Student salesmen: Brothers make bucks selling brownies
BILL BULEY/Press Brothers Jatta, right, and Ira Loomis sell brownies on Sherman Avenue on Monday afternoon. Due to the Presidents Day holiday, the boy decided to earn money by making and selling the treats.
COEUR d’ALENE — Brothers Jatta and Ira Loomis did not waste their Presidents Day school break Monday sitting in front of the TV.
They did not use it to goof off and play games.
They decided to earn some money.
Sure, it was cold and windy but Jatta, 10, and Ira, 8, set up shop at 18th and Sherman and sold brownies for 50 cents each on a 40-degree, sunny day with a chilling wind.
After about an hour, they had about $10, mostly $1 bills, in their glass jar.
The frigid conditions, they guessed, were keeping customers away as cars rolled past on Sherman Avenue.
“Business not great,” Jatta said.
But no worries.
Both boys were talkative as they wore coats to fend off the icy air. The Sorensen Elementary students sat on a chair behind their table filled with brownies as they waited for paying customers, confident they would come.
The boys made the brownies themselves, Jatta said, so he knows they’re good. Three batches actually, though only two were for sale. There’s a good reason.
“The first one, we just ate,” Jatta said, smiling.
This isn’t their first venture at being salesmen.
The brothers sold lemonade last summer after checking in with their dad, Ivan Loomis.
“We asked him what we could do for any money,” Ira said.
Sell lemonade was his suggestion.
“We went to the store and got lemonade stuff,” Jatta added.
They made about $30. Due to that successful adventure, the boys decided to offer other products,
“We came up with the idea that we could start selling cookies,” Ira said.
Turned out to be a great idea.
“And then we went out and we made a ton of money,” Jatta said.
A second cookie sale did OK.
“Not as much as the first time,” he said.
Monday, a holiday, turned into yet another work day for the brothers. They weren’t sure yet what to do with their earnings but figured it would be something cool. Saving it until they knew what they wanted was both their ideas.
“We’ll see what we do,” Jatta said.
Meantime, Ira retreated to the warmth of their home temporarily while Jatta manned the brownie table alone and guarded their earnings.
“I’ll stay out here longer,” he said. “I think we can sell them all.”