Unleashing an Entrepreneurial Spirit

Kids have amazing imaginations and creative spirits. Put that ingenuity to work and you have a young entrepreneur pitching a new product.

This summer, kids from the Glenrock Boys & Girls Club participated in the YouthBiz Startup program. This entrepreneurial program is designed by the Young American’s Center for Financial Education in Denver (the same folks who created Young AmeriTowne.)
It teaches youth basic principles of personal finance and team building while challenging them to develop a problem solving mindset. Youth participate in lessons designed to help them identify challenges they face and how they can solve those issues with an invention. The program culminates with a “shark tank” pitch simulation where youth present their invention prototype to a panel of judges and the winning pitch receives a $100 prize.

The Pitch

Two youth bravely and excitedly pitched their product to our judges.

Max, age 11, designed a portable dog dish named “Doggy Dishes Everywhere” which featured handles, a self-filling food and water feature, and a containment area to collect spills. Max explained that every time he had to travel with his dogs, they would spill their water all over the backseat of the car, causing their trip to be delayed because of frequent stops to clean up and replenish the dishes.

Jackie, age 9, expressed frustration with flossing her teeth. She explained that all disposable teeth flossers are only mint flavored, which is boring for kids. Enter “Flavor Flossers”, a flossing pick with refillable floss cartridges designed to appeal to kids. Cotton candy, strawberry kiwi, and other kid-friendly flavors will make kids want to floss their teeth more, which will prevent them from having cavities.

Edging Out the Competition

After the presentations, three guest judges deliberated, weighing each contestant’s content, delivery, and overall design feature. A difference of just a few points made Max the overall winner. Max was presented with the $100 prize and both contestants received participation prizes.

Special shout out to our judges: Jan Cundy, BGCCW Board Member and CFO Keyhole Technologies; Vince Palazzolo, Engineer McGinley Innovations; and Connor Wetzel, Engineer McGinley Innovations