A lot of 12-year-olds have had the experience of setting up a lemonade stand. But most of them don’t wind up selling lemonade for some of the biggest retailers in the country. This is why Mikaila Ulmer is not your average 12-year-old. Her lemonade has gone from her front lawn to Whole Foods Market.
Ulmer’s journey started when she was stung by two bees. Frightened, her parents suggested she do some research on bees to help alleviate her fear.
“I didn’t enjoy the bee stings at all,” Ulmer says. “They scared me. But then something strange happened. I became fascinated with bees. I learned all about what they do for me and our ecosystem. So then I thought, what if I make something that helps honeybees and uses my Great Granny Helen’s recipe?”
That’s when the pint-sized entrepreneur got the idea for BeeSweet Lemonade.
She then had to face a different kind of fear: the Sharks. At just nine, she pitched the beverage idea to the intimidating judges on “Shark Tank.” FUBU CEO Daymond John saw something special in Ulmer and invested $60,000 to take BeeSweet to the next level. Now called Me & the Bees, the lemonade is made with honey and flaxseed instead of sugar and is sold all over the country.
The sweet taste of success hasn’t distracted Ulmer from her mission to bring healthy eating habits to the masses and to educate people on the ecological importance of honey bees. A portion of all her lemonade sales go to organizations that work to save the world’s bees population.
In addition to her growing business, Ulmer has spoken at national events like South by Southwest and the Dreamforce conference. She even introduced President Obama at last year’s White House Women’s Summit.
To find out more information, visit meandthebees.com.
