Scott Pape’s Barefoot Kids: The young Australian entrepreneurs already nailing it

These are entrepreneurs with a difference – they are all under 15 and their thriving businesses all have Scott Pape’s tick of approval. See how they did it.

Barefoot Investor Scott Pape is on a fresh mission to give young Aussies a financial leg-up – but this time he’s not the only star of the show. His new book Barefoot Kids gives youngsters all the skills they need: negotiating pocket money, saving and even how to start investing. And he teaches readers how to set up their own businesses, in part by showcasing the stories of Barefoot Kids who are already nailing it – like these young entrepreneurs from all over Australia.

An epic money adventure ... Scott Pape with his new book, aimed at younger readers. Picture: David Geraghty,

We collect money that people throw away!

by Ryder and Alexis

OUR BUSINESS NAME: The Collectors

AGE: 9

We called our business ‘The Collectors’ because that’s what we do: we collect our neighbours’ bottles and cans and then we take them to a recycling centre and exchange them for money.

To grow our business we made up some flyers, letting people know we were a couple of kids who wanted to collect cans. We dropped them off around our neighbourhood. And it worked!

So far we have 28 customers. Most people are super friendly, but there was one grumpy guy who told us, ‘Don’t ever come around again!’ We didn’t let it get us down because most of our neighbours are really awesome, and getting to know them has been one of the best things about the job. Some of them make us laugh! Other customers live alone and we can tell they really enjoy our visits.

Ryder and Alexis love getting to know their neighbours, making money and helping the environment all at the same time.

We spend about an hour collecting, half an hour at the tip, and about 10 minutes writing thank-you notes to our customers (which they love . . . one of our customers has kept the first letter we ever wrote to her stuck to the fridge!). Cans are the best to collect because you can crush them down, put them in a box, and hand them over to the people at the tip . . . and you still get 10 cents each!

At school I [Ryder] volunteer as an eco-marine – picking up litter, growing plants and stuff – so I love that our little business is helping the environment too. Mum and Dad are really proud of what we’re doing, and we’re really proud of ourselves.

We are saving up for an epic overseas holiday to visit our grandparents who live in the United Kingdom. We haven’t seen them for ages. Oh, we also saved up for a puppy, too.

How much money do you earn?

So far we’ve made $721 in a few months! I’ve earned more doing recycling than my entire life savings (money from relatives at birthdays and doing jobs around the house).

How hard is this for other kids to do? (easy? hard-ish? tough?)

It’s pretty easy. You just need to be friendly and chatty (and buy a $40 trolley from Bunnings).

My $10,000 dog!

by Ashleigh

MY BUSINESS NAME: Ashleigh’s Dog Walking and Sitting

AGE: 12

I love dogs, so one day I made up some signs and flyers that said ‘Dog sitting for $5’ and I put them up at the local dog park and did a mailbox drop. But I didn’t get one single response!

Now I use a pet-sitting app called Mad Paws to find my customers.

There are heaps of other sites as well, like dontfretpet.com.au, petcloud.com.au, pawshake.com.au. I still wanted to charge $5, but Dad told me that I shouldn’t set my price too cheap. So I decided to charge $35 per night and I got a great response. Actually, I was too busy so I increased my price to $49 a night.

Ashleigh is following her dream of becoming a vet, by working with dogs.

My fee includes: the dog being walked once or twice a day, food (plus treats!), sometimes a wash (if they sit in poop), and LOTS and LOTS of playtime with me! All up it takes me around an hour-and-a-half.

First someone will message me about dog-sitting via the app. Mum gets the notifications on her phone. Then we host a meet-and-greet with the owner and the dog in our home, and let them know I am responsible for feeding, walking, entertaining and cleaning up. There are a lot of dog-sitters out there, so the hardest part at the start is trying to stand out. I send the owner lots of photos of their dogs, which makes them happy and gets me good reviews!

My dream is to become a vet when I’m older, so this is such an awesome business for me.

How much money do you earn?

I’m in my first year of the business and have so far made $10,000!

How hard is this for other kids to do? (easy? hard-ish? tough?)

Hard-ish. When I told my best friend what I was doing she loved it and wanted to know all about the dogs and would come over and play with them. I think she wishes she could dog-sit too, but it’s not for everyone. You have to make sure it suits your family and any pets you have yourself, and that you have the right house and backyard.

I made $3500 from my room!

by Liam

AGE: 14

I love mountain biking and having the latest stuff. My parents said that if I wanted more gear I’d have to buy it myself but it was taking too long to save for anything good just doing my jobs at home. One day I noticed some of Mum’s old household decorations.

With Mum’s permission, I ended up listing them on Facebook Marketplace and getting $300 for them! I was so excited because I had done it all myself — taking the photos, writing the description, posting it online, answering the enquiries and arranging to meet up with the customer.

When I started I didn’t have strong negotiation skills. I wasn’t sure about the kinds of questions buyers might ask me, and I wondered if I would be taken seriously. I bought some small items from Facebook Marketplace so I got a feel for how others negotiate.

Liam has not only turned a profit; he’s learned new skills and become more independent.

I learnt that sometimes people start their prices too low. Instead, start high. I might list something at $400 when I would be happy to get $200. Usually I get a higher amount than I expect. It’s also good to research what people might be willing to pay for similar items.

I’m also pretty particular with the images — I take time to ensure they look good by putting the items in front of a white wall or with nice backgrounds. I use my phone to take the images.

I generally have one or two items for sale at a time. It probably takes about two hours of my time a week. I’m really proud of myself because I have become more independent.

How much money do you earn?

I’ve made over $3500, which has paid for my mountain bike and (second-hand) tech equipment.

How hard is this for other kids to do? (easy? hard-ish? tough?)

It can be tough! You need to be pretty good at talking and being social with people because you get a lot of messages and questions about the items you’re selling. Also, your parents need to be on board. After all, you’re dealing with strangers.

The easiest things to sell are clothes and electronics (I recently bought a pair of Beats headphones for $50, relisted them, and sold them for $180!). Even if you’re a bit younger and don’t have a lot of experience, you can find ways to get what you want.

My flower power!

by Ava

MY BUSINESS NAME: Ava’s Flowers

AGE: 7

Nana and I came up with a very cool business idea. We could cut flowers from some old protea bushes on our farm and put them at the end of the road at a stall with an honesty box for people to pay. Proteas are popular!

I made a sign from an old blackboard: ‘Ava’s Flowers, $5 per bunch’ and put out five bunches on the first day. Mum put a photo on Instagram to announce we were open for business.

Dad was worried that no-one would buy my flowers because we live on a very quiet country road. He said, ‘Don’t be too disappointed if you don’t sell any flowers, love. It’s great just to have a go.’

I was so excited to get off the school bus that afternoon and check my honesty box. There was $25 waiting for me. I’d completely sold out!

Ava is making money and making people happy with her affordable flowers.

At the start the hardest thing for me was having to wait for the adults to cut the proteas for me, because I didn’t have my own secateurs – they’re like strong scissors for cutting stems of plants. But I got my very own pink secateurs, so now I can cut my own. It takes me around six hours each week to prepare everything, and check the flowers at the end of the driveway every morning and night.

My parents are definitely proud of me. I’ve learnt that you have to work hard on your business to get the prize. Some businesses sell proteas for $5 a stem but I wanted to keep mine at $1 dollar a stem so that people could afford them. If they can’t, there will be less customers and less happy people.

It’s so exciting to check my sales when I get off the school bus each day. In two years, no-one has been dishonest! We sell out most days at $5 a bunch. I like making people happy with my flowers and I’m really proud that I get to brighten people’s day. I love taking orders . . . people stop me in the supermarket, after school, all around town.

How much money do you earn?

I made $700 in eight weeks! I’m investing part of it in the share market.

How hard is this for other kids to do? (easy? hard-ish? tough?)

Easy, if you already have the flowers growing. You don’t even need a busy street to sell your flowers! It’s such a thrill to check my sales when I get off the school bus each day.

My nonna’s secret recipe!

by Violetta

MY BUSINESS NAME: Gnocchi di Violetta

AGE: 14

During the COVID lockdown in 2021, I was getting a bit down so Mum and Dad told me to take a break from online school classes and do something that brought me joy. I thought, ‘Cooking makes me happy’, so I dusted off my Italian nonna’s recipes and got going.

My parents said my gnocchi was so tasty that I started to think I could sell it to people in our street. So we texted a few of our neighbours and within the first two weeks I’d made 12 kilos of homemade gnocchi with a Tuscan pomarola tomato sauce . . . and I’d sold the lot!

These days I spend around five hours a week cooking, mainly on weekends and after school. Mostly I just put some music on, zone out and get to work. Sometimes Dad Zooms my nonna in Italy while I’m cooking and she calls out, ‘Brava Violetta!’ which means ‘very good!’

Brava Violetta! She’s following her nonna’s recipe for success.

Our family friend Tess helped me design my website. We also use a great online ordering platform called Big Cartel which allows you to load up to five products for free. People can order, choose which day for delivery, and choose whether they want to pick up or have it delivered. I keep it simple: all I sell is gnocchi and sauce for $25. The ingredients cost around $8, so I make $17 per sale, and I charge $5 extra for delivery if it’s close to my home.

At the start I had to learn from my mistakes. I had a customer who wasn’t happy because the gnocchi they received was squashed. I was a bit stressed about it, but I immediately made another batch and delivered it to them personally to apologise.

Making my gnocchi and getting out to deliver it and say hi to lots of people has really helped me gain confidence.

How much money do you earn?

I started the business in September 2021 and made $2000 in the first eight months. The business paid for itself really quickly! I love how I can make money doing something I love.

How hard is this for other kids to do? (easy? hard-ish? tough?)

Cooking is easy, but making it into a business is hard-ish, so make sure it’s something you enjoy doing!

I have a bumper lawn mowing business!

by Paxton

MY BUSINESS NAME: Pax’s Handyman Services

AGE: 10

I started by mowing our neighbour’s lawn. It was fun. However, when Dad asked whether I wanted to get more customers, I told him I was really nervous approaching grown-ups and pitching my services.

So I decided to create my own work shirts that say ‘Pax’s Handyman Services’. It didn’t cost much and it really helps with my confidence that I look the part and have a uniform. (I’ve also designed a collared business shirt for when I’m doing business.)

On average I do five lawns a week, mostly after school or on weekends.

Each lawn takes me about an hour to do. Customers pay anywhere between $25 and $50 a lawn. Sometimes people give tips too!

Less time on screen and more time mowing means Paxton is raking it in.

I have a spreadsheet that lists dates, jobs, customers, and how much they paid. I don’t have many outgoings. I’ve spent $60 on fuel since I started.

My customers loved my work shirt so much that I decided to design bumper stickers using PicCollage and I give them away to my clients.

It was fun to come up with the picture and names, and there are now plenty of cars rolling down the street with a ‘Pax’s Handyman Services’ sticker on the back of their car. It’s great advertising!

The best moment is when I finish a job (I check everything twice) and my customer comes out and gives me a fist bump and tells me I’ve done a great job. That makes me feel really proud.

How much money do you earn?

I’m always a bit nervous giving people a price, so I just say, ‘Pay me whatever you think is reasonable.’ And guess what? They always end up paying more than I would have asked for! So far I’ve made $1500 in six months!

How hard is this for other kids to do? (easy? hard-ish? tough?)

It’s easy. Play less video games and do more mowing!

My slimy business!

by Hannika

MY BUSINESS NAME: Slime Mountain

AGE: 12

I started making my own slime when I was 10. There are heaps of recipes online, and it was really fun, so I began teaching kids in my neighbourhood how to make it. I knew that I wanted to start my own business, so I nagged Mum and Dad and eventually they said yes.

Before I started, I did loads of research. I went to different shops, did a webinar with a famous American ‘slimer’ and learnt heaps.

I even ordered a competitor’s slime to see what packaging they used.

Mum and Dad loaned me the money to buy all the ingredients, on the condition that I paid them back before I kept any money.

I started selling slime at markets to see what was popular. I work a full day each week on Slime Mountain. Mum and my sister Michaela help with orders and packaging, and I make big batches of slime, which take about two hours.

Hannika didn’t take no for an answer and now she’s a real entrepreneur.

I sell my slime for between $9 and $13. Around half the price is the cost of the ingredients. It took 6 months to pay back my parents, so now I get to keep the other half.

I launched my Etsy shop around Christmas time and I got heaps of orders. I offered free postage to locals who ordered through Etsy, and I asked them to leave a review to improve my Etsy rating. So far I’ve made over a thousand sales!

My parents are really proud of me — they tell me all the time!

‘Don’t give up’ is what I’ve learnt, be persistent. Even when you are told no, keep going. I just kept asking Mum and Dad until finally they agreed, and as a family we have made this business a success.

How much money do you earn?

I’ve earned about $6000 in 18 months. I didn’t expect it to take off as much as it did!

How hard is this for other kids to do? (easy? hard-ish? tough?)

Hard-ish. If you want to start a business and you’re passionate about it, then you should go for it. It’s exciting to get orders, but there are some boring bits like packing all the orders, so you have to love it. For me, I feel like I can do things that I couldn’t before. I feel like a real entrepreneur.

I get paid to party!

by Sophie

MY BUSINESS NAME: Glitter and Glam

AGE: 10

I got the idea for my business when I organised my brother’s birthday party. A few parents noticed I was doing a good job and asked me whether I’d plan their kids’ parties.

To prepare, I researched the most popular party ideas, worked out what games and activities I could do and practised doing them.

I then created a list of all the party supplies I’d need. Right now, the main parties I do are ‘glitter and glam’ and I also do ‘glitter and tattoos’ (fake ones, not real!). Gecko tattoos are the most popular, though my favourites are the mythical ones like mermaids — so I can use multiple colours like red for their hair.

It takes two to five minutes per tattoo.

Party on, Sophie. She’s got a good business plan, so why not celebrate?

When I have a booking for a party, it takes about an hour to get ready and I do that the week before. I arrive at the party 15 minutes early to set up my table with the tattoos and flyers and make it look nice. And then the average party goes for two hours, so all up around 3.5 hours per party.

I get my party supplies (glitter, glue and tattoos) from Face Paint Shop Australia, and it costs around $15 per party. I charge $30 per hour per party and I split the money with Mum, who pays for the supplies.

I don’t have a website or Instagram but I have created flyers (using Canva and PicCollage) that I hand out to parents at the parties to get new business.

At my very first party it was pretty cute because all the little kids wanted to help me, then one of them kicked over the glitter, but it was okay — I had extra supplies. It was a success. All the parents said I did an awesome job.

How much money do you earn?

So far I’ve done about 10 parties in total so I’ve earned about $300.

How hard is this for other kids to do? (easy? hard-ish? tough?)

Hard-ish. Don’t worry if you’re not getting customers to start with. Hand out flyers, and advertise with posters at your local shops. If you put in a bit of blood, sweat and tears, you’ll succeed!

This is an edited extract from Barefoot Kids: Your Epic Money Adventure, by Scott Pape. It will be published by HarperCollins on November 7 and is available to pre-order now.

It could change your kids’ life ... Barefoot Kids by Scott Pape.

Originally published as Scott Pape’s Barefoot Kids: The young Australian entrepreneurs already nailing it