Karneisha Christian-Stewart

When life gave her lemons, Karneisha Christian-Stewart literally used her father’s recipe to make lemonade —building a thriving beverage business in Compton called Pucker Up Lemonade Company. The Compton College alumna now also sells her many flavors of lemonade, iced tea, and infused waters at the Certified Farmers’ Market hosted on campus every Wednesday. “While I had never participated in other farmers’ markets, I feel the community is so fortunate to have Compton College in our back yard,” she said. “It was a no-brainer to participate in the farmers’ market on campus given my long relationship with the college.”

She began her three-decades long affiliation with Compton College at the age of 14 when she landed a job at the college’s Financial Aid Office through a state-funded summer youth employment program in the early 1990s. Being an ambitious and self-direct teen, Christian-Stewart pushed herself to finish high school early. While still in high school, she dually enrolled at Compton College to take an Algebra class she needed to fulfill a graduation requirement.

She continued her connection with Compton College by enrolling full-time in 1993, joining the women’s basketball team her first year and taking advantage of all the college had to offer. “Being at Compton College was easy and comfortable for me,” she said. “Having worked in the Financial Aid Office, I was familiar with faculty and staff, and I liked begin involved.” During her sophomore year, she joined the Associated Student Government as commissioner of activities which helped her develop important skills that facilitated her entrepreneurial spirit such as leadership, teamwork, collaboration, and event planning. She graduated with an associate degree and transferred to Concordia University in Irvine where she majored in behavioral science and anthropology. She also attended Maxine Waters Employment and Training Center, as well as Southwest College to train to become a nurse.

“Compton College has played a major role in my life,” said Christian-Stewart. “The college definitely prepared me to transfer to a four-year university and really prepared me for life because as a young teen I was able to work alongside and study with mostly adult learners at Compton College. I was influenced by a wide range of people, backgrounds, experiences, and knowledge.”

Christian-Stewart is an effective career changer. Her success as an entrepreneur follows a fulfilling, 15-year career as a pediatric nurse. Pucker Up Lemonade began humbly in 2011 as part of her child’s school fundraiser carnival with little more than a family recipe, a beverage dispenser, and an ice chest. With attention to detail and marketing instinct, Christian-Stewart and her husband Jon slowly grew Pucker Up from a lemonade stand at private and public events such as family gatherings, parties, quinceañera celebrations, street fairs, weddings, and baby showers to corporate events, brand activations, and large-scale events. In 2019, a series of serendipitous events led to Christian-Stewart opening Pucker Up Lemonade’s flagship “brick and mortar” store. 

“A specialty foods shop owner in Compton wanted to retire and was looking for someone to take over his commercial space lease,” said Christian-Stewart. “Through a friend’s referral to the storefront location, I was in the right place at the right time and while the shop needed a little sprucing up, it had the commercial kitchen equipment I needed. Upon meeting the shop owner in person, we wrote the deal on a piece of paper and a handshake, and I never looked back. I’m a firm believer in faith and generational blessings. My father taught my siblings and I about a strong work ethic and how to pay it forward.”

Today, Christian-Stewart continues to grow and diversify her business and is part of a network of Black women business owners who support each other and share best business practices. Pucker Up Lemonade boasts more than 100 flavors of lemonade (50 flavors in both sugar and sugar free versions), iced teas, and water infused with fruits/vegetables and natural flavors. Pucker Up offers “boutique” beverage catering with colorfully decorated drink stations, tea parties, and mocktail drinks, pressed, stirred and ready to order. Unique lemonade flavors such as mango, lavender, and charcoal tickle the tastebuds and offer something for everyone. Eye-catching souvenir cups purchased for $12-15 deliver “all you can drink” refills indefinitely for $3. Prepackaged beverages are also sold by partner retail locations, and there are plans for future mass production and distribution, as well as franchise opportunities. 

Next up, Pucker Up Lemonade will go mobile with a food truck in 2024. “We will offer a small food menu with unique and delicious items to accompany everyone’s favorite lemonade flavors,” said Christian-Stewart.

The company’s slogan is “When life gives you lemons, pucker up!” The term ‘pucker up’ can mean different things to different people,” said Christian-Stewart. “For my family, it means with whatever you are handed in life, ready yourself, position yourself, use your resources, and that’s what building Pucker Up Lemonade has really been for us. I think my kids realize that anything is possible. We started this with backyard lemons and look where we are today! They really see the possibilities of dedication, consistency, creativity, and strong work ethic.”