Nothing sells more than a cute kid at a lemonade stand on a hot summer day on Martha’s Vineyard, am I right? On a recent Saturday, Island nonprofit C.E.O. (Creative Entrepreneur with Opportunities) held its first youth initiative with a one‐day lemonade stand program for elementary school-age children, a.k.a. “entrepreneurs‐in‐training.” The stands, located in various public locations in Vineyard Haven, Oak Bluffs, Edgartown, and West Tisbury, were staffed by the children, wearing their “I am a C.E.O.” T shirts, and supervised by parents. The young entrepreneurs exuded excitement and energy at each stand, happy to talk about their business proposals and what made their stand unique and special.
Edgartown National Bank was the corporate sponsor of the event, and Judy Soules, CFO of Edgartown National Bank, provided pre-event guidance by reviewing all of the children’s mini business plans prior to opening the stands for business, and encouraging the children to develop a marketing strategy.
After the event concluded, a variety of prizes were provided to the children, including a top prize of $250 given by Edgartown National Bank for “most income,” won by Grace Manson and Isabelle Murphy, whose stand was located in front of Edgartown National Bank on Water Street in Edgartown. Prizes were also awarded for Best Business Plan, Best Decorated Stand, and Best Marketing Plan, but all of the young entrepreneurs left with something.
“It is never too soon to start youngsters on the road to successful small business ownership. It is actually amazing that a number of kids on the Island already have mini‐businesses, so perhaps this will make them a bit smarter about the do’s and don’ts of successful operations,” said India Rose, president and founder of C.E.O.
All of the supplies needed to create and serve the lemonade were provided by C.E.O. with support from Cronig’s Market. This teaching event also served as a fundraiser for C.E.O., which is also dedicated to providing for the educational and networking needs of women in business on Martha’s Vineyard. Find out more about this Island nonprofit by checking out their website iamaceo.org, and look out for more of their fundraising events throughout the year.