Young entrepreneurs across America are getting a huge leg up with the expansion of the Children’s Entrepreneur Market to over half the country. Now in 26 states, our markets are quickly expanding nationally to reach tens of thousands of youth each year.
Our markets launched in Utah in 2017 after Libertas Utah passed the country’s first “Lemonade Stand Law” in response to news stories of young entrepreneurs being shut down for not having a business license or food handler’s permit. Since then, Libertas Institute—our national policy arm—has helped over a dozen states pass a similar law.
We operated dozens of markets each year in Utah for five years, refining the program and making it a huge success, before beginning our national expansion in 2023. Six states were added as an initial expansion test, and things went so well that in 2024 we added nearly 20 more states to the list.
Our goal is to be operational in at least one metro area in each state by the end of 2026. (In each metro area, we operate many markets events during the year.) Beyond that, we plan to expand the markets into the top 200 metro areas in the country; at scale we will be serving over 400,000 young entrepreneurs every year.
This program helps children learn about business using real money and real products—in the process learning about money, marketing, customer service, product development, and more. Far superior to any classroom instruction or academic overview of entrepreneurship, we provides a hands-on environment where the profit motive incentivizes kids to learn a variety of skills to succeed.
In addition to the direct educational experience, the Children’s Entrepreneur Market serves as the first step in our Pyramid of Impact, introducing tens of thousands of new families to the ideas of a free society.
Ways to get involved:
- See the list of upcoming markets
- Follow on Facebook or Instagram
- Make a donation to support youth entrepreneurs