborhoods and even in front of the opening Humboldt Crabs game.
Of the 13 stands, 11 were submitted early enough to be visited by the VIP car to have their stands judged for a competion.
The judges were: Susan Ornelas, mayor; Owen Newman, owner of O’Dogs and winner of the Economic Fuel grand prize; Shannon Currell, Wells Fargo; and Michael Crosbie, HSU Entrepreneur’s Club.
Each of the five participating communities, which included Arcata, Fortuna, Ferndale, Eureka and McKinleyville/Blue Lake had award winners.
Lemonade Stand Judges Mayor Susan Ornelas, Shannon Currell, Owen Newman and Michael Crosbie. KLH | Eye
All winners and their team members will receive tickets to the Redwood Acres “Humboldt Made” Fair on Sunday, June 26 for an award ceremony at 3 p.m.
The Grand Prize Award was judged on the lemonade taste, marketing, innovation, customer service and cleanliness, planning for supplies, plan for their profit and stand management. Winners of this prize will have the opportunity to display their stand at the Redwood Acres “Humboldt Made” Fair on Sunday, and have two hours to sell at the event. Winners will also receive a $100 Savings Bond and a Blue Ribbon.
Austin Chavera’s Dragonade Stand received The Grand Prize Award for youth under 13. Callista Leirheimer, whose stand was located in front of Murphy’s Market in Sunny Brae, received the Grand Prize Award for Teens.
The Best Tasting Lemonade Award was based on the quality of the lemonade, taking into consideration whether it was an original flavor or homemade. The winner of this prize will receive a $50 gift certificate to the Toy Barn and Blue Ribbon. River Murray, who had a neighborhood stand, was selected to receive that award.
The Best Stand and Marketing Awards were given to two winners in Arcata. The Best Stand went to the best “store-front,” considering the attractiveness and cleanliness of the stand, and the ease of finding information such as price and items on their signs. Melinda Schulze was selected to receive this award.
The Marketing Award was selected for the stand that was the most energetic and enthusiastic about getting customers to their stand. The prizes for these awards include a $50 gift certificate to the Toy Barn and a Ribbon. This award went to the team at Wildwood Music, with Mary Crow as the lead business owner.
County-wide, results from sales are trickling in. Of the 11 stands that have responded with their sales figures, 1,037 glasses of lemonade were sold for a net profit of $1,364.50.
The business owners reported donating $664 to local charities. For photos and updates on results, check out North Coast Lemonade Day on Facebook, or Arcata Economic Development Corporation’s web site: aedc1.org.
Lemonade Day was presented locally by Arcata Economic Development Corporation and the Decade of Difference.
Lemonade Day is a national program through Prepared 4 Life, a non-profit that provides fun, proactive and experiential programs infused with life skills, character education and entrepreneurship.
To learn more, visit lemonadeday.org.
