BIZZY KIDS SERIES: The Kidz Snack Stand: Waverly siblings make, sell sweet creations

May 23, 2024

Meet the team behind The Kidz Snack Stand. Their last name is Ericson. In order of seniority, the siblings are Kaydence, 12, Bastian, 10, Maggie 7 and Lucy, 6.

A knack for snacks.

That’s the first ingredient of a Waverly pop up business called The Kidz Snack Stand.

It takes planning and mixing and baking, but then, when the truffles, monster cookies and the irresistible “can’t-leave-them-alone bars” end up in packages, the kids who make them and sell them can relax.

Sort of.

Everyone on the team has a job to do when they get ready for the stand.

What’s behind them is the task of making their sweet creations, but what’s in front of them is selling them.

They never have trouble meeting their sales goals and this summer’s first day brought in a $75 profit.

Meet the team behind The Kidz Snack Stand. Their last name is Ericson.

In order of seniority, the siblings are Kaydence, 12, Bastian, 10, Maggie, 7, and Lucy, 6.

They never have trouble meeting their sales goals and this summer’s first day brought in a $75 profit.

Watching them put together the stand and display their sweets is like admiring a beehive of energy that is directed at the right time and at the right place.

As the stand came together in front of my eyes on a sizzling Friday in late June, on their street in northwest Waverly, the kids worked with purposeful diligence, but also with excitement that their stand is going to be featured in the paper.

They were never in one place longer than they needed to be, and in between arranging the stand, Maggie and Lucy played their violins for me, and Lucy showed me her artwork.

They were never in one place longer than they needed to be, buzzing around, and in between arranging the stand, Maggie and Lucy played their violins for me, and Lucy showed me her artwork.

The Ericson siblings also have a shingle online, with a dedicated website:www.kidzsnackstand.com. It’s a collaboration between dad, Dan, who is a web developer, and an online marketer, and Kaydence, who at the age of 11, learned how to make websites.

It takes planning and mixing and baking, but then, when the truffles, monster cookies and the irresistible “can’t-leave-them-alone bars” end up in packages, the kids who make them and sell them can relax.

And while the online aspect of the business is not their main focus, they have delivered orders for birthdays and other family functions to those craving their sweets.

As the stand came together on a sizzling Friday in late June, on their street in northwest Waverly, they worked with purposeful diligence, but also with excitement that their stand is going to be featured in the paper.

The idea came about seven years ago, when Kaydence was about 5, they recalled, and the family lived in Washington state before moving to Waverly to be closer to family.

At the time, dad Dan used a piece of plywood to cobble the stand together. What is remarkable is that the stand has withstood the move and all the summer wear and tear that happens when it has to be assembled. It has endured the parching rays of the sun year after year without fail.

What gets a do-over every season, however, is the front of the stand as the text fades quickly despite the tent above it on hot days.

Here is how it works:

Everyone on the team has a job to do when they get ready for the stand.

Mom Minette does the shopping for the products, usually peanut butter, chocolate chips and quick oats, the week prior to the scheduled stand.

Then the kids roll up their sleeves. Kaydence does the truffles because they are the most delicate; Bastian makes his famous monster cookies that he won an award for when the family lived in Washington state; Maggie and Lucy help with decorating and packaging, and the lemonade, which is a family recipe. It takes lime and a lemon, along with ice to get the right flavor.

When they mix, bake or dip the truffles in chocolate, the siblings are focused on the task at hand.

They may be tempted to sample their work, but never do because they abide by their mother’s words: “Don’t eat your profits!”

When all is said and done, and at the end of the day the money in the jar is counted, the kids pay back their mom for the purchases with the profits from the stand. Then the remaining amount is saved for trips and adventures for the whole family.

Only on one occasion, when they burned a batch, they ate the cookies as they were not suitable for the market.

When the kids get behind the stand, they know how to do the math because the sweets are a dollar a piece for now.

When all is said and done, and at the end of the day the money in the jar is counted, the kids pay back their mom for the purchases with the profits from the stand.

Then the remaining amount is saved for trips and adventures for the whole family.

The stand is mostly a summer business, but the kids are busy year round.

After they are done with school, which their mother teaches at home, they do art, and music. Kaydence plays the flute, Bastian is a drummer and Maggie and Lucy are learning the violin.

What’s impressive about the kids is that they know the stand is only one step of their development, an opportunity to learn about business, get experience with planning and working with customers and grow from it.

What’s impressive about the kids is that they know the stand is only one step of their development, an opportunity to learn about business, get experience with planning and working with customers and grow from it.

When I asked them about their plans for the future, it was clear from their answers that they had thought about it before and each had at least two options. Kaydence wants to be an architect or a web developer like her dad; Bastian wants to be a soccer player or an architect (although that came as a surprise to his big sister); Maggie wants to be an artist or sail ferry boats, which is what she said she wanted to do since she was 3; and Lucy wants to be a violinist, and “hopefully be a firefighter.”

The Ericson children make another sale at The Kidz Snack Stand.

When I asked about what’s fun about working as a team, they were candid and unrehearsed.

“It gives us a chance to cooperate,” Bastian said.

Lucy saw the benefit of collaborative work as involving everyone.

“It makes everything feel better because we work together,” Lucy said. “If one person just does it, all the other people feel left out. And the customers want to have everyone helping.”

Kaydence, on the other hand, saw the utility of having more hands on deck.

“If one of us has to go get something from the side, maybe make a new batch of lemonade, the other people can stay and help at the stand,” she said.

But the most insightful answer came from Maggie, the one who’s wanted to sail ferry boats for a living.

She said for her, the stand is “time to be with my siblings.”

“The only time we actually get to work together,” she said.

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A steady rain this evening. Showers continuing overnight. Low 62F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%.

A steady rain this evening. Showers continuing overnight. Low 62F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%.

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