Ready for Business?
Did you know that you engage in business almost every
day of your life? That's right! Every time you do work
in return for wages, buy a hamburger or a taco, or pay
a bill — you are doing business.
Business Basics
The dictionary says that business is the voluntary
buying and selling of goods and services.
Isn't that what you do when you go to Taco Bell and buy
an order of nachos? Taco Bell is in the business of selling
nachos. You are hungry, so you are buying nachos.
Therefore, the two of you are doing business!
Many people think that business is something that requires
years of study or a college degree. But you already know
how to buy and sell nachos. Couldn't you apply that experience
to starting a business of your own?
Can a Teen Start a Business?
You sure can. Lots of teens earn money selling products
or services they know how to create and deliver.
Every summer, 17-year-old Blair
Sheridan Barber of Phoenix, Maryland grows rows of
big, beautiful, red tomatoes and sells them from a roadside
stand in front of his house. He begins his business in
May, which is when he plants the tomatoes he'll sell in
June, July, and August. He closes the business in late
summer when it's time to go back to school.
 Jana and Deanna Thies, ages 17 and 20, own a business called The Veggie Patch in Glasgow, Missouri. When they started the business, they didn't have any land where they could plant a garden, so they convinced several people with vacant lots to let them grow crops there. The sisters give the owners part of the produce and sell the rest at the farmer's market for a tidy profit. Today, they grow over 80 different varieties of fruits, vegetables, and flowers — and it all started on borrowed land!
 Eighteen-year-old
Tim Thorpe in Lafayette, New York is another young business
owner who enjoys growing things. Several years ago, Tim
started a pumpkin patch behind his house. Then he posted
homemade signs along the road announcing Tim's
Pumpkin Patch and sold his produce right from his
own front yard. Since growing pumpkins is seasonal, Tim
has added a small engine repair service to his business.
He also sells firewood during the winter.
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