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Elgin Children's Business Fair

Saturday, October 11, 2025

1:00PM - 5:00PM

Elgin Parks and Recreation Center

361 State Hwy 95, Elgin, TX 78621, USA

Currently accepting applications 🏁

Apply to the fair

About the fair

Observe the opportunity for children to launch or grow their very own 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 kidpreneurs ages 7 to 18 on October 11, 2025 from 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm.

Recognition & Prizes:
Participants in the fair win prizes. Our Judges will be evaluating the businesses per age group on the following:

• Most Original Business Idea
• Highest Business Potential
• Best Presentation / Creativity

There will be a winner in each age group and category.

Meet Our Judges:
The Honorable Theresa McShan, Mayor of Elgin

Elected to her first term in May of 2022, Mayor Teresa McShan became the first African American Mayor of Elgin after serving nine years on City Council. She is a dedicated civic leader and community advocate who understands the importance of family businesses and giving back to the community. A lifelong resident of Elgin, Mayor McShan grew up in a prominent family business – McShan’s Barber shop founded in 1962 and located in the heart of Elgin’s Historical district. The Mayor became the Manager of McShan’s Barbershop, preserving her father’s legacy of entrepreneurship and community service.

Joseph Payne, Owner of Mandrill Greens, LLC

Joseph Payne is passionate about empowering others to grow in confidence, creativity, and character. He previously worked as a Socratic guide at Ascent, an Acton Academy in Austin, where he encouraged young learners to think deeply, ask questions, and discover their own potential. Today, Joseph manages a landscaping business full-time and is also building his own venture, Mandrill Greens LLC, with the vision of growing it into something that uplifts others. As a soon-to-be father, he is especially motivated to support the next generation of dreamers and doers.

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 like Steve Jobs 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

Doreen Sims

🗓️ Started hosting in 2024

✅ Identity verified

🎉 First-time host

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.

23 booths participating

Weezy's Wildflowers

RainforestInaJar.com

And 21 others.

Contact host

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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 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 outdoor and indoor event with 10x10 booths. Table cloths will not be provided. We are not able to accommodate booths outdoors requiring electricity. If approved, outdoor vendors can bring their own generator if needed.

Will electricity be available?

Unfortunately, we are not able to provide electricity to the outdoor booths. If requested in writing, bringing your own generators for outdoor booths can be considered.

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.

Our incredible sponsors

Children's Business Fair

Acton Academy

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