WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla. — Lili Spurgeon is a passionate business owner. She pours love and creativity, heart and soul, into making her jewelry and mystery treasure boxes.
The Palmetto talent won't sell anything unless she believes in it, as well.
Oh, by the way, Lili is also 11 years old.
"When you have a product that you put emotion and love behind, you want to keep doing it, selling it and showing it!" says Lili. "I love this! This is my passion!"
Lili is one of the young stars of the Tampa Children's Business Fair, a nonprofit that gathers together the area's brightest "kidpreneurs" — ages 6 to 16 (but lenient either way) — at marketplaces open to the public.
Young teens Joshua and Jordan Liburd are the proprietors of JL Fun Colorz, homemade hypoallergenic crayons in fanciful molds. They say being young business owners is a constant life lesson.
"You have to be responsible to be a businessman," says Jordan.
Of course, making money is pretty fun, too.
In just a year's time, the fairs have become a phenomenon, with interest in attending and participating surging exponentially.
"These kids really get to utilize what's unique about them and make it grow in a way that they can be successful and fulfilled no matter what they end up doing," says founder Danielle Cannon, who started this as a small neighborhood activity.
Danielle adds that the Tampa Bay region is one of the hottest in the country when it comes to start-up businesses. Encouraging young business women and men will only strengthen the bay area's reputation for ingenuity.
The next fair is Feb. 25 at Krate in Wesley Chapel. The event begins at 10 a.m.
For more information on Tampa Children's Business Fair — how to get involved, how to donate — go here.
