My Budding Entrepreneur

Ever since I suggested that Javi make and sell baked goods and lemonade at a yard sale a few years back, he has been focused on finding new and easy ways to make money. Usually he tries to sell off things he no longer wants, but now he's teamed up with two neighborhood kids to really make some cash.

They have a sweet business plan. Javi and his friends Jamison and Kendall are now selling bags of candy, which they market under the title "Bags O Candy - Yum Yum!" Jamison and Kendall fronted the start up goods by spending $12 on candy. Then they all sat down and bagged up the candy into small ziplocs and wrote the new name on the baggies. They made a little stand and stood outside selling their wares to folks passing by.

The profit? I'm not sure what they made total, but Javi's cut was $6. He is so proud of himself! They plan to sell again this coming weekend and want to add drinks to their empire. Also, they've all come into free candy thanks that friendly Easter bunny, so they'll be making pure profit this weekend.

One part of me wants to make him stop because I know he's taking advantage of the younger neighborhood kids, as well as those who aren't as smart/quick as he is. For instance, he sold 3 baggies ($1 each) to an older boy in our cul-de-sac who just doesn't know any better. That was probably part of his lunch money.

But the other part of me is proud of those little guys for thinking up such a no-fail scheme. There will always be children willing to beg a dollar off their parents for candy. Just look at the success of the ice cream truck! And the product name ("Bag O Candy - Yum Yum!") is so clear and unmistakable. I think Javi will easily bring home another $6 this weekend.

I've been thinking about making him do a little summer business to keep him busy once school is out. Many of our neighbors have dogs, so I thought he could do some poop scooping or dog walking for a few bucks a week. Then he'd have his own spending money and would get out of the house for a while. His new business definitely leads me to believe he's ready for the increased responsibility - and the boy now has a taste for money!