Young entrepreneurs launch first enterprise at Flotilla Festival

When Austin and Miller Diggs discovered marshmallow guns at this year’s Spot Festival, they saw an opportunity to make a buck.

“We thought of it that weekend, bought all the PVC pipe, sawed it and started putting them together,” Austin said.

With some help from their dad, the twelve and ten year olds set up shop in their backyard. They made 100 marshmallow guns and worked with dad to make sure they had a profitable enterprise.

“We got together and did a revenue and expense proforma for them to figure out their costs and what their expenses were gonna be,” said their father Scott Diggs. “It was a really good lesson for them.”

The two Wrightsville Beach Elementary students set out on their first business venture at the Holiday Flotilla Festival. The boys sold all 100 guns and after covering their overhead and donating some of the profit to charity, they made close to $200 each.

“We’re doing a lot better than I thought we would have,” said Austin. “We weren’t doing so hot in the first half hour [of the festival] but then people started coming in, lots of kids and they begged their parents and got marshmallow guns.”

Parents like Jean Antoniades didn’t need convincing.

“I bought it for my son and my nephew for Christmas,” Antoniades said. “I think they’ll love ’em! Perfect gift for a seven- and eight-year-old.”

For $7 customers could pick the gun of their choice. Each came with a free bag of ammunition and if you ran out of ammo, it cost fifty cents for more.

“I think if they can learn at an early age the basics of business then I think as they grow older they can figure out how to start their own businesses,” Scott Diggs said. “They’re pretty excited and I’m real proud of them.”