This is part of the Vegas Kids Zone Spotlight series that features a local child or teen doing amazing things! Do you want to be featured on Vegas Kids Zone as a local youth leader, volunteer or kidpreneur doing amazing things for your community? Apply here and let us know!
Local teen Rico Cruse’s original idea for a young entrepreneur business has popped into the big time. He started Rico’s Rockin’ Pop, his brand of candied corn puffs, in December of 2018. His original mission was to bring joy to the community via fancy popcorn for people that rock. Now approaching his 5th anniversary, the Las Vegas young entrepreneur is ready to take his burgeoning business to the next level.
On April 21st, he is hosting a Fund My Summer Fun at Black Fire Innovation Center, 8400 W. Sunset Road, in partnership with Vegas Kids Zone! In this quick boot camp, kids can learn from a local kidpreneur on how to create, start and grow their business idea.
How This Young Entrepreneur Rocked His Startup Business
Rico built his “Rockstar” fan base by vending his product in a licensed kitchen to Pop-up shops and providing Pop delivery service around Las Vegas. In 2021 he wrote Rico Rocks at Problem Solving, a book about how his popcorn business began. Now 12, he has several years of experience selling popcorn and his book at local markets including Market in the Alley, Vegan Wonderland and the Black History Festival at the Springs Preserve.
He is the Nevada Ambassador for Young Biz Kid Day, a national program that celebrates youth entrepreneurship. And Rico hosted the first Start-Up Kids Camp in 2022, a 3-day summer camp that helped 30 local young entrepreneurs develop their businesses for the Young Biz Kid Day marketplace. Nickelodeon’s Nick News covered Young Biz Kid Day last year at the national Ambassador training session.
What are the challenges faced by a young entrepreneur? What are some good ideas for a new young entrepreneur who is just starting out? Rico will be on hand April 21 to answer new and seasoned kidpreneurs’ questions.
About the Fund Your Summer Fun Workshop
Now that he is almost a teenager, Rico has been thinking of what he wants to do after the popcorn business. The process brought the idea to him to help other kidpreneur hopefuls. The young entrepreneur came up with a long list of kid-friendly business ideas and how to lay the groundwork for a successful launch. He decided to share them with his peers so they can all have fun this summer and start their journey on the road to financial success.
Rico has presented the Fund Your $ummer Fun workshop at the Sigma Gamma Rho Youth Symposium. He has also spoken at West Las Vegas Library, Fitzgerald Elementary and several Tech Alley events about how kids can be successful young entrepreneurs.
We hope that kids leave the event with a real action plan of how to make their summer ROCK.
What: Fund Your $ummer Fun
When: April 21, 3:30-5 p.m.
When: April 21, 3:30-5 p.m.
Where: Black Fire Innovation Center, 8400 W. Sunset Road