Chy'Ah Smith Built a Beverage Brand People Line Up For
“At 14, Chy'Ah Smith sold lemonade pouches. By 19, she'd built Thirsty Lemon into a booked, LLC-structured events brand — and Detroit is paying attention.”
Black Tech Saturdays, Detroit. May 16, 2026. Chy'Ah Smith is working a lemonade stand — except it doesn't look like a lemonade stand anymore. There is a line. Somewhere between pouring the first cup and watching the back of the line stretch, Smith stops performing the role of vendor and starts seeing the shape of something larger. That is the moment she says Thirsty Lemon outgrew the stand.
Chy'Ah Smith is a Detroit founder building the blueprint for what non-alcoholic events culture looks like. Thirsty Lemon is her vehicle — an LLC-structured beverage and events brand she is scaling into a multi-city operation rooted in culture.
According to NielsenIQ's 2023 "No & Low" report, 78% of consumers who drink alcohol now also regularly choose non-alcoholic alternatives — sharpest among Gen Z. The U.S. non-alcoholic beverage market crossed $565 million in 2023 (IWSR), projected to grow by double digits through the decade. Federal Reserve data shows Black entrepreneurs face loan denial rates nearly twice those of white-owned businesses with comparable profiles.
Low capital and mobility. A brand that has already outgrown her resources — booked events, waiting lists — but the infrastructure to meet that demand at scale requires investment she hasn't yet secured through conventional channels.
Standing behind her table at BTS in May 2026, watching people choose to wait for what she'd made, Smith didn't pivot — she clarified. The question became what it would take to build Thirsty Lemon like a real brand.
Smith started at 14, selling lemonade pouches. She built on Shopify and Square, and in January 2026 formalized Thirsty Lemon as an LLC. Marcel Price at Kalamazoo Forward Ventures and the WMU Starting Gate program provided structured mentorship. Her hard lesson: "Managing demand while communicating clearly with your network isn't extra work. It's the actual work."
Thirsty Lemon was founded in 2019 and formalized as an LLC in January 2026 (self-reported). Year one gross revenue of approximately $30,000 (self-reported estimate). Served 200 guests at the GM Student Corps Luncheon on July 29, 2026 (self-reported). Booked to serve 200 guests at the Southwest Michigan First conference on September 17, 2026 (self-reported, at time of intake).
Every student with a big idea and no capital gets a data point they can hold: you do not have to wait for permission, a check, or a credential to build something real.
Follow @thirstylemonco and find her at thirstylemonco.com. The line is forming.
