10 Cool Things You Won’t Find At Any Mall

The thing I hate most about running a business is the selling part. Unfortunately, it’s kinda sorta the most important part. No sales = bye bye business. Of course, everything a business does is selling (or at least marketing, if you prefer). How you answer the phone. What your website looks like. How well you perform for a client can lead to referrals. But I can never shake feeling like a used car salesman whenever I ask for the sale. Especially when it comes to the Kim & Jason Lemonade Stand.

My thought is that we try to stock it with really cool stuff.

If people see something and they like it and want to buy it, sweet. If not, no biggie. But people wiser than me have said that it helps if you actually let people know you have stuff for sale.

Yeah.

So here are a few things I’m pretty proud of; things that you won’t actually find at any mall. If you’re looking for a unique Christmas gift, one of these just might fit the bill.

WOW Greeting Card Box Set
This is a set of 48 greeting cards spanning all of life’s big moments. The thing most people miss is that the box lid features a one-of-a-kind piece of artwork from yours truly. Meaning I customize it based on your own interests with my own two little hands. Indeed, it is a true collectible, as no box is ever the same. I don’t do any commissioned artwork these days, so if you’re into that sort of thing, here you go.

I Am Not a Paper Cup (Adulthood Stinks Edition)
These reusable, environmentally friendly porcelain cups are all the rage these days. But nowhere else can you get them with a special edition label that lets you show off how you feel about this whole adulthood thing. You get to choose between the “Adulthood Stinks” or the “Escape Adulthood” versions and you also get to pick the lid color. (get coffee for free.)

There’s An Adult In My Soup
This may be my favorite book that Kim and I have written. I think the cover rocks, but the inside really delivers. It’s kind of like Chicken Soup for the Soul in that there are short little chapters and you can pick it up and start reading from anywhere. And of course it has pictures (the best books always do!) If you want some food for thought when it comes to managing life balance and cooking up the life of your dreams, this is a good one. And if you want the iPad/iPhone version, you can get that here.

Root Beer Float Candle
I’ve always loved scented candles. I think it goes back to my scratch-n-sniff sticker collecting days. I’m always left amazed as I wonder: how did they get this paper/wax to smell just like the real thing?! The advancement of science knows no bounds, I tell ya! So we sell candles, but not the normal foo-foo kinds that smell like old ladies’ perfume. We have ones that smell like the good parts of your childhood, like the root beer float candle pictured here. We also have Clean Underpants, Dirt, Sawdust, Buttered Popcorn, and more.

Rock Paper Scissors T-Shirt
Sometimes (most of the time) you create a product and you think it will be a hit. Then it bombs. Other times it actually does sell quite well. I’ve always loved this Rock Paper Scissors shirt design, and judging by sales, others do as well. Interestingly, at a recent speaking program, my brother had to actually explain to someone the concept of Rock Paper Scissors. And I still don’t think she got it. But I think most people know that it’s the globally accepted best way to peacefully resolve any dispute.

Red Rover T-Shirt
Another t-shirt. I am not too humble to say that I love how clever this one is. (Mostly because a majority of my ideas are so bad they never see the light of day, and the majority of the ones that do end up flopping.) Most of the time I see a clever t-shirt and wish that I had thought of it, and kick myself because I didn’t. This one makes me happy to say that I did. This t-shirt for folks who may still be nursing clothesline injuries from childhood.

Adultitis First Aid Kit
Pretty much anyone who’s seen one of my speaking programs knows what an Adultitis First Aid Kit is. Which is basically an Adultitis-fighting shock-and-awe campaign in a cute red box. It includes a copy of Escape Adulthood, the ultimate resource on Adultitis along with The Escape Plan Journal, the 40-day guide to eliminate Adultitis. Rounding out the kit is a box of Jelly Belly Beanboozled gourmet jelly beans, a box of food coloring for making Ugly Cookies or green eggs, a bendable toy Pokey, and a set of Inanimate Object Stickers to remind you not to take yourself so dang seriously. Adios Adultitis.

Mom Print
There are a TON of prints featured at the Lemonade Stand. So many that people who have a hard time making decisions will have fits. But this one is still one of my favorites. Being a Mom is one of the most difficult and challenging jobs around and I feel like this is a classic tribute. Show your Mom (or someone else’s) that she’s one of the best with this heartwarming Weekend Print.

Mixed Fruit Jelly Bean Card Set
In an age where everything seems to be digital, virtual, and anonymous, we’re slowly losing the art of the handwritten note. This product marries the nostalgia of the old Mom and Pop candy store with the old school charm of real, heartfelt, honest-to-goodness greeting cards. Hand-packaged in a manner fit for a classic candy spinner, each set contains 16 greeting cards and a rainbow’s assortment of 16 envelopes. The insides have been left blank for adding your own personal, handwritten touch — the kind you just can’t get with an email or text message. Oh, and we’ve also thrown in a bag of delicious gourmet Jelly Belly jelly beans to satisfy your sweet tooth. Greeting cards are meant to be sent to friends, but we won’t tell if you decide to keep the beans to yourself :)

Stupid Swimming Lessons: Kim & Jason Annual #3
So I used to do a comic strip. For like seven years. This is the complete 3rd year of the Kim & Jason Comic smashed into one awesome book. One of these days, I have to get around to finishing the last few annuals, especially since those are some of the best strips. Although not as good as Peanuts or Calvin & Hobbes, if you or someone you know like those classic comics, they’ll probably dig Kim & Jason as well.