Acton Children's Business Fair Metro Birmingham, AL
Saturday, July 20, 2019
1:00PM - 4:00PM
This fair has ended
Find another fair
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 40+ booths at the fair.
This event is sponsored in part 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 like Elon Musk or Oprah Winfrey 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
Charita Cadenhead
🗓️ Started hosting in 2017
🚀 Has hosted 7 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.
3 booths participating
Journi’s Dream Lights
A.T.B. Fashion
And 1 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 40+ businesses.
Where should I begin?
Start with our website and official application 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 using our official application here. You MUST use our official application. Otherwise we will email you a link to our official application and you will need to resubmit. 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?
We do reserve the right to limit the number of like businesses. If like businesses exceed a certain limit, we will contact the parents to brainstorm about other ideas.
How will the fair be set up?
The fair usually held inside with each business having their own 5 or 6 foot table and up to 3 chairs (depending on number of participants at one business). Table cloths will not be provided. Each business will be responsible for dressing their own booth/table. NO TALL BANNERS OR ANY OTHER OJECT THAT MAY OBSTRUCT THE VIEW OT OTHER PARTICIPANTS. We are not able to accommodate businesses requiring electricity or refrigeration.
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. We screen applications very carefully, If it is suspected or determined that the business is actually the parent's business, we will not accept the child as a participant. PARENTS please abide by this and not teach our children to be deceitful.
Parents of younger children (12 years old or below) may sit in the booth, help the kids set up collect money. But the children should be responsible for ALL 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.
METRO BIRMINGHAM CHILDREN’S BUSINESS FAIR SUCCESS STORY: On April 21, 2018, 21 youth businesses participated in our very first Metro Birmingham Children's Business Fair and we had well over 300 visitors that came out to support these young entrepreneurs by buying their products. The youth sold products such as jewelry, tie-dyed t-shirts, hair accessories, slime, baked goods, original seasonings and much more. We even had a participant that had auditioned for Master Chef Jr. Not only did we consider it a tremendous success, but based on the surveys collected, patrons considered the fair a success as well.
METRO BIRMINGHAM CHILDREN’S BUSINESS FAIR SUCCESS STORY: On April 21, 2018, 21 youth businesses participated in our very first Metro Birmingham Children's Business Fair and we had well over 300 visitors that came out to support these young entrepreneurs by buying their products. The youth sold products such as jewelry, tie-dyed t-shirts, hair accessories, slime, baked goods, original seasonings and much more. We even had a participant that had auditioned for Master Chef Jr. Not only did we consider it a tremendous success, but based on the surveys collected, patrons considered the fair a success as well.
