Tag: Young Entrepreneurs
Nov
15
Police Called Again On Young Entrepreneurs
Once again, (see below) the police were called on two teens that were selling cupcakes and other treats to make some extra money. This happened in Chappaqua, NY and the kids were 13 year old Andrew DeMarchis and Kevin Graff.
This story was just released today by Associated Press, and while it was reported by many sources, the story was always the same-with no additional details to help us understand why this happened. So the details you and I would want are not available yet. I just can’t help but think there was more to this apparent injustice.
It seemed the boys had a brisk business selling cupcakes, cookies, brownies and Rice Krispie treats in a local Chappaqua (CHAP’-uh-kwah) park, but New Castle Councilman Michael Wolfensohn had a different opinion and called the police last month on the boys.
Kevin’s mother, Laura Graff, says the teens are “good kids” who were scared by the police call. She said Monday
they haven’t set up shop anywhere since. The councilman is said to have conceded that calling the police might have been a half-baked decision, but also stated that “rules are rules”. It looks to me like maybe there was an ordinance that the boys and their mother may have overlooked.
Moral of the story:
Whenever you and your young entrepreneurs decide to sell anything to the general public (I think that you can trust close friends and relatives not to call the police) you need to first stop at your city hall and ask if there are any laws or ordinances regarding the sale of your wares. Be sure you mention the age of your young salesmen/women.
Also see the story on the Lemonade Stand that provoked a call to local authorities. . . .
http://homeschoolent.com/2010/08/how-not-to-encourage-young-entrepreneurs/
Sep
14
Kids in Biz: Teach Sewing Skills With SewingKits4Kids
Susan and Karen Weckler are two sisters that took something they know and love and created a business with purpose. That’s a pretty amazing feat considering they are only 10 and 12 years old. They also homeschool. Featured on the front page of their local newspapers, they have even made it onto TV. Be sure to watch this clip of their TV spot and note how the state of Oklahoma sees small entrepreneurial ventures like Sewing Kits 4 Kids making big changes in the economic climate.
If you think their success crowds out their other studies, Karen made the news for being one of the few from her area to make it to the national Bible Bee competition. As committed Christians, they enjoy giving kits and supplies to missionaries in other countries to help teach sewing to the locals.
I hope this interview will inspire you to consider starting a family business as part of your homeschool. The skills these girls have learned cannot be found in any textbook! Remember them when making your Christmas gift list this year.
Can you tell us a little about your family?
We are two sisters, age 10 and 12, who live in rural OK. We have been homeschooled all our lives, and we enjoy the flexibility and family togetherness that comes with that. We have a strong Christian faith and desire to serve God in all aspects of our lives. Living in the country gives us lots of opportunity to learn practical life skills. Our dad is a university professor in a town about half an hour away.
What homeschool curriculum do you use? We do a lot of unit studies. We used KONOS in the past and now we create our own studies. Our favorite topic to study is American History. Mama tries to include a lot of hands-on learning.
What/Who inspired the idea for your business? When we were trying to come up with ideas of something we could sell to earn some money we thought about making crafts. As we talked about it with our mom we decided that if we sold kits to make the crafts then kids could learn a skill and have a fun product. We noticed that kids didn’t seem to be sewing as much as they had in past generations. So we decided to create kits that would teach hand sewing skills through a simple craft.
Are you comfortable sharing any of your financial details? Such as, did you use your own money to start the business, or obtain a loan from a relative, and have you regained your investment yet? Do you have specific financial goals you hope to reach in the next 1-3 years? Do you have specific plans for your earnings? (such as college fund, car, charity, etc) Our first sewing kits were made from items we already had on hand at home. We’ve been blessed to receive donations of fabric, trims, buttons and bluejeans from folks who want to encourage our business efforts. We have been diligent to reinvest in the business to cover any expenses that come up. 40% of our earnings goes back into the business. 20% goes to each of us as owners and the remaining 20% is tithed to a missions savings fund.
When we first started the business we focused on getting more kids interested in sewing, as well as trying to earn some money. As things have grown we’ve also come to see our sewing kits as outreach tools. We have found out about some missionaries who teach sewing to women in the local villages. We are saving up for a short term visit to Honduras to work with them.
Who in your family is involved in your business, and what part do they play? Our mom is a retired accountant. She uses her background to help us learn the skills needed to manage a business. She also works with us in putting the kits together.
What online services have you used-that you liked…and didn’t like. We use Paypal for receiving payments for orders from our website. Recently we started using E-junkie to manage the shopping cart and the affiliate program. E-junkie is reasonably priced and seems to be working well so far.
How do you schedule your busy day? Any time mgmt tips? During the school year we try to complete all of our schoolwork by early afternoon. When it’s time to work on the business we plan ahead and try to make a batch of 20 kits at a time. If we have all the packaging printed and trimmed in advance then we can usually put together 20 kits in about 2 hours. We try to keep 15 – 20 of each item in inventory so we can fill orders quickly.
What do you like best about having your own business? The best part of having our own business is being able to earn our own money. We enjoy the reward of doing something ourselves and getting paid for our efforts.
What’s your biggest struggle in your business? The biggest challenge comes in balancing time spent on the business with other things we are involved in or want to do.
Building a website is often the biggest undertaking for new business owners. Would you share a little about your experience building a website? We are fortunate to have a good friend who is our website manager. She has taken care of the technical requirements and offered suggestions on design and layout. Our biggest decisions have been deciding what to say about the business on the site and how to gain more exposure.
What advice would you give other families/individuals looking at starting their own business?
Go for it! Apply what you know. Be creative. Identify your niche. Find mentors to learn from. Be financially responsible.
Also, find people and organizations that promote young entrepreneurs. Partner with them for education, encouragement and support.
Looking back, what would you have done differently? We think we could have had more growth through getting out and telling our story more to others.
Assuming you have achieved some element of success, exactly how long did it take you from the time you started until you felt your business began to “take off”? Six months after our business started we entered a statewide competition for new products and processes. We won first place in the elementary category and third place overall. With a portion of the $750 prize money we had the website set up. After that our products began to get more widespread exposure. Through Internet connections we have shipped products to more than 20 states and overseas.
Thank you Weckler family, may you be blessed in your entrepreneurial journey! Visit their website at: http://sewingkits4kids.com/
You can see more videos on their website, or do a search for “sewing kits 4 kids” on YouTube.
Sep
04
Homeschool Student Makes a Top 25 Young Entrepreneur List
About a year ago we published an article from JuniorBiz.com, Look at Junior Biz For 18 Good Teen Business Ideas. Since then, Nick Tart’s blog has grown tremendously. Now you can find over 100 ideas and they are arranged in what I think was very clever and helpful, too. His most recent post was The Top 25 Young Entrepreneurs, and lo and behold, the third one down was a homeschool student! Not that being homeschooled makes him special…well, uh… maybe it does-at it’s very relevant to us at Homeschool Entrepreneur!
Philip Hartman won the 2008 Inventor of the Year and was featured in Entrepreneur Magazine. His invention is called the Fiberlight, and “is a new and unique way to fuse optical fibers”. I have no idea what that means, but I do know he was only 14 at the time, and he is working on new projects as we write.
You can read the interview that Nick did with him on his site at http://juniorbiz.com/interview-philip-hartman. While you’re there, be sure to look at all the amazing resources JuniorBiz has available.
If you know of any other homeschooled teens that have a successful business, let us know and we’ll compile a list of our own. The business doesn’t have to be big to be successful, and we all know that success is measured in many ways. Comment below with your nominations, or email us at deb at HomeschoolEnt.com.
Thanks!
More From HomeschoolEntrepreneur
Sep
01
A Must Read – 10 Inspiring Young Entrepreneurs
If you haven’t discovered Blogtrepreneur yet, you will want to sign up for their updates. Their ideas and information are as fresh and clean as their blog design. A few days ago they posted a list of 10 Inspiring Young Entrepreneurs that you will want to read. I was really surprised to learn the author of Mashable (#273 on Alexa) was only 24. I was also impressed with how dedicated 21 year old Michael Dunlop (IncomeDiary.com) is to help others achieve the success he has. Learn from these young entrepreneurs and never think you are too young. (OR too old!)
Maybe I should compile a list of inspiring OLD entrepreneurs. Not that we are that old, but there is a bumper crop of very talented moms that have homeschooled multiple children for 20+ years that are watching their students move on. In there is so much talent and ability that it seems natural to translate all that experience into an entrepreneurial venture..hmmmnn. Think on that.
Read “10 Inspiring Young Entrepreneurs“
May
13
Young Entrepreneur, Millionaire at 12 Years Old
Maddie Bradshaw had started middle school and wanted some magnets for her new locker, but found nothing that she really liked. She decided to create some of her own from some bottle cap tops from her uncle’s old fashioned Coke machine. Her friends loved them, and the rest is history. Now they are not only locker magnets, but Maddie and her friends loved them so much they made them into jewelry. Now worn by celebrities such as Abigail Breslin and Brenda Song (from the Disney Channel), she has an entire page of her website devoted to the famous stars that love her creations. See that page here:
http://www.m3girldesigns.com/celeb-buzz/
With $300 of her own money, Maddie’s SNAP CAPS® have turned M3 Girl Designs into a national brand, selling 50,000 necklaces per month in less than two year’s time. Now 13, her 9 year old sister Margot is Vice President of M2 Girl Designs and Assistant Designer. Inspired by her sister, Margot has designed several successful lines of SNAP CAPS® of her own, geared more towards her younger age group.
Maddie is also currently working on her first book. It is an inspirational compilation of stories, inventive business ideas and marketing tools for kids with entrepreneurial spirit and big imagination. We look forward to reading that, don’t we?
I know Maddie isn’t a homeschool student, but she is a great example of how a simple idea can become a business for anyone. If your child has an idea they have created and their friends love it too, you may well have something to pursue. Watch the video above to hear how they took the idea from inspiration to prosperity-while giving God the glory. This video was made at the beginning of their success, stating their income at $100,000. The most recent video shot in December of 2009 states it at over 3 million! The video below gives some good entrepreneurial advice to a young business class that Maddie had taken just 2 years before!
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