A Lesson in Money and Magic: Thoughts From Red Sunflower Farm

My granddaughter’s a young, budding entrepreneur.

This past Summer we went into business together, forming an artisanal magic wand company. She’s the Founder, CEO, and Director of Creative. I’m the angel investor and Chief Glue Gun Officer.

We set a goal, developed a plan to reach our goal, and then put our plan into action. Here’s how it worked out:

 We decided to launch our business at Bellevue’s 21st Annual Art in the Park event. We knew it would be well-attended and that our target customer (young children) would be out in droves. We also knew we’d need some time to streamline our operations and a September launch date gave us a buffer to figure out our systems and processes.

Once we knew our timeline, we got to work.

Together, we carefully sourced our primary materials, selecting the perfect twigs and branches from the farm. We then collected other necessary supplies (paint, ribbons, sequins), and equipment (paint brushes and glue), and got to work.

My granddaughter took the lead on designing and decorating, leaning on her assistant (me) to tackle some stages of the process (operating the glue gun and affixing the carefully draped ribbons in place).

As we approached launch day, we enlisted her mother, the multi-talented SG, to help with marketing, creating signage for our retail display.

 It was a smashing success. We sold out of product during the half-day event and have eager customers waiting for our next batch of magic wands!

A month later we went on a trip to a local toy store to cash in her earnings. She selected four stuffies and a jar of something goopy. She also held onto $20 of her profits to reinvest in her business. On the drive home she announced, “Next time, I’m going to make more magic wands!”

Children can and should learn about money. It’s a travesty that basic financial savviness isn’t taught in most schools. Learning about money is fun, particularly when we put it in the context of something young people care about.

It fills me with joy to see my granddaughter (and other young people) learn tangible lessons about hard work, risk-taking, and the basics of business.

I can’t wait to continue on this journey with her. Who knows where we’ll end up, but I foresee many days working that glue gun in my future!

I’ll leave you with these curious questions:

What were your first money memories?

Who are the young people in your life that you care about? How can you share your lived experiences and support their financial literacy?