Kids Idea Tank is the nation’s largest entrepreneurship competition for kids age 8-13.
Kids pitch their ideas… and the world will listen.
WHAT IS KIDS IDEA TANK?
Lowey Bundy Sichol founded Kids Idea Tank in 2019 to give kids a platform to pitch their ideas. Lowey is an award-winning children’s author with an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. During her FROM AN IDEA TO… book tour, she recognized that kids naturally had great ideas and were eager to share them. Yet, no venue existed for budding entrepreneurs in elementary, middle, or junior high school to test out, share, or hone their entrepreneurial skills. Inspired by the hit show, “Shark Tank,” Lowey created Kids Idea Tank… and now the world listens to kids.
See below to learn more about Kids Idea Tank and meet past finalists.
KIDS IDEA TANK TIMELINE
April 2019 — Children’s author Lowey Bundy Sichol is on book tour for her book series, FROM AN IDEA TO… During her school visits, kids of all ages approach her with their ideas for new products and businesses. It dawns on Lowey that kids in elementary, middle, and junior high do not have a chance to share and grow their entrepreneurial skills like adults or even high school and college kids. Inspired by the hit TV show Shark Tank, Lowey decides to create a kid entrepreneurship competition.
July 2019 — Winnetka Idea Tank for Kids takes place in Winnetka, IL, a suburb of Chicago. It is open to kids between the ages of 8-13 in the Chicagoland area. Over 50 teams compete in person to a panel of five judges that included Chicago Blackhawks Chairman Rocky Wirtz and Peapod co-founder Thomas Parkinson.
The winning team was Anthony Hartman, Philip Baker, and Bret Hanafan with their innovative product Scoot Knees, a roller blade for knees. Second place went to Helena Martinez and her Moss Paint, an innovative mural paint that grows on walls as moss.
May 2020 — COVID-19 global pandemic has shut down schools and as Zoom takes over classrooms and workplaces, Lowey decides to re-launch the competition over Zoom. The event is renamed Idea Tank for Kids and opens up to anyone in the United States, ages 13 and under.
June 2020 — Twenty finalists age 8-13 from 13 different states compete in the 2020 Idea Tank for Kids. Each finalist pitches his or her idea for 5 minutes, then answers questions from the Judge panel. Judges include Jimmy John’s CMO John Shea, Chicago Sun-Times CEO Nykia Wright, Peapod Co-Founder Thomas Parkinson, and Merrill Lynch Managing Partner David Donaldson. The $1,000 grand prize winner goes to Kierra Perkins from Nashville, TN for her company Kandles by Kierra. Second place was Matias Aviñó from Maimi, FL for his mobile tutoring app YTeach. The audience favorite vote takes place for the first time. Idea Tank for Kids 2020’s audience favorite goes to Kennedy Solaru for her company Kids Tutoring Service.
The 2nd annual Kids Idea Tank (2020) was recorded on June 30, 2020. You can watch it here.
February 2021 — Kids Idea Tank 2021 starts accepting applications. PL$ signs on as the title sponsor.
June 2021 — A record number of kids enter the 3rd annual Kids Idea Tank. 15 finalists compete and pitch their ideas in front of our incredible judge panel that includes Stacy’s Pita Chip founder, Stacy Madison and DryBar founder, Alli Webb.
The 3rd annual Kids Idea Tank (2021) was recorded on June 23, 2021. You can watch it here.
January 2022 - Kids Idea Tank winner 2019 and finalist 2020 Anthony Hartman makes international news when he is hand selected by YouTuber Mark Rober to co-invent the world’s largest t-shirt cannon for Jimmy Kimmel. Watch it here.
Watch past competitions
The 3rd annual Kids Idea Tank (2021) was recorded on June 23, 2021. You can watch it here.
The 2nd annual Kids Idea Tank (2020) was recorded on June 30, 2020. You can watch it here.
In the news!
Kids Idea Tank star Anthony Hartman teams up with Mark Rober & Jimmy Kimmel!
Anthony Hartman was just 10 years old when he won the first annual Kids Idea Tank with his invention ScootKnees. He was part of a three-kid team with two friends. Anthony was 11 years old when he was a finalist in the second annual Kids Idea Tank and invented the amazing E-Ventilator, a working ventilator made out of LEGO bricks.
YouTuber Mark Rober saw Anthony’s E-Ventilator and asked him to help with a new invention. In January 2022, Anthony and YouTuber Mark Rober debuted the WORLD’S BIGGEST T-SHIRT CANNON with Jimmy Kimmel. Congratulations, Anthony!!
Come meet our past Finalists and Winners…
2021 Winners
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Julian Frederick, 13, Dallas, TX
The Step Stool Chef is dedicated to empowering kids to be more independent in the kitchen. They sell products and solutions to make learning how to cook easy and fun for kids including the Step Stool Chef Cookbook for Kids, the Step Stool Chef Cooking Kit for Kids and The Step Stool Chef Cooking School for Kids on the SideChef app.
https://stepstoolchef.com
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Carter Koenigsknecht, 13, Troy, MI
Small Business City Boxes is a monthly subscription box service where subscribers recieve small business products from a certain U.S city each month. Also included in each box is a booklet explaining more about the products you recieved and the small businesses they came from. The booklet also includes information about that month's city. With small businesses struggling nationwide, it is important that we can support them as much as possible.
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Nyla McMichael, 11, Durham, NC
Simply Samone makes handmade Sassy, Classy Stud Earrings for all ages. All of her studs are handmade with love. They are lightweight and made with Hypoallergenic Stainless Steel posts. If you are interested in a reasonably priced studs that are great quality and a large collection look no further. https://simplysamone.com
2020 Winners
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Kandles by Kierra, 13
Kierra Perkins won Kids Idea Tank 2020. She impressed the judges with her entrepreneurial drive that turned homemade candles into a thriving business. Kierra began Kandles By Kierra at the age of 11 after making a "kandle" for her dad for Father's Day. She received so much positive feedback that she decided to start a “kandle” business. Kierra continues to run her “Kandle” business and was the 2020 Kids Idea Tank winner. https://kandlesbykierra.com
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Matias Aviño, YTeach
Matias Aviño is the founder of YTeach, a peer-to-peer tutoring and scheduling app called YTeach. He was the 2nd place winner in 2020 Kids Idea Tank. YTeach is a platform for students within a school to find other students to tutor them. Matias has been featured in local news and his school is beta testing his product as we speak.
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Kennedy Solaru, Kids Tutoring Services
Kennedy Solaru won the hearts of our audience in her Kids Idea Tank presentation for Kids Tutoring Services. Her business… Kennedy founded Kids Tutoring Services, which specializes in kid-to-kid language lessons. Kennedy is fluent in Mandarin Chinese and believes Chinese is the most critical language to know in the business world. Kennedy has expanded her services to additional languages. Her business runs on multiple business platforms, including surviving homeschools, fashion nova, Chat Her, and Next Gems.
2019 Winners
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Anthony Hartman, Philip Baker, Bret Hannafan, ScootKnees
Friends Anthony Hartman, Philip Baker, and Brett Hannafan wowed the judges with their innovative product Scoot Knees, a roller blade for the knees. Since then, the boys have appeared on radio, print, and TV and used the prize money to patent their invention, create a website, and develop an adult size prototype.
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Helena Martinez, Moss Paint
Helena Martinez combined her love for STEM and the environment to create Moss Paint, an innovative paint that grows murals on walls, fences, or buildings in the form of moss. After winning 2nd place at 2019 Kids Idea Tank, Helena was a recipient of the 2019 U.S. STEM Girls Award.
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2019 Winners
In our inaugural Idea Tank, kids in the Chicagoland area pitched their ideas to a panel of judges. Winners were announced for different age groups and Scoot Knees was crowned winner of all. Congratulations!
What is Kids Idea Tank?
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WHAT IS IT?
Kids Idea Tank is an idea competition for kids age 8-13 years. Our mission is to inspire, educate, & support future entrepreneurs.
Kids submit a video explaining their idea and the top 10 finalists will be posted here. The public will vote for their favorite idea over the course of ten days. The winners will be announced over Zoom.
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HOW DOES IT WORK?
1.) Come up with an idea for a new product or service. Create a prototype or drawing that explains it.
2) Film yourself explaining the idea as best you can. Your video should be approximately 1-3 minutes long. Upload your video to YouTube, Vimeo, or a similar video-sharing website.
3) To enter, parents must fill out and submit the application form for their child, along with a link to their child’s pitch video. No exceptions. .
4) 10 finalists will be chosen by the Kids Idea Tank selection committee. These videos will be posted on www.KidsIdeatank.com.
5) The public will vote for their top three choices.
6.) Teams may consist of an individual or a group of kids but all members must be 13 years or younger.
7) Kids Idea Tank winners will be announced over Zoom. All ten finalists must be present on Zoom.
8.) Prizes: $500 to 1st place; $250 to 2nd place; $100 to the 3rd place. $50 to 4th-10th place.
Good luck!
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WHAT ARE THE PRIZES?
There is over $1,000 in prizes! First place wins $500. Second place wins $250. Third place wins $100. 4th-10th place win $50. All prizes are donations from Kids Idea Tank founder, Lowey Bundy Sichol.
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WHO CAN DO IT?
Kids Idea Tank is open to any kid in United States between the ages 8-13. Kids may enter as an individual or as a team with siblings or friends but all members of the team must be 13 years or younger.
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CAN MY ENTIRE CLASS ENTER TOGETHER?
Yes! Everyone on your team must be age 13 or younger.
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DOES IT COST MONEY?
No. Kids Idea Tank is free to enter.
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ARE THERE RESOURCES TO HELP ME?
Yes. Please visit our RESOURCES page for tips and tools to help with your pitch and fundraising.
*** Note: The purpose of Kids Idea Tank is to create a fun event that inspires kids to think about new idea and teaches them about entrepreneurship. The registration form is used only to communicate to families about Kids Idea Tank. Names are never sold or used for any other purpose.
*** If you have any questions, please contact us here.