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.

Get inspired by watching stories of young entpreneurs! Khan Academy has a series of interviews you can find here (https://www.khanacademy.org/college-careers-more/entrepreneurship2). You can also watch other Acton Children's Business Fairs on youtube. One example from Acton DC is here (https://youtu.be/zNfY4iOBfqY?si=xRxWGuRJzBeXE3BB).

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.

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?

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 do I pay my $20 entry fee?

Venmo @actonlakeside or send a check made out to Acton Lakeside (502 Cahoon Rd, Bay Village, OH 44140). Please note your business name in the comments or memo section. Your application is not considered complete until we receive payment.

The fair will be a outdoor event with booths. Each business will be given a booth with an 8-foot table and 1-2 chairs. Please bring a tent - we recommend about 10 ft x 10ft. Table cloths will not be provided. We are not able to accommodate businesses requiring electricity but if you need a generator, you can bring your own... just let us know!
Does the CBF supply a tent?

No, we do not supply a tent for each business. But, we recommend you bring a 10ft x 10ft tent to provide protection from the elements.

Unfortunately, we are not able to provide electricity to the booths, but you are able to bring your own generator. Please let us know if you are!
Is it rain or shine?

With moderate to heavy rain, we will postpone and have a rain date of Saturday, June 15. The decision to postpone will be made as early as possible and communicated to all participants via email.

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. This means child-led creation of products, pricing, marketing materials, etc.

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.