A farmer’s market run entirely by children ages 5-17 is set for 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Sept. 7, at Haggard Park in Herculaneum.
The Children’s Entrepreneur Market gives children the opportunity to try their hand at business by allowing them to run a booth and sell their wares. The children are expected to interact with customers, pitch their products and take payments with minimal help from their parents, according to the group’s website.
Alisa Knotts, St. Louis manager for CEM, said she expects the market will have about 40 booths. Herculaneum will be one of the first CEMs in the state of Missouri, she said.
The CEM started in Utah in 2017 and has since spread to more than 20 other states.
Knotts said she thought Herculaneum would be a good site for a CEM because the city already has an established farmers’ market, so she reached out to the city to pitch the idea of co-hosting the market and received a positive response.
The city’s weekly farmers’ market will continue to operate from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.
“The children who sign up (for the CEM) can use the foot traffic. Doing this brings the kids hundreds of potential customers, so it immediately becomes about the product, the pricing and the sales pitch. The kids learn 10 times more when they have a significant number of authentic transactions, and that’s what makes it a blast,” Knotts said.
Knotts said children who participate in these markets learn a lot.
“Entrepreneurship not only teaches kids basic skills, like the value of money and time management, but also builds character, such as creativity, self-confidence and resilience. When children see their peers engaging in these entrepreneurial activities, they become role models and inspire each other.”
Knotts said the markets are a fun time for both participating children and their parents.
“We’ve had parents tell us that they saw a side of their child they had never seen before,” she said. “They may be shy at first, but an hour into the market they start to come out of their shell, change their tactics and get more confident.”
Preregistration to be a vendor at the CEM is required and costs $25. Registration includes a kid’s book and T-shirt.
To register or for more information, go to the CEM website at Childrensentrepreneurmarket.com.