Do It Yourself, Present It, and Sell It: How Kids Market Gives Children Their First Entrepreneurial Experience

In Florida, financial literacy has already become part of mandatory school education: students entering 9th grade starting in the 2023–2024 school year must earn a separate credit in personal financial literacy and money management to earn a standard high school diploma. But a child's introduction to money, price, and the responsibility of owning a product can begin much earlier—not with a textbook, but with something they made themselves, their first customer, and their first dollar earned.

Photo: IStock

This is the idea behind the Business Family Kids Market—a platform where children have the opportunity not just to showcase their work, but to embark on a small, yet truly entrepreneurial journey: conceiving and creating a product, presenting it to a stranger, naming a price, answering questions, and attempting to make their first sale.

The next Kids Market will be held on August 15th in Hollywood as part of the city's Art in the Atrium – Arts & Craft Fair. The event itself is organized by the City of Hollywood, and Business Family is participating with its children's playground. Young participants will present paintings, handmade items, 3D-printed works, souvenirs, and other personal projects.

From Kids Expo to an Independent Kids Market

The project's history began even before Kids Expo—a Business Family event that combined entertainment and education: participants included specialists and organizations working with children and supplementary education. It was there that a small fair was first held, where several children were able to showcase their handicrafts.

"The idea came naturally—from conversations with parents. Many told us their children were creating something with their own hands, and they wanted to not just show off their results, but also try to sell them, to feel like their work was truly interesting. Business Family always develops an educational program, and we thought: why not give children the opportunity to experience entrepreneurship not in theory, but in practice? Kids Expo was our first attempt at this format, and we saw a very enthusiastic response—both from parents and, most importantly, from the children themselves," says Andrey Stolbunov.

The first fair was small—just a few young participants. Now there are seven or eight. Among them will be Andrei Stolbunov's daughter, who knits. What began as a small part of a larger family event has gradually evolved into a project in its own right.

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In this story, Kids Expo wasn't the end point, but a kind of testing ground: it helped demonstrate families' interest in a format in which children are transformed from spectators into participants, taking responsibility for what they created and how they presented their work to others.

What's going on behind the children's counter?

Behind the simple scene of a child selling a craft, several tasks are hidden. You need to tell a stranger exactly what you've made; explain why you chose a particular material or idea; name a price; listen to a question or refusal; and stay focused and continue the conversation with the next customer. For a child, this is simultaneously a practice in independence, communication, and understanding the value of their own work.

Here, money isn't the sole goal, but the clear outcome of a whole chain of actions: conceiving, creating, presenting, and negotiating. And even if the participant never becomes an entrepreneur, the experience of publicly sharing their work, accepting feedback, and bringing their vision to fruition remains with them.

The next goal is a monthly format

Participation in Art in the Atrium will be the next step for Kids Market: after its initial launch at Kids Expo, the project is expanding to a city venue and a wider audience. But for Business Family, this isn't a one-off. The team plans to make children's markets a regular occurrence, holding them monthly.

"We want this to be more than just a one-time, beautiful day, but a regular, warm, and truly beneficial project for children. We've already seen significantly more participants than at the first fair. If we see that the format continues to resonate with families and the children themselves, we'll develop it further, holding Kids Market monthly and gradually trying to expand the idea to other cities in South Florida," says Andrey Stolbunov.

This is the main difference between Kids Market and a typical children's fair: selling here becomes a learning tool. Children are given a safe space in which to experience for the first time what in adult life are called product presentations, customer interactions, responsibility for results, and entrepreneurial thinking.

And perhaps it's precisely this first experience—having their own item on the table, their first conversation with a customer, and their first independently earned dollar—that makes financial literacy for a child not an abstract school subject, but a part of real life.

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Nearest event

• Art in the Atrium – Arts & Craft Fair
• August 15, 2026, 11:00–18:00
• Fred Lippman Multipurpose Center, 2030 Polk Street, Hollywood, Florida
• Admission is free
• Business Family participates in a city event with the Kids Market venue.

Sources: Art in the Atrium / Business Family Kids Market page — luma.com/artinatriumguests; Florida Statutes §1003.4282(3)(h) — personal financial literacy requirements; interview with Andrey Stolbunov, provided by the author.

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