Looking to encourage some mini entrepreneurs in your house? Here are our tried and tested business ideas for kids that actually bring home the bacon!
Business Ideas for Kids – The Cash Flow Low Down
Master Ten, a regular on Families Magazine, has spent the last year honing his business skills to develop a profitable business. He grows and sells plants to people in his local area, transforming what was a casual hobby into regular cashflow.
We decided to sit him down for an interview to get to the brass tacks. He’s sharing his top secret business ideas for kids in the hope that it will inspire other children to embark on their own endeavours.
Full disclosure – his mum is pretty partial to him earning his keep as well!
Why teach kids business sense?
“Kids need to understand the real value of money. It’s not just this invisible thing that comes out of the air (Editor’s note – I wish!) but it’s real and needs to be earned. Counting money and budgeting is also an important skill to learn.”
4 genuine business ideas for kids that pay
Take the neighbours bins out
Offer to take bins out around the neighbourhood (and bring them back in). Charging $2 per house for bin duties might not seem like much until you hit 10 houses and you’re suddenly pocketing a cool $20 per week. This can also promote friendly relationships between neighbours and helps to build community spirit. (My mum has some bin cleaning tips here too!)
Plant, grow & sell seedlings
You could sell seedlings like me. No, don’t go to Bunnings and buy something to sell for twice the price! Plant some seeds (I like basil and tomato the best) and when they grow big (but not too big) pot them and sell them. I charge $2-$3 per pot which is way cheaper than you’d buy in most places. One weekend I made $200 because my mum offered free delivery to everyone!
Lemonade stand
(Caveat – check with local council regulations before attempting this next idea) You could run a lemonade stand. Make two batches (one fizzy, one not fizzy) and set up a stand with paper cups. You can have fun making a sign and coming up with a name. “Ice Cold Lemonade” or “(Your Name’s) Lemonadery” sound like fun names.
Paint people’s fingernails
Finger and toenail painting business. I used to do this when I was younger. My mum would sometimes get a stand at a local market and I would set up beside her. I would charge $2 for either fingers OR toes or $3 for both. Lots of people would come to get theirs done and I had a range of colours so people could choose. Once I made $88!
Business ideas for kids – building entrepreneurial skills
The thing we really love about kids running their own businesses is that it promotes creativity, ingenuity and communication skills. These are great aspects to develop that will serve your kids well in all sorts of areas.
This also provides the opportunity for learning numeracy in context – a great, hands-on way to get little heads around big financial concepts and financial literacy.
Plus, who doesn’t love self-perpetuating pocket money!
