Teenagers Turn Ideas Into Profit

By LIBBY CUDMORE • HOMETOWN ONEONTA

Edition of Friday, Dec. 26, 2014

It’s always been Laine Johnson’s dream to own her own bakery. “I love to bake pastries and macaroons,” she said.
And now, even though she’s just 13, she’s on her way to making that dream come true.

Johnson is one of eight students countywide participating in the Otsego County Chamber of Commerce’s Young Entrepreneurs Academy – YEA! – a national program which aims to connect students to the business community.

“It’s a nice opportunity for students to use their talents and the business community to turn their big ideas into an actual business,” said chamber President Barbara Ann Heegan. “It will get the students thinking like CEOs.”

During the four-month program, students will meet weekly at Hartwick College with local business owners, attorneys, accountants and investors, learning how to start fully formed companies. “We’re going to learn a lot about what it takes to run a business,” said Harmon.

Students will set up a business plan, then work with the business community to market and execute their ideas. Chobani is one of the sponsors, and Dawn Rivers of the Otsego County IDA will be the first speaker when classes begin on Tuesday, Jan. 6.

And it’s not just businesses – students can also put their project energy towards creating social movements. “One student in Rochester had lost some friends in a car accident where they had been texting while driving, so he developed a ‘Don’t Text and Drive’ campaign,” said Heegan.

Among the ideas students are pitching are a bakery, a restaurant and an agriculture business, as well as a campaign to help people eat healthier with the start of a community garden.

“It’s important for the community to invest in their young people,” said Heegan. “By giving them the opportunities to start their own businesses, it really drives home the point about Thinking Local First.”