When most 15-year-olds are out at the movies, playing video games or listening to music, Mikaila Ulmer of Austin is focusing on building her empire.
Mikaila is the CEO of Me & the Bees Lemonade, a business she started at age 4 after her family encouraged her to enter a local youth business competition. While she was thinking about what type of business to launch, she got stung by a bee — twice. At first she was scared, then quickly her fright turned to fascination when Mikaila learned about the vital role bees play in the ecosystem.
That’s when she decided to do something that would help save honeybees: Sell lemonade sweetened with local honey and donate a percentage of the profits from the sales to local and international organizations fighting to save honeybees. Her special recipe for Flaxseed Lemonade came from her great-grandmother, Helen.
“Being my own boss and being able to make my own money was important to me. I realized how fun it was to sit behind the stand and run it. That is why I decided to keep on going.”
Mikaila Ulmer, left, and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speak onstage at We Day at KeyArena in Seattle on April 20, 2016. in Seattle, Washington.
Mat Hayward | We Day | Getty Images
Beyond the buzz
Mikaila says she now has goals beyond Me & the Bees. “One of the hardest parts of growing was finding funding. I want to make that path easier for minority-run companies who have great ideas.”
According to research from American Express, black women are starting businesses faster than any other racial group. Since 2007, the number of firms owned by African-American women has grown by 164%. Despite the hustle, minority women are being shut out when it comes to access to capital.
Me & the Bees Lemonade CEO Mikaila Ulmer presents to Daymond John on ABC’s “Shark Tank.”
Michael Desmond | Walt Disney Television | Getty Images
Men still get a disproportionate share of venture capital funding, with only 2% of capital going to U.S.-based female-only founder teams, according to PitchBook. Of that 2%, only a fraction goes to women of color.
This young female entrepreneur also believes that modern companies needs to have a social mission: “I think it critical the companies have a social purpose. This generation is more likely to buy a from a company that does good in the world. It is not just a company it is a movement.”
Her best piece of advice to anyone thinking of starting a business? “Dream like a kid. The reason why — kids are so fearless. A kid will do whatever needs to be done to achieve their dream.”
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