Junior achievers turn ideas into cash

End of fiscal for entrepreneurship students at Yorkton Regional High School means pay day.

This year, 23 students enrolled in the Grade 12 class taught by Valerie Gendreau. They created three businesses, Strings Attached, Pretzel Factory and Loose Leaf Tea.

Each student invests $20 and each company is required to make a charitable donation of 10 per cent of net profit.

Between the three businesses, they sold $9,195 worth of product.

Strings Attached manufactured knit products such as arm knit scarves, head bands and string art. The company netted $3,004, which, after a $300 charitable donation to Soup Haven, paid each shareholder a dividend of $397.

The Pretzel Factory created chocolate-covered pretzel confections. After expenses, including a $122 donation to the Guardian Angel Animal Rescue, each member took home $122.

Loose Leaf Tea bought tea in bulk and packaged it for retail sale. The company’s charity was the SPCA, which got $159. Each investor got $179.

The Chamber of Commerce honoured the young business people at its January 15 breakfast meeting at the Ramada Hotel.

Chamber president Don Rae said the future of entrepreneurship was in good hands.