What is the eligible ages for the Tacoma Children’s Business Fair?
5-16 years old.
How many businesses will you accept?
We will accept up to 50 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. We highly suggest not having more than 3 participants per business to be eligible for cash prizes in the various business categories.
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 will do our best to accept different and varying business products and services as to create a market with lots of different ideas and to limit competition; however, if there are multiple vendors with similar products or services we will let you know so the later entrant can decide what to do.
How will the fair be set up?
The fair will be an indoor event with their own booths side by side throughout the event space. Each business will need to bring their own 6-foot table and a chair. 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 cash prizes competition.
Parents of younger children (5-6 years old) may sit in the booth, or those with children needing extra support, but other than that 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!