Business. Jacob’s always been interested in the start-up world and entrepreneurship. In elementary school he made his own “Food Fighters;” selling self-designed cards fashioned after Pokemon and miniature food with faces he made out of clay. “I made so much money off those little kids, Mom” says the former little kid who’s never seen himself that way. A few years later, he took on several artistic commissions designing personalized Vans. And prior to the pandemic, he sold cotton candy at his dad’s shop under his brand, The Floss Boss.
Meanwhile Nate did what Nate does. Watched, listened, learned. Always the trusty sidekick willing to make change or go get more supplies. He got a taste of sales last year during our annual soccer fundraising activity. He just so happened to make his first big sale to an incredibly generous officer of a publicly traded company. A couple of weeks ago, I found him using a baby wipe to clean his sixth grade graduation Air Jordans for resale at school. He came home with 50 bucks.
So maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised when Nate told me he wanted to sell snacks at school. Now I’m writing this and praying no loyal middle school counseling blog readers rat him out. Particularly after appreciating the phenomenal learning experience it’s been. They should build this into the curriculum. Plus we’re having so much fun. After only a couple of days we’ve covered over a dozen business concepts… such as:
Market opportunity: He tells me he wants to sell snacks. He decides on soda and chips. Some of his buddies have told him where they get the best prices. I call these friends the Snack Pack. But how’s he going to buy the inventory he needs?
Capital: We talk about businesses needing start-up funding. That it’s called capital. He decides to work for me doing all the clean-up in the main house– packing-up tile, hoisting pallets into the dumpster, dragging dead branches to the pile. Watering my plants and then telling me he needs to use the hose to wash spiderwebs off the barn– one of his favorite self-identified “chores.” Three hours at minimum wage gets him his seed funding.
Inventory: He does some internet research on where to get the lowest prices. He’s quite disappointed when I break the news that we don’t have a Walmart. I recommend a discount store I know. We discuss the merits of inventory that doesn’t melt. He points out the potential drawbacks of candy as Halloween approaches.
Profit Margins and Pricing: Pricing his products and calculating margins takes place in the aisles of the discount store. He recognizes the paramount importance of profits. He’s good at math. He’s decisive.
Gatekeeping: We find great prices at said store. We discuss guarding your trade secrets so the competition can’t undercut you. He already knows about gatekeeping as it relates to protecting your signature fragrance. You don’t want all the dudes at school smelling like you.
Creditors: He finds his capital is tied-up in a Venmo account and turns back to his creditor for cash. He’s got electronic money transfers down. We keep the receipt for bookkeeping. He strikes me as someone who wants to outsource his financial statements.
Differentiation: When we get home he loads-up the fridge with three kinds of soda. He freezes the lunch bags. He tests how much inventory fits in each. He plans to lead with ice cold sodas and what I call the Pacheco pack– the box of chips full of all spicy flavors: Flamin’ hot Cheetos, hot fries, some other things I’d never eat.
Advertising: His brother provides some unsolicited advice, “Did you advertise?” Of course. The SnapChat is in motion.
Product Market Fit: During his first day of sales he finds out not everyone’s heard of Cactus Cooler. It’s a lesser known brand. His other sodas sell out first.
Dead Stock: Over a few days, the Doritos reveal themselves as dead stock. We discuss discounting or rewarding your most loyal customers. We also talk about the dangers of eating your own inventory, the benefits of selling to your brother, and the upside of selling out.
Credit: The first day he makes four of his sales on credit. To his credit, he writes them all down on a tiny piece of paper.
Collections: We discuss the challenge of collections. On Day 2 he’s whittled it down to two debtors. Nate is known for his generosity. I think he’s learned his lesson?
Competitive Intelligence: On the drive home after practice, one of his buddies has a lot to say on the relative merits of ice cold sodas. It’s clear Nate’s hit a competitive nerve. Apparently the number of competitors is dwindling. Jeffrey got caught.
Market Research: Nate develops clarity on how he plans to change his inventory. We talk about market research and understanding what your customers like. He’s gotten strong feedback on the ice cold temperature of his sodas.
Logistics: Kid is a pack mule. His backpack is already huge given his books and his full shoe wardrobe for both cross country and soccer. Adding his old backpack back into the rotation is precariously suspicious. He downsizes his inventory to lower his profile and hopefully avoid…
Regulations: After school, on his second day of sales, I sit in the golf course parking lot for fifteen minutes. No Nate. I wonder how long detention lasts? Fortunately he’s just confused the day and gone all the way to cross country before realizing there’s no practice. I ask him if he likes this business and he says yes. “At some point I’m probably going to get caught, right Mom? I mean probably.”
I appreciate his practical assessment. Let’s just hope it’s after he’s offloaded the Cactus Coolers and Doritos.