The Pleasant Hill Library hosted a craft fair Wednesday, August 12, giving young entrepreneurs a chance to showcase
their creativity and put their products up for sale.
More than 40 young crafters participated, offering everything from bracelets and keychains to watercolor paintings, 3-D-printed animals and fidgets, hair accessories, and crocheted stuffed animals.
And the price was right—every item was priced at $3 or less.
KDWA was there to talk with some of the young entrepreneurs, including Elizabeth and Caroline, who were selling glitter snow globes.
Elizabeth says, “So we kind of like made these because we do it a lot, and we think they’re really cool. Yeah. So we thought people might like these.”
Caroline says the idea to participate came after spending time with friends making squishies.
“I had some friends over, and we wanted to make some squishies, and then my mom saw that there was a craft fair here…”
Another young entrepreneur, Paisley, was working alongside her mother, Erin, at their booth, The Bead Board.
Paisley says the craft fair gave her something productive to do over the summer.
“During the summer, I don’t usually have much to do because I’m usually focused on school during the year. But in the summer, I’m always really bored, and this helped me
because it gave me something to do during the summer.”
Her mother, Erin, says the experience has also taught Paisley about hard work, adapting, and dealing with the possibility of disappointment.
“It’s been really good to see her really work hard and be passionate about something that she wants to do, but also know that there could be disappointments.”
Erin says Paisley has also learned by watching the other young entrepreneurs and seeing what products are selling.
KDWA also spoke with Dakota County Youth Program Coordinator Dua Thao about the goal behind the craft fair.
“The goal of the program really is to instill entrepreneurship among young folks for them to be able to use
some of the resources that we have in our library.”
Thao says the program dates back to around 2018 and gives young people an opportunity to create and sell products while making use of library resources, including equipment available through the libraries’ iLabs.
“We pretty much let them create whatever they want. It just has to be able to sell it for under $3.”
Thao says the experience goes beyond simply selling crafts. Young entrepreneurs can see what other participants are making, learn what customers are interested in, and think about how they can improve their own products.
Thao explained, “What’s popular now? Who would buy this? Because at the craft fair, you can see the
shoppers are not just kids their own age, right? Shoppers are ranging from kids all the way to adults who are buying these products.”
Thao says the craft fair is also part of Dakota County Library’s Summer Discovery program, which encourages children to continue learning throughout the summer.
Thao pointed out that the library has seen strong participation in its summer programs, particularly because many of the opportunities are free for families.
“We’re really appreciating families really taking advantage of what the library has to offer them, especially all these free opportunities that they can engage in. The whole family can engage in all summer long.”
Thao also highlighted an upcoming fall initiative called Be A Reader, which will include a new collection of decodable books designed to support young readers, families, and students.
For more information about Dakota County Library programs and upcoming events, visit dakotacountymn.gov/library and check the events calendar.
[Click the soundbite to listen to the report.]