A plastic table cloth is unfurled. A pitcher of sparkling, ice cold juice set upon it. A sign promising refreshment at 50 cents a cup is strung up. Two kids drag kitchen stools out to the sidewalk, and wait for thirsty customers to stroll by and support their summer money-making venture.
The classic lemonade stand. It is a fading phenomenon as children today spend more time hanging out on social media and gaming platforms. In this online world, kids realise that there are other ways to make money in which customers need not be neighbours and products need not be seasonal, let alone tangible.
Using online platforms, children and young people are earning extra bucks by hawking their own used wares and handmade goods. In some cases buying and selling collectibles, offering e-services and even starting their own businesses. Most of these under 18s are involved in IT-related deals, which can prove quite worthwhile. For example, Nick D'Aloisio, 17, sold his Summly news application to Yahoo for $30m. While this is an extreme case, profits from even modest kid-driven ventures can exceed parents' salaries.
The internet-savvy kids of today are, in part, learning their startup skills in virtual worlds. Several online programs and multi-user gaming applications teach young kids the ins and outs of business. The virtual experiences are not created by big businesses, but rather by leading entrepreneurs who value supporting innovation in young people.
The Secret Millionaires Club is one of these online business tutorials, cloaked in the form of a Saturday morning cartoon. Geared towards seven to 11 year olds and hosted by Warren Buffett, the self-made billionaire business magnate, the Club's online cartoon webisodes are designed to help kids 'understand the business of life and encourage them to develop healthy life habits from an early age,' explains Amy Heyward, co-creator of the series.
Teens hungry to climb the virtual ladder will do well to play the Discover Entrepreneurship! multi-player game application. Designed by Alberta Distance Learning Centre for 14 to 18 year olds, players are challenged to build a lemonade stand into an entire empire. The app's content, based upon interviews with hundreds of leading entrepreneurs, teaches concrete business and financial skills.
