The End of My Driveway (Prime Location)
My First Big Deal: The Lemonade Stand
I was seven. The kid across the street charged a quarter. I charged a dollar and called it luxury lemonade. I've never looked back.
People ask how I learned business. Was it school? Books? No. It was a lemonade stand, when I was seven years old. It was the most successful lemonade stand in the history of my street.
The Competition
The kid across the street had a stand too. Twenty-five cents a cup. Paper sign. Weak. I charged a dollar and called mine luxury lemonade. Same lemonade. Better sign. People lined up to pay more. That’s when I knew.
The Expansion
By the end of the week, I had two stands. By the end of the month, I’d bought his stand with my profits. I let him keep working there. He made the signs. Great signs, once I told him what to write.
The Crash
Then it rained for a week. Nobody wanted lemonade. I learned the most important lesson in business: when it rains, sell umbrellas. I didn’t have any umbrellas. But I learned it.
Today
I still have the first dollar I ever made. It’s framed in gold. The frame cost a lot more than a dollar. That’s called investing.
Frequently Asked Questions
What made it luxury lemonade?
The sign. The lemonade was the same. The sign was in cursive.
Do you still sell lemonade?
No. Now I sell the idea of lemonade, which pays better.