Wallace Griffin, 11, came up with the idea to make a lemonade stand really stand out during June’s Junior Market at Esther Short Park, and Wallace’s pitch to judges also earned fantastic marks, leading to Wallace being named the Junior Market entrepreneur of the year

Paul Valencia
Clark County Today

Wallace Griffin’s intention was to stand out among the many in the crowd.

The business had to be seen.

But just being seen was not enough. The product also had to be excellent.

With brainstorming and experimentation, Wallace Griffin came up with the Lemonade Lab, and it turned into the winning combination.

Wallace, 11, was named the 2025 Southwest Washington Lemonade Day Entrepreneur of the Year by OnPoint Community Credit Union and the Greater Vancouver Chamber after the labe had the best day during the Junior Market at Esther Short Park on June 7.

Close to 200 businesses were set up at the park that day, and the youngsters kept records of their sales and profits. The junior vendors also were scored on their sales pitches, and many of them took business lessons.

When all the data came in, it was Wallace’s business that had the magic touch.

On Monday, Wallace received a check from the GVC for $100, a reward that was matched by OnPoint Community Credit Union. Wallace also received a $55 bonus for opening an OnPoint Savers account, available to those 17 years old or younger. Wallace also received an Amazon Fire Tablet.

John McDonagh, president and CEO of the Greater Vancouver Chamber, and Tim Clevenger, a senior vice president and chief marketing officer at OnPoint, presented Wallace with the big check.

“You always see lemonade stands out there, but I wanted to push it forward,” Wallace said. “I thought of the idea so you could put your own flavors in. Where else do you mix things together? The lab. So I came up with the idea of the Lemon Lab.”

The flavors were made with ingredients similar to Pop Rocks.

“We tried it. It was perfect. It made loud noises. You could see it fizzing,” Wallace said.

Apparently, it drew a lot of attention.

After paying back mom and dad — Meagan and Kelly — for the start-up costs associated with the business, Wallace profited more than $280 on June 7. Wallace donated 25 percent of that to the Humane Society.

“From the start, I wanted to take the original theme and make it better and make it as good as I could,” Wallace said.

This is only the beginning for this junior entrepreneur. Wallace plans on competing again next year at the Junior Market, but Wallace is not yet sure of the brand or product. 

“I don’t know quite yet,” he said. “I get an idea in my head, and yeah, ‘I’m going to make that happen.’”

McDonagh said it is important to recognize the hard work all of the junior entrepreneurs put into their brands for Lemonade Day.

“We need a future workforce that understands what small business is all about,” McDonagh said. 

It will also help them when they get their first jobs. They will have a connection with the small business owner who has to make tough decisions, because they already had a similar experience, McDonagh said.