PHOENIX – There’s nothing better on a scorching summer day than a nice, tall glass of lemonade – except when it’s being served up by a pint-sized kidpreneur who’s helping the community.
In celebration of their respective company anniversaries this summer, bluemedia – the national signage firm behind the design, printing, fabrication, and installation of the biggest events in the world – and Duality Public Relations – a leading boutique public relations firm in Arizona – are teaming up to inspire and support budding entrepreneurs.
The two firms are donating 100 custom-fabricated lemonade stands and marketing/PR support tools to kids who have a vested interest in launching a fundraising effort this summer to support their school or a local nonprofit.
From National Lemonade Day on Sunday, May 7, until Friday, June 9, kids ages eight to 14 are encouraged to register for a free lemonade stand at bluemedia.com/lemonade, where they’ll be asked to share the name of the school or nonprofit they hope to support by donating half of their lemonade stand proceeds. One-hundred lemonade stands will be awarded on the first day of summer (Wednesday, June 21) to kidpreneurs at bluemedia’s headquarters in Tempe. The kidpreneurs will have until 11:59 p.m. MST on Sunday, Oct. 1 to raise funds through their lemonade stands.
Prizes will be awarded to the kidpreneurs with the top three highest-grossing lemonade stands, based on total sales, on Thursday, Oct. 26. The first-place winner will receive 16 suite tickets and four VIP parking passes to an Arizona Cardinals game at home (valued at approximately $14,000-$20,000). The second-place winner will receive a back-to-school tech upgrade to a Microsoft Surface Pro (valued at approximately $2,500), and the third-place winner will receive an Apple iPhone 8 (valued at approximately $1,000). In addition, the three schools or nonprofits connected to the top three highest-grossing lemonade stands will each receive a signage package from bluemedia (valued at $1,000) and a public relations package from Duality PR (valued at $1,000).
During their fundraising campaigns, the kidpreneurs will be able to receive supporting materials for their lemonade stands on a microsite, where they’ll also get instructions on how to set up a virtual lemonade stand to generate additional sales. The microsite will also allow them to track their fundraising progress. Participants will be encouraged to share photos of their lemonade stand successes on social media throughout the summer using the hashtag #LemonadeLife.
bluemedia and Duality PR will support the kidpreneurs throughout the summer with virtual check-ins through Facebook Live, where the firms will provide inspiration, share marketing tips, give updates on the stands’ fundraising efforts, and field questions from participating kidpreneurs and their parents.
The idea of donating more than $20,000 in lemonade stands made entirely from recycled materials was a natural fit for the two firms.
“For the last few years, we’ve been passionate about giving back to charitable programs that support kids and entrepreneurs,” said Darren Wilson, president of bluemedia. “‘This allows us to combine the two in a fun, interactive way. We cannot wait to see the creative fundraising ideas that these kidpreneurs come up with!”
For Duality PR, the project gives kids an opportunity to learn more about the excitement of running their own business. The Phoenix-based PR firm, which was co-founded by Angela Menninger and Kristy Jozwiak, originated over pizza, wine, and a conversation about quality of life. Three years later, the firm is a successful reality.
“Building your own business from scratch is incredibly rewarding, but it also takes a supportive community,” said Kristy Jozwiak, Co-Founder of Duality PR. “We want to do our part to give back, and inspire others to do the same. Not only are we getting to positively influence the next generation of Arizona entrepreneurs, but we’re also helping local schools and nonprofits at the same time.”
Duality PR officially celebrates its third anniversary on June 2, and bluemedia officially celebrates its 20th anniversary on Aug. 1. The two firms started ‘Take a Lemonade Stand’ to help give kids an entrepreneurial mindset at an early age. With a retail price of $225 each, the lemonade stands are custom-designed, custom-fabricated, and custom-wrapped in colorful, eye-catching vinyl graphics. Built to be portable and withstand the rigors of an indoor or outdoor pop-up location, the stands are comprised of recycled, oversize paper rolls, and Falconboard®, a corrugated cardboard structure developed by Hecxacomb, a Packaging Corporation of America brand and partner of bluemedia.
For more information about ‘Take a Lemonade Stand,’ or to apply for your own stand, visit bluemedia.com/lemonade.
