Create Your Own Neighborhood Lemonade Stand

Create Your Own Neighborhood Lemonade Stand

Running a lemonade stand is a classic childhood activity. These summertime staples also provide a great way to teach kids about business, marketing, and money. While your kids can use the money to put toward something they've been saving for, your family might also consider raising funds to help people in need. It's a fun way for kids to learn about helping others and giving back to the community.

Food Lion's low prices make it easy to get the ingredients for your lemonade in an affordable way that helps you maximize your profits. Use these tips to make sure your lemonade stand is a raving success.

Raise Funds for Neighbors in Need

A lemonade stand is a great way to raise money for a favorite charity. People are likely to pitch in extra money if they know the money is going to a good cause or something that's important to them. Consider donating to a local food bank to help your community. You can even ask for a food donation instead of cash. 

When shopping at Food Lion for supplies for your lemonade stand, look for Food Lion Feeds branded products. A portion of the proceeds from these products goes directly to a food bank near you. Giving back is that easy.

Setting a goal is a good way to stay on track. Determine how much money you want to raise for the food bank and set a price for your products. Consider a price between $0.25 and $1.00 per cup, depending on the size of the lemonade you sell and other goodies you have to offer in the stand.

You can even create a display for your stand that keeps track of how close you are to reaching your goal. Use some fun stickers to track progress and ask the customer to get involved!

Choose a Good Location and Time

Location and timing are important. Choose a spot that's easy to see and easy to access.  If you don't have a lot of traffic through your neighborhood, then it might be a good idea to operate the lemonade stand in conjunction with a garage sale, block party, or other community event. The goal is to be as visible to as many people as possible to maximize your donations.

Get the Word Out

In order to get the most business, advertise the lemonade stand. Have your children decorate flyers with the date, hours, and location. Be sure to include a note about how you're raising funds for the food bank or other charity. Start hanging flyers around the neighborhood and around town about a week before the event.  Look for bulletin boards in public spaces like libraries and coffee shops to ensure people see your flyers.

Spur of the Moment Fun

While planning an eventful lemonade stand is a fun way to help out a charity, the time-honored tradition is also one that evolves spontaneously. Kids come up with a plan on a hot summer day and in a matter of minutes, a new business has launched. Keep supplies on hand so that when the creative spirit arises, your home is ready!

Create a Delicious Recipe

Making the lemonade is half the fun of running a lemonade stand. Make from scratch or use a mix. If you're worried about running out, consider using Food Lion lemonade mix — simply add water and stir. A basic recipe you can use to make homemade lemonade is:

• 1 cup lemon juice
• 1 cup sugar
• 6 cups water

Give customers choices by offering several types of lemonade. Add fresh sliced fruit, such as strawberries, raspberries, or blueberries, to your recipe to give it a fun flavor and unique look. Or, create a fruit bar so that customers can add their own fresh fruit slices to cups of lemonade.

If you really want to go all-out, consider offering iced tea, too. You can sell the tea on its own or mixed for half and half drink.

Offer Tasty Snacks

In addition to lemonade, you can boost sales and raise more money by offering snacks. Bake cupcakes or whip up a batch of crisped rice treats, and wrap them individually for selling. Fill snack-size bags with pretzels, cheese crackers, or fresh fruit so customers can grab quick snacks to go with their drinks. Slice and bake cookies are always a go to option for a quick sweet treat.

Make Sure Your Stand Looks Good

While you can set up a lemonade stand on just about any type of table, you can attract more customers by jazzing it up. A red checkered tablecloth, baskets from around the house, and whole lemons give your lemonade stand a country look and are rather inexpensive. Decorate with bright colors to grab the eye of those passing by.

Be sure to include a price sheet that’s printed clearly so customers can read it. If your lemonade stand is benefiting a local food bank, add a sign with facts about hunger and how the donations will help feed people right in your town.

By following these simple tips, you and your kids can have a great time serving up refreshing treats, all while helping more people in your community get access to healthy meals.