Kid-preneurs are the Acton Children’s Business Fair’s only vendors

Imagine kids ages 6-15 as the sole vendors in a business fair of their own creation. This is not just kids hanging out with their parents, but kids having the opportunity to become entrepreneurs themselves.

The Acton Children’s Business Fair is a not-for-profit organization started in 2007 by Jeff and Laura Sandefer in Texas. They wanted to spark a sense of wonder and entrepreneurship in their children. With the help of a few other families, they created the first Acton Children’s Business Fair in Austin. Today their dream has blossomed into 1,628 fairs with 81,555 young entrepreneurs, in 462 cities, in 20 countries where children create, launch, and maintain their own businesses–whether that is a product or a service.

Enter Alyssa Verdi, who championed this idea in Milford and created the Milford Acton Children’s Business Fair last year. Verdi is a huge proponent of learner-driven activities. She said it takes months for the children to prepare for this fair. They decide on a product or service, develop a marketing strategy, create their own logos and booth decorations, and do a mini profit and loss plan by figuring out how much it costs to make their product/service and how much to charge for it.

“Children learn to create, innovate, and profit while interacting with a free market. We don’t want to teach them,” Verdi said. “We want them to discover. If they fail, or don’t meet their own expectations, they learn from that as well.”

Verdi is an educator and is the head of the Ascend Acton Academy, at 117 Milford Hill Lane, just off Route 6 north of Apple Valley. The Acton Academy umbrella was also created by the Sandefers in Texas. It is part of the International Association of Learner Driven Schools (IALDS) and is a passionately alternative school, much like the Montessori model.

Verdi’s school in Milford has 50 students (ages 4-13) utilizes a project-based learning program and believes in experiential learning. The instructors are not thought of as teachers but as “guides.” It is this philosophy of learning that is that basis of the Acton Children’s Business Fair.

“The fair gives kids a unique opportunity to learn the power of earning and that hard work gets rewarded, all while having fun and meeting other ‘kidpreneurs,’”said Svetlana Fisher, mother of Sam, 13, and Elizabeth, 7. “It teaches them to believe in themselves and gives a sense of empowerment and pride for their efforts and appreciation for all the work that goes behind the scenes when you run a business.”

Sam, who made keychains and charms from his 3D printer last year, agreed.

“There were many interesting different business ideas. it also felt very accomplishing at the end of the day to watch how your business flourished during that day,” he said.

His sister, Elizabeth, made soaps last year. Both of them will be participating at the fair this year and they said they hope to exceed their achievements from last year.

The children are selling real items for real money, and the marketplace is open for business. Last year there were 23 business and 200 visitors. This year, there will be 40 businesses and they are expecting to exceed last year’s number of visitors.

The Milford Acton Children’s Business Fair will take place on Sunday, June 25 at 115 West Harford Street from noon to 3:00 p.m. in the parking lot next to Pike County Licensing and Wayne Bank.