A stockbroker walks past a kid selling lemonade
āHey mister, ya want some lemonade?ā a little girl calls to him.
The stockbroker is just getting out of his brand new BMW in a nice tailored suit. He was about to walk past when he a double take at the sign that says āLemonade $50ā.
āYour sign is wrong kid. I think you mean fifty cents.ā
The little girl shakes her head. āNope, fifty bucks mister. I need the money for Space Camp!ā
The stockbroker pause for a minute, because he appreciates a good hustle but clearly this kid is going about it the wrong way. āLook sweetie, I know youāre trying to make money but you have to charge what people are willing to pay. No one is going to pay that much for a tiny cup of lemonade. Now what do you think is a fair price?ā
The little girl beams and says āFifty bucks mister!ā
The stockbroker gives a little sigh and shakes his head. āOkay Iām gonna pass. You see? You canāt make a profit when no one pay your price. Now do you have anything else for sale?ā
āHomemade brownies, 50 cents!ā
The stockbroker winces in frustration. āOK look, I studied economics at Harvard and I got my MBA from Wharton so Iām going to teach you a little about business, okay? Now each of your little cups of lemonade probably costs you about fifty cents including the margin cost of your stand.ā He takes out a dollar. āIāll pay you ten times that much because I want to help you understand about markup.ā
The little girl shakes her head and smiles. āNo thanks, mister. Fifty bucks please!ā
āYou know what? I give up. Take this dollar and Iām going to buy two of your brownies, I know youāre losing money on them, and Iām not going to buy a single cup of your overpriced lemonade. Iām trying to be nice and teach you about business but I guess this is the only way for you to learn a lesson.ā
āOkay!ā The girl takes the dollar and puts ten brownies on a plate.
Just to make the point, the stockbroker decides to eat one of the brownies right in front of her. Suddenly he begins coughing and gagging uncontrollably. āOh my Godā¦what isā¦what did you put in these?ā
She grins happily and says āItās my special
recipe! Eggs, flour, butter, cocoa, sawdust and goat pellets!ā
āThis is horrible! I have to get this taste out of my mouth!ā
The little girl takes out a jar full of $50 bills, cocks her head to the side and says through a beaming grin, āYa want some lemonade?ā