By Cathy Miller

Short for enTREPreneurS, TREP$ (www.trepsed.com) is an enrichment program founded in New Jersey in 2007. During its 6 week course, children in grades 4-8 learn all about starting their own business. The program culminates with a trunk show-style event called The TREP$ Marketplace, when the young entrepreneurs officially launch their businesses.
Sandy Roberts, from Blairstown, is the area’s TREP$ coordinator and advisor. She explained that generally a school or community organization will sponsor a TREP$ program, but in this case it’s sponsored entirely by the Warren County Library System. Last summer, Sandy accepted the position of Makerspace Coordinator for the Library System, launching the first makerspace in the county. She also leads a variety of STEM programs at local branches. 

Sandy said, “This summer I’m hosting the TREP$ Program at the Catherine Dickson Hofman Branch and Southwest Branch of the Warren County Library System. Kids take a total of six hour-long afternoon sessions on topics like market research and expense and revenue. They have homework to do in between each session as well. I believe this is the third year I’ve hosted at Catherine Dickson and the first at Southwest. I’ve previously held workshops through my business Kaleidoscope Enrichment at my location and with homeschool co-ops. We limit the group to 20 at the library. Each year we get between 12-14 students at each branch.”
After the students have acquired the basic skills necessary to start their own enterprises, from a creating a business plan and maintaining a spreadsheet, to product development and finance, to promotion and sales, they bring their wares to The TREP$ Marketplace. There they sell their products directly to customers, collect payment, and make change. This is the real deal, it’s nothing like playing store in the backyard with pretend money! Afterwards, the kids reconvene for one final session to share what they have learned and accomplished.

Once the program is completed, Ms. Roberts said, “We absolutely encourage kids to come back. They can take the class as a refresher or simply jump in for The Marketplace. The students are always welcome to participate in future Marketplaces. In fact, several of last week’s TREP$ will be participating in this Saturday’s Marketplace at Southwest. TREP$ alumni are always welcome to attend TREP$ Marketplace events.”

Sandy finds the TREP$ program to be a great community endeavor. She said, “I especially love the partnership between the Library, the Farmer’s Market and the Business Association in Blairstown. They each support each other and help create a really special event for the kids. I’m looking forward to building similar programs at the other branches as the Makerspace Coordinator.”

Saturday, Aug. 3, was Launch Day for several young entrepreneurs from the area. During the Blairstown Farmers’ Market, the young business owners “opened their doors,” welcoming browsers, introducing themselves and their products to customers for the very first time. Several of the “TREP$” sold out of their goods! Meet the fledgling business folks:

Charlotte Pereira, 9, from Blairstown, calls her business Scrubs by Charlotte. She sells mason jar mugs filled with her own luscious sugar scrubs in four delectable flavors.
Nathan Calvano, 11, from Blairstown, calls his business When Life Gives You Lemons. He sells lemonade with cut-up strawberries and a mint leaf garnish.
Geoffrey Tillisch, 13, from Blairstown, calls his business I Fold. He sells handcrafted delicate origami earrings and decorations.
Ella Hicok, 9, from Blairstown, calls her business Dog & Cat Girl. She sells homemade cat and dog treats, saying her dog loves everything she makes, and her cat, who is a very picky eater, likes her treats too.
Mylie Petersen, 11, from Blairstown, calls her business Mini World Clay. She sells little play sets, gifts or dresser decorations crafted from her own recipe for clay. Each set comes in a plastic container with a label.
Jack Naomi, 10, from Frelinghuysen, calls his business The Dark Bookmark. He sells his own colorful, handmade Harry Potter-inspired bookmarks. Jack said he enjoys “HP,” and felt it would be a good way to spark others to read the J. K. Rowling novels.
Mikey Naomi, 11, from Frelinghuysen (and Jack’s cousin), calls his business Out Back Feeders, Inc. He sells gelatin bird feeders, stating all the birds in this area will enjoy them.
Charlie Naomi, 9, from Frelinghuysen (also Jack’s cousin), calls his business Colorful Crayon Creations. He sells little molded characters made from multiple colors of melted crayons – after removing the paper sleeve from his old broken crayons, he melts them, then pours multiple swirls of color into a small mold to cool.
Teddy Hahn, 9, from Blairstown, calls his business Birdy Boy Bookmarks. He sells hand drawn bookmarks based on his own comic series titled “Birdy Boy.”
Gwen Kosciolek, 13, from Blairstown, calls her business Cutie’s Purrrfect Pet Toys. She sells handcrafted toys for pets, including feline favorites feather toys and catnip-filled socks; and bright, braided dog toys. Gwen also offers a homemade catnip bug spray, which sold out at The Marketplace.
Anna Terranova, 12, from Bridgewater, calls her business Character Keychains. She sells an array of colorful characters, some of which are hand-sketched and some are digital, ensconced in crystal clear plastic, hung from a key ring.
Kayleigh Steckel, 12, from Oxford, calls her business Macaron Magic. She sells an assortment of the pillowy, multi-hued cookies. Kayleigh said she began making macarons in 2017, and it turns out they’re the most difficult thing she’s ever baked due to the high level of precision required in each step of the recipe.
Abigail Heim, 16, from Blairstown, calls her business Abigail Heim Young Living. She is an independent distributor for Young Living, but her claim to fame is her custom essential oil blends, offering them as scented sprays, roll-ons, and drops to put in diffuser lockets. She has a special “Sniff Station” at her table, so people can test scents before purchasing. 

The TREP$ Marketplace was a very impressive effort by these 9-16 year olds – from their displays and custom-made signage to their sales skills and ease of fielding questions about their products.

For another opportunity to experience The TREP$ Marketplace, the young go-getters will set up shop at the Southwest Branch of the Warren County Library on Route 519 in Phillipsburg on Saturday, August 10, at 11:00 a.m. Pop in to the pop-up and meet some aspiring (and engaging) entrepreneurs.