Why Haas? Isabella Chow

“Lemonade! Twenty-five cents a cup!” Some say that our earliest memories are indicative of our later years. Sometimes I wonder if I was born to sell.

My earliest memory dates back fourteen years, when I opened a lemonade stand outside a neighborhood garage sale. With my fat piggy bank and enthusiastic little voice, I quickly emptied my large dispenser, proudly earning $20 that day. Little did I know that my lemonade startup was just the first of many other business ventures to come. In elementary school, I founded “Secret Club” with six other girls. Together, we handmade cards, friendship bracelets, and keychains, which I then sold at a little table after church. Once enough money was raised, we invested all profits towards buying a goat for an African family through World Vision. Even at a young age, seeing how business profits can benefit others left a deep impression on me, and I still commit at least 10% of any personal or corporate earnings to organizations like Food for the Hungry.

From managing a pomegranate fruit stand in elementary school, to establishing Back-to-Eden Ranch in middle/high school (we sold organic produce, eggs, and meat, and averaged 100 chickens and African guinea fowl at any given time), to selling...