Kids show off biz skills

Many children think about playing all day or going to the beach during the long school break.

But 6-year-old Brielle wanted to sell lemonade to her neighbors. Unfortunately, living in a condominium was not a viable way to start her business. She thought of a place for kids like her who wanted to become young entrepreneurs.

Then came Kiddo-preneur Bazaar, a mini-marketplace that allowed kids to have their own booths and sell anything they wanted.

The first bazaar was held in December at The Rockwell Club in Makati City. It had its second run recently at the Alphaland Tents, also in Makati.

Brielle’s mother Maiki Oreta, inspired by her daughter’s entrepreneurial spirit, founded the bazaar. The ABS-CBN business news anchor, through word of mouth and Facebook, convinced other parents to let their kids join the event.

“We, as parents, need resources to teach our children the value of money,” Oreta said. “This is a really important life lesson.”

The reception was so good on the first run that Oreta decided to hold another one during the school vacation. She now plans to make Kiddo-preneur a semi-annual event—during the long vacation and the Christmas break, when kids are free from schoolwork.

Oreta admitted she felt guilty knowing that Filipino parents told their children to study hard so they could land good jobs, while Chinese-Filipino parents told their sons and daughters to study hard so they could have successful businesses in the future.

Earning, saving, investing and donating are some of the uses of money that Kiddo-preneur wants to inculcate among participants. The bazaar also gives children an opportunity to consider careers in business in the future.

Although she was quick to state there was nothing wrong with being an employee, Oreta felt the country needed more young people who were money-wise and had a strong business inclination, to ensure a better life for themselves and to uplift the Philippine economy.

“When it comes to learning about money and how to make it grow, the only ones who can teach them are their parents, until they’re old enough and they learn on their own through trial and error,” Oreta said.

Entrepreneur Rommel Juan urged his three daughters and three nephews to join the bazaar. Together, they put up Juantrepreneur, a booth that sold mostly Zen natural and organic products.

It also offered other services for P10 to P20 like kiddie singer, kiddie riddles, kiddie joker and kiddie models.

One of the store’s bestsellers was the Kiddie Entrep Bank, made by individuals with disabilities from Bahay Pangarap. What was special about the piggy bank was that it had four slots to teach kids to save, invest, donate and spend money wisely.

Juan’s daughters—Maxine, 10; Francine, 8; and Corrine, 4—and nephews (Elias, 10; Roque, 8; and Max, 3) were at the booth to entertain customers.

“What’s your skin type?” Maxine asked a woman who was passing by. The customer was so impressed by the question she started to exchange information with the young entrepreneur and bought a couple of bar soaps.

Aside from allowing the kids to earn money, the bazaar gave kids something more important.

“I learned about the different uses of money,” Maxine said. “Some of the money is to be saved, some to be spent, some to be invested in future businesses.”

Asked how she would spend the money, she said, “Toys,” revealing that despite the entrepreneurial spirit she was still just a kid.

But she added, “I want to be an entrepreneur. I want Juantrepreneur to grow! I want it to be a business already.”

Award winners

Awards were given out at the close of the bazaar. The “Most Original Concept” award was given to the booth Junior Master Painter owned by Sancho Tinio.

The “Highest Sales” award went to B Company of the Yusay siblings.

Marcus’ Sago & Gulaman by Marcus Tamayo grabbed the “Best Booth Design” award, while Joaquin and Ava Padilla’s Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy won the “Best Service” award.

Each winner received a trophy.

According to Oreta, Kiddo-preneur would help the children in choosing a course to pursue in college. “Will they go into business? Will they venture into marketing? As early as now, they already have an idea of what they might want to pursue when they grow up,” she added.

Kids who joined the bazaar earned from P20,000 to P100,000. However, Oreta said some had so much inventory, they did not earn a lot. But, considering the bazaar did not aim to make a profit, she said it was no big deal.

“What’s important are the learnings,” Oreta said.