Lifestyle
11-Year-Old Texas Girl Creates Thriving Lemonade Business
Years ago, when Mikaila Ulmer was stung by two bees in one week, her homework assignment turned into a lemonade business venture, “Me and the Bees Lemonade”.
Growing up in Austin, Texas, Mikaila developed her signature lemonade recipe from her great-grandmother’s 1940 recipe with a twist. She uses honey to sweeten her lemonade “instead of sugar or artificial sweetener, which would be healthier, save the bees, and support beekeepers,” according to NBC News.
After debuting her business plan on Shark Tank in 2015, she gained $60,000, which allowed her business to expand. Now, her lemonade will be “sold in 55 Whole Food stores…in states including Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Florida.”
Her business will turn seven years old this year, and she has been working hard on it in between her classes, homework, and school breaks. She stands by her concept wholly by making “her enterprise an environmental and social mission. She donates a portion of the profits from the sale of her lemonade to local and international organizations that are trying to save the honeybees.”
Her next goal is to create new lemonade flavors that will also be sweetened with honey. As Mikaila told NBC News, “I want to help save the bees, and use my great-grandmother Helen’s lemonade recipe.”
Congratulations, Mikaila! We are so proud to call you a Texan and most importantly, a Hill Country lady!
