When life gives you lemons….

How to make lemonade. Slice lemons in half. Squeeze out the juice into a bowl. Add water, sugar, maybe some ice and a few slices of lemon. Pour into a large pitcher and stir well. Keep in the fridge so it stays nice and cool.

Then make a stand. A simple folding table with a tablecloth; maybe decorate it to draw attention. Add a couple of chairs and a cashbox with a float in it. Finish with a stack or two of clean disposable cups, some napkins or paper towel for spills and any handheld goodies. You might have a small garbage bin discreetly set close by. Staff with a child or two still in their tween years.

Finally, add a nice big handwritten sign to tape to front of the stand, naming your price.

Earlier this year I visited one of the Southern Gulf Islands located between Vancouver and Vancouver Island. This particular island is infamous for the Saturday Farmers’ Market.

People ferry in from all over to shop there. Tourists, who populate the 80+ B&Bs and countless Air BnBs, vie for parking in the tiny downtown core of the island’s biggest town. At the height of the season there are probably around 100 vendors selling everything from locally made pottery, jewellery, tie-dyed garments, fresh produce and gourmet food. Buskers perform.

In the middle of the main promenade was a kid-run lemonade stand. I like to support local businesses, and use their prices as an idea of the current fair market value. I wandered over, reaching for a toonie, which was the price I expected to pay. The bored tween staffing the stand was too busy on her phone to make eye contact. While I waited for her to notice me, I glanced at her price list.

At first I thought it was a joke. But it wasn’t.

The price of a simple 8-oz plastic cup of lemonade was $5.00. FIVE. DOLLARS.

Holy sticker shock. I left lemonade-less. But as I continued touring the market, I put a few things in context.

First, location. British Columbia has been an increasingly expensive province to live in since the late 1980s. Good luck finding anywhere to rent.

Second, the price of gas literally drives the price of everything. I visited in late spring; the price of gas at that time was $1.85. Back home in Ontario it was $1.55.

Third, the island is, well, an island, meaning that most items are brought in via ferry. This further impacts the price of ingredients. Though some hobbyists grow citrus trees, the climate in B.C. is just not conducive to growing lemons on a large scale.

Fourth, the lemonade ingredients have to be bought, taken home, stored, and eventually made into lemonade before being transported to the FM.

Finally, add in the cost of building the lemonade stand, renting space in a public area and trying to make a profit.

With this in mind, it is regrettably easy to see how this particular lemonade stand can justify charging so much for a cup of lemonade. I still found that price hard to swallow.

Once back in Ontario, the prices of everything suddenly didn’t seem so bad. And it was with interest that I saw a recent post by a local mother, advertising her daughters’ lemonade stand. The stand was the classic small table set up on their driveway in a quiet residential area.

A hand-written sign proudly advertised their prices: Lemonade for $1, chocolate chip cookies for $2 and dog cookies for fifty cents. The girls were shy but friendly and gently coached in the fine art of customer service and making change by their mom.

I made a point of visiting later that day. The lemonade came in regular and strawberry and the cookies were stuffed with huge gooey chocolate chips. I passed on the dog treats, but enjoyed a lunch of two giant cookies and two refreshing cups of lemonade made with fresh-squeezed lemons. It was Monday, after all!

As I left, sipping lemonade and scarfing down the second cookie before it melted, I reflected on the $5 lemonade stand that I saw on the promenade of that island in B.C. I bet it didn’t taste half as good.

And that’s all for now folks! Enjoy the rest of your day.

ETA: Proof that truth is stranger than fiction…this ad aired while I was in B.C. I didn’t see it until today, July 27th. Absolutely hilarious and spot on! P*rU*t7h6&oN4w