When she was just 8, Mikaila got her first big order from Whole Foods and began selling Me and The Bees Lemonade locally, in Austin stores. So then I thought, what if I make something that helps honeybees and uses my Great Granny Helen's lemonade recipe? Our lemonade is fresh-squeezed with added Texas wildflower honey, flaxseed and mint. The origins of her company, Me & the Bees Lemonade, which donates a portion of sales to bee conservation, dates back to a lemonade stand Mikaila started in kindergarten for a children’s business competition in Austin, Texas. All Rights Reserved. Mikaila started her lemonade business in 2009. Your investment in Marketplace helps us remain paywall-free and ensures everyone has access to trustworthy, unbiased news and information, regardless of their ability to pay. Mikaila launched her own Facebook page, where visitors can ‘Like’ interesting facts about bees, honey and Me & the Bees Lemonade. So I put on my thinking cap. Twin Oaks Branch Library was just a few blocks from my home, and I loved visiting it because it was always quiet and cool. I remember the video played that wild “Flight of the Bumblebee” music by Nikolai Rimsky- Korsakov. At 15 years old, Mikaila Ulmer is a student, bee ambassador, social entrepreneur and author. But me and so many other kid entrepreneurs and Black-owned businesses are proving that’s not the case.”, Click the audio player above to hear Mikaila tell her story. Around that same time, my family encouraged me to make a product for a couple of children's business competitions - the Acton Children’s Business Fair and Austin Lemonade Day. I tried to avoid any interaction with a bee and didn’t want to go near anything with wings. All around our neighborhood were large aloe plants. Excerpted from “Bee Fearless: Dream Like a Kid,” by Mikaila Ulmer. My family was there, and there was lots of crying. So, as a token of my appreciation, I am celebrating by giving back to you. But the day I went to the library after I had been stung by two bees, I knew exactly what I was looking for: bee books. More recently, a group of professional football players invested $800,000 in the business. We are now celebrating more than 10 years in “buzzness!”, Mikaila started her lemonade at youth entrepreneurial events and at her lemonade stand out in front of her home, donating a percentage of the profits to local and international organizations fighting hard to save the honeybees. “I don’t think that there’s a limit or any particular guidelines on who can become an entrepreneur who can start a company,” Mikaila told “Marketplace.” “The perception is that … there’s, like, a certain race or gender or age that you need to be if you want to make it big, or be successful, or grow your company. Even though I wasn’t able to fully grasp the effect of bees on our environment, I still realized many things I loved to eat, not just honey, came from bees. My parents were amazed at how quickly I picked up words. Today, the award-winning, ready-to-drink Me & the Bees Lemonades in five refreshing flavors is buzzing off the shelves of Whole Foods Market, The Fresh Market, World Market, H-E-B stores across Texas and Kroger stores in Houston. Her flaxseed lemonade is sold in 1,500 stores in more than 40 states. Find Mikaila on Facebook and Instagram pages where followers can ‘like’ interesting facts about bees, honey and Me & the Bees Lemonade. Today, the award-winning Me & the Bees Lemonade is buzzing off the shelves of Whole Foods Market, the world’s leader in natural and organic foods, and available at a growing number of restaurants, food trailers and natural food delivery companies. Now more than ever, your commitment makes a difference. So I decided I was going to save them. When we got to the library, I had just as many questions about things. But that would mean not going outside and enjoying all the things you love to do. © Reprinted by permission. I thought about some ideas. I must have made the bee angry, because before I knew it, something sharp hit my neck. During that time, her family had received a 1940’s cookbook from her Great Granny Helen from South Carolina, which included special recipe for Flaxseed Le… I did as he instructed, and sulked for the rest of the party. Is it more than skin deep? Click here. While I was thinking, my Great Granny Helen, who lived in Cameron, South Carolina, sent my family a 1940s cookbook, which included her special recipe for flaxseed lemonade. The insurance industry gets a tech makeover. Two different bees, two different places. Or, instead of being afraid of bees, you could learn about them.” So we went to the library, and my bee research began. I always wanted to check out as many books as I could, but the librarian reminded me there was a limit. All rights reserved. At four-and-a-half, I couldn’t read most of the complicated subjects, but there were a few picture books in the kids’ section, so I started with those. Published by Penguin Random House, it is about her adventures in being a social entrepreneur and heading up a purpose-based brand aimed at offering premium, all-natural lemonades in a way that helps save the bees. This was a problem for my family. My parents sat me down one evening and said, “Mikaila, you can choose to be afraid of bees. Mikaila Ulmer, the 15-year-old founder and CEO of Me & the Bees Lemonade in 2019. Donate today — in any amount — to become a Marketplace Investor. The library was a place where I could get a lot of answers to a lot of questions. I also learned that bees were dying at an alarming rate. It's my birthday and I've always thought it's better to give than to receive!! Naturally, I didn't enjoy the bee stings at all and I became scared of bees. Mikaila’s first book, Bee Fearless, Dream Like a Kid, launches in August 2020. Without me, you wouldn’t be able to eat most fruits, nuts, cheeses, or any dairy, because cows eat alfalfa and alfalfa is pollinated by bees. I also checked out a video about bee pollination. Friends were there, and they were playing music. And believe me, there’s a lot of work ahead of you when you start a business. And of course, she’s working hard as a high school student, loving Spanish, science and rock climbing classes. Then, exactly one week later, when we were at a family cookout, I got my second bee sting. But then after doing some research about them, I became fascinated and learned all about what they do for me and our ecosystem. When not traveling for speaking events to share her stories of being a social entrepreneur, leading workshops on how to save the bees, or participating in social entrepreneurship panels, you can find Mikaila coming up with ideas to help the Healthy Hive Foundation, a nonprofit to further help the mission of saving the pollinators. The following is an excerpt from her new book, “Bee Fearless: Dream Like a Kid.”. Me & the Bees Lemonade™ is a family-owned business in Austin, Texas. Let our founder, Mikaila, explain the origin of Me & the Bees Lemonade: When I was just four, I got stung by a bee and then got stung again less than a week later! I was at a neighbor’s party up the hill from our house when it happened. This time in my ear! I can’t stress this enough. After the second bee sting, I didn’t even want to go outside, not even to help my dad in our garden or play with my little brother, Jacob. These first three steps are critical. I had to decide which ones to choose, and it was always difficult. “And what’s that?” I was always asking questions. I read to know the answers to my questions. I don’t remember our walks to and from the library, but my mom tells me I would stop every few steps to inspect something new: “Look, what’s that?” A few more steps. After 10 years in business and an appearance on the television show “Shark Tank,” Mikaila’s company is a national brand. I stopped buzzing around the room and really paid attention.
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