Could a local 10-year-old be inventing the next Uber?
That was the question at Fort Lauderdale's first Children's Business Fair showcasing children's entrepreneurial genius!
Highlights Included:
- FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
- 18 Booths - 25 budding entrepreneurs
- Mini-ribbon cutting ceremony at each booth with Fort Lauderdale District 4 Commissioner Ben Sorensen
In this photo below, City of Fort Lauderdale District 4 Commissioner Ben Sorensen and his daughters officially welcome Zoe of "The Art Cart" with a ribbon cutting in front of her booth.
How does it work?
Children create a product or service, develop a brand, build a marketing strategy, and then open for customers at this one-day marketplace. The children are responsible for the setup, sales, and interacting with customers, and any parent seen selling to the customer or promoting the child’s product will result in disqualification from the competition.
Prizes were awarded in each of the two age groups (6-10, 11-15) for “Most Business Potential,” “Most Creative Idea,” and “Most Impressive Presentation."
For the younger age group (ages 6-10):
- Most Original - "The Art Cart" by Zoe (age 9)
- Highest Business Potential - "Creations by Lily" (age 10)
- Most Impressive Presentation -
"The Art Cart" by Zoe (age 9)
For the older group (ages 11-15):
- Most Original - "Sweet Stitch Bears" by Emery (age 13) and Madison (age 13)
- Highest Business Potential - "Agape" by Sofia (age 14) and Vanessa (age 15)
- Most Impressive Presentation - "Twirling Baker" by Alayna (age 12)
Visitors to the Fair were amazed at the creativity and ingenuity as our budding entrepreneurs showed off products of all kinds, from jewelry to art supplies, sparkling pink lemonade, and hand-sewn teddy bears.
I wanted to thank you for all the hard work you put in to make the children's business fair such as success. It's always inspiring to see little humans doing big things. Zoe truly enjoyed this whole experience and she's already planning for the next one. She even got asked to provide a service at a birthday party with her Eggcellent Art kits! An entrepreneur was born yesterday. Thanks again - Joanna
But it wasn't just about buying and selling. Every visitor was an opportunity to make new friends and new connections. As mom Vanessa shared:
"Thank you for allowing Melissa to participate today. She has been selling her goods for months but never in this type of setting. She actually told me how proud her herself she was today which meant everything to me. Melissa was terrified this morning and left way more confident. Thank you for this opportunity."
Watching the smiles (and the sales) was a source of pride for many of us parents, but it also can be a challenge to step back and let our young entrepreneurs have the full experience. Sometimes that means watching the make mistakes, so they gain the learning experience.
For me as a Dad - I watched my daughter Divya prepare her "hand drawn books about animals" and wondered who might buy these very childish creations compared to the market worthy jewelry and baked goods offered at other booths.
But by stepping back, I allowed her to have her full experience.
And note to self: She nearly sold out for the day.😱
One big highlight of the day was seeing another 5-year-old exhuberantly buy... and then exclaim that THIS was the kind of booth he would want to do in the future. If I had stepped in like I wanted to, I would have robbed her (and him) of the highlights for this day.
Candace - another participating parent shared this:
What a great event yesterday! I just wanted to say thank you for all of your hard work and perseverance to create a memory maker for our kids.
The Children’s Business Fair was well organized, the location was amazing, your lead-up emails were informative and helped me feel prepared and welcome.
I especially loved the example you gave of your own daughter. Her booth was very much done by just her, and I was pleased to see you lead through example.
One of the items we shared with Fair visitors was this card of questions, to give different examples of what they could as the entrepreneurs about their creations.
The Fort Lauderdale Children's Business Fair is sponsored by Acton Academy. Our new school location (opening in February) is right around the corner on the grounds of Old Fort Lauderdale Village, in the historic Bryan House. Next Open House is January 17th from 4-6pm.
Our next Children's Business Fair is being planned for early June 2022. If you would like more information, use this button to sign up for notifications.
If you would like more information about Acton Academy Fort Lauderdale, use the button in the top right corner to schedule a call to get all your questions answered.