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Our booths are full! We are no longer accepting applications for children's businesses at this year's fair!
Children's Business Fair at Arrow Academy
Saturday, July 17, 2021
10:00AM - 12:00PM
This fair has ended
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About the fair
This summer, your child can build a real business from the ground up. (Yes, really!)
Arrow Academy is providing young entrepreneurs an opportunity to highlight their products and services at the Acton Children's Business Fair. The fair will take place on Saturday, July 17th from 10am to 12pm.
For more information, including sponsorship opportunities, visit our fair's main website: www.arrowacton.com/cbf
For more information, including sponsorship opportunities, visit our fair's main website: www.arrowacton.com/cbf
This event is sponsored by Arrow Academy (Naperville's Acton Academy), Acton Academy, the Acton School of Business, and the generous support of our donors and volunteers. We all believe that principled entrepreneurs are heroes and role models for the next generation.
Hosted by
Gina Curtis
🗓️ Started hosting in 2021
✅ Identity verified
🚀 Has hosted 4 fairs
Arrow Academy is a K-8 Montessori inspired private school opening in Naperville, Illinois for the 2021-2022 school year.
Arrow Academy is designed to be a "21st century one-room schoolhouse" utilizing mixed-age studios, personalized learning plans, instructional technology, mastery learning, and character and leadership education. The school and its approach to education is modeled after Acton Academy founded in Austin, Texas in 2008. Today, the Acton network has a global reach with over 250 schools (and counting) worldwide.
33 booths participating
TBD
Tiny Tycoon
And 31 others.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Acton Children’s Business Fair?
The Acton Children’s Business Fair inspires children to discover their inner entrepreneur. The largest entrepreneurship event for kids in North America, this one-day market gives children the opportunity to showcase their very own businesses.
How many businesses will you accept?
We will accept up to 36 businesses.
Where should I begin?
Start with our resources page. Read inspiring stories about other young entrepreneurs and play games to hone your business skills.
How do I apply? Can I apply as part of a group?
Application must be submitted online. Please submit one application for each business. Children working as a group should submit one application that includes each child’s information. No more than 3 participants per business.
What is on the application?
The application asks young entrepreneurs to think through some simple, but important elements of their business:
- What product or service do you plan to sell?
- What price will you charge for each product/service? How much will each product/service cost you?
- How will you pay for your startup costs? If someone is helping you with your startup costs, how will you pay that person back?
- How will you advertise/market your business before the fair?
- At the end of the fair, how will you determine if your business was a success?
What if someone else has the same business idea?
Two cupcake businesses? Not a problem. In general, we will let market forces play out, though we will let later entries know if another applicant has a similar idea so the later entrant can decide what to do.
How will the fair be set up?
The fair will be an outdoor event with booths. Each business will be given a table. The children are responsible for arranging and decorating their area however they see fit to bring attention to their business. We are not able to accommodate businesses requiring electricity.
Will electricity be available?
Unfortunately, we are not able to provide electricity to the booths.
What are the rules?
This event is designed to give children the experience of selling a product or service. If a parent is found selling or promoting a child’s product or service, their child’s business will be disqualified from the competition.
Parents of younger children may sit in the booth, but the children should be responsible for set up, customer interaction, and sales.
Parents may help their child fill out the application, but we expect the children to do as much as possible by themselves.
How did the Acton Children’s Business Fair get started?
Jeff and Laura Sandefer and a few other families wanted to spark a sense of wonder and entrepreneurship in their children so they created the first Acton Children’s Business Fair in Austin, Texas, in 2007. That year, there were seven entrepreneurs and around 25 attendees. Now, there are over 115 entrepreneurs and 1,500 attendees at the Acton Children's Business Fair in Austin.
