Children's Business Fair, Hereford, Texas event image
📣 We are so excited to promote the young entrepreneurs of Deaf Smith County!

Children's Business Fair, Hereford, Texas

Saturday, December 2, 2023

9:00AM - 12:00PM

St Anthony Catholic School

120 W Park Ave, Hereford, TX 79045, USA

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About the fair
Observe the opportunity for children to launch their very own startup business!

Kids develop a brand, create a product or service, build a marketing strategy, and then open for customers at our one-day marketplace. 

We will host 15 - 25 booths at the 1st annual event at St. Anthony's School, Hereford, TX on Saturday, December 2nd from 9 am – 1 pm. Each booth will cost $10.

This event is sponsored by 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.

Whether an entrepreneur is famous or they are one of the thousands of unsung business owners across this country, these are the people who make sacrifices to innovate, create jobs and serve their communities.
Hosted by

Elaine McNutt

🗓️ Started hosting in 2023

Identity verified

🚀 Has hosted 2 fairs

We are a team of passionate entrepreneurs, teachers, mentors, and parents, who want our children to learn about entrepreneurship in a practical and fun way.

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.

Who can apply?

Any child between the ages of 6 (or at least should be able to count money) to 14 year old. You must either live in Deaf Smith County or go to school in Deaf Smith County.

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 kids 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 indoor event with tables. The fee for a booth is $10 which is turned in after the application has been accepted. Each business will be given an 8-foot table and 2 chairs. Table cloths will not be provided. It is the booth owners responsibility to provide everything need to make their booth marketable. We are not able to accommodate businesses requiring electricity.

Will electricity be available?

Unfortunately, we are not able to provide electricity to the booths.

Who is responsible for petty cash?

Each booth must provide their own petty cash. Credit cards can not be accepted, even if the parent has a device. Part of the process is counting back change.

Who can come to the fair?

Invite everyone you know!

What are the general rules?

This event is designed to give children the experience of selling a product or service. Please let them have that experience. 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.

If an applicant’s business idea is similar to entries that were accepted before the applicant’s submission, the CBF will notify the applicant and provide the opportunity to resubmit a new application.

Applicants must be between the ages of 6 - 14 on or before the APPLICATION OPEN date.
All entries will be automatically entered in the business competition, and booths will be judged on a variety of criteria, including most original business idea, highest business potential, and best presentation/creativity. (Judges will be invited and selected by each host.)

No more than 3 participants per booth/business idea.

Parents of younger children may sit in their booth, but the children are to be responsible for setup, sales and interacting with the customers.

Any parent seen selling to the customer or promoting the child’s product will result in
disqualification from the competition.

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.

Our incredible sponsors

Children's Business Fair

Acton Academy

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