Youth Entrepreneur Program Powered By VentureLab Prospectus

Program Description:

After three years as a private program, Craft Lake City’s Youth Entrepreneur Program Powered by VentureLab is opening to the public for the first time! In partnership with the Utah Afterschool Network (UAN) and VentureLab, we’re thrilled to offer free afterschool workshops in arts and entrepreneurship at the Salt Lake City Public Library and the incredible opportunity for participants to run their own booth at Kid Row, the youth pop-up market during the 17th Annual DIY Festival Presented By Harmons, putting their skills to the test in a real-world marketplace! This exciting opportunity invites young creators and entrepreneurs to create their own business.

Participants will….

• Start or develop their own small businesses and work with professional artists who will demonstrate their craft, share their career journeys, and serve as creative role models. 
• Participate in unique crafting sessions and learn from local creators
• Gain valuable entrepreneurial and small business experience in a market-setting, including pitching customers, managing inventory
• Develop creative entrepreneurial skills through: 
• Creating, developing and managing products and inventory
• Designing, coordinating and executing market displays
• Learning how to set and meet SMART goals 
• Developing entrepreneur mindsets
• Practicing customer interactions and business pitches

Participants will receive: 

• Waived exhibitor fees at the Downtown Farmers Market
• Waived exhibitor and application fees at Kid Row, the Youth popup market at our 17th Annual DIY Festival Presented By Harmons
• 4 in-person sessions, led by local artisans and creative business owners
• Mentorship with Lydia, Craft Lake City’s Youth Entrepreneurship Program Coordinator 
• Virtual Info session with Craft Lake City team to prepare for DIY Fest
• $250 materials stipend (must attend all 4 in-person sessions to be awarded) 

Program Expectations: 

Participants who apply and are accepted into the public Youth Entrepreneur Program Powered By VentureLab are expected to be present on time and participate at ALL in-person and Virtual events. Participants are expected to prepare asynchronous assignments independently and diligently for each session. Participants must be respectful to all visiting artists and Craft Lake City staff. Participants will also be responsible for creating inventory for their business independently at home to prepare for a pop-up booth at the Downtown Farmers Market and KidRow the DIY Fest presented by Harmons.

Important Dates & Deadlines for Craft Lake City’s Youth Entrepreneur Program Powered By Venturelab:

Exhibiting at Kid Row:

The program culminates with participants showcasing their work as Kid Row vendors at the 17th Annual Craft Lake City DIY Festival on August 9, 2025 (12:00pm-4:00pm). Kid Row is a unique space for youth entrepreneurs (18 and younger) to sell, promote, and exhibit their creations at Utah’s largest local-centric art, science, and technology festival.

Materials Stipend:

Participants who complete all four artisan sessions will unlock a materials stipend of $250, giving them the resources to craft unique, handmade products for their small business. They’ll showcase and sell their creations at Kid Row on August 9, 2025—an incredible opportunity to shine as young entrepreneurs! Apply Now as seats are extremely limited!

Eligibility:

The Youth Entrepreneur Program Powered By VentureLab is open to youth between the ages of 12 and 18 who want to create or have created a handmade small business and reside in Salt Lake County. Youth must have a reliable form of transportation, be able to be outside for extended amounts of time (4+ hours). Youth who apply may apply with up to one other youth business partner. Craft Lake City reserves the right to reject any applications which do not fall within or meet our guidelines.

Original Work Regulation:

Craft Lake City celebrates artisans and local makers in Utah’s diverse communities whose products are handmade. Therefore, preference will be given to youth entrepreneurs who submit original business proposals for handcrafted work. Commercial, mass produced or manufactured products that are not made by the youth artisan(s) are prohibited. Upon submission, the youth artisan guarantees the accuracy of the description of products they hope to create and the authenticity of the artwork as original and created by their own hands. 

All artwork exhibited at the Festival must be of the quality and style represented by the artist in the images submitted with the application.

Application: 

Sub-Categories/Mediums:

• Accessories – bags, belts, hats, keychains, etc.
• Apparel – wearable works and clothing
• Artwork – two-dimensional work created using painting, printmaking, photography, drawing, digital art, collage, illustration, or other techniques
• Baby & Child Products – toys, children’s clothing, etc.
• Bath, Body & Apothecary – skincare, soap, body oils, etc.
• Ceramics – pottery
• Embroidery and Fiber Arts – embroidered hoops, sewn and knit objects, macrame, etc.
• Home decor and Housewares – candles, plant holders, wall hangings, clocks, furniture, cooking tools, dinnerware, etc.
• Kid Row Food – hand crafted and artisanal varieties of pre-packed, edible goods such as desserts, beverages, sauces, candy, etc.
• Mission-driven – Local nonprofits, organizations and businesses interested in sharing information about their missions and programs with the creative community
• Jewelry – necklaces, rings and earrings
• Pet – Accessories designed for use by dogs, cats, or other household pets
• Reworked Vintage Goods –  second-hand items, typically clothing or accessories, that have been altered, redesigned, or refurbished to give them a modern or unique twist.
• Stationery – paper goods, cards, journals, pens, etc.
• Sculpture – sculptural artworks made from clay, found/upcycled materials, glass, wood, ceramic or metal
• Vintage – curated clothing, furniture and other items that predate 1990

Health Department Regulations & Required Permits for Craft Food Exhibitors (pre-packaged food/beverages):

*Please read this information carefully, as exhibitors WILL be shut down at the event if they do not adhere to these requirements!*

• ALL craft food must be prepared and packaged in a commercial or cottage kitchen that has been inspected and approved by the Utah Department of Agriculture. You are REQUIRED to bring a copy of your Department of Agriculture permit with you to the event & have it posted at your booth. You do not need any additional permits with the Salt Lake County Health Department to participate in the DIY Fest unless you intend to offer samples. For questions about kitchen certifications, please contact the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food at 801-982-2253.
• If you would like to offer samples at your booth at the DIY Fest, you MUST obtain a sampling permit from the Salt Lake County Health Department, or you will be shut down on-site. You must have a license from the Utah Department of Agriculture to get a sampling permit. All food samples distributed at the DIY Fest must be pre-packaged. The Salt Lake County Health Department prohibits the distribution of samples of food produced in a Cottage Kitchen. Cottage Kitchen foods must be prepackaged, labeled and sold solely for at-home consumption. For questions about sampling permitting, please contact healthfood@slco.org or 385-468-3845.
• At least one person in the booth MUST have a Food Handlers permit.
• The Health Department REQUIRES you to have a handwashing station for any food or sample preparation. This includes interacting with the food on-site in any way. Please make necessary adjustments to your setup to comply with health department guidelines.
• Prepackaged samples do not require a hand washing station in your booth.

Health Department Regulations & Required Permits for Commercial Food Exhibitors (selling made-to-order food/beverages)

*Please read this information carefully, as exhibitors WILL be shut down at the event if they do not adhere to these requirements!*

• Food truck/trailers are required to have a primary food truck permit in one of the Utah counties to be in compliance throughout the entire state now. For example, if your food truck/trailer has a Davis County Health Department permit & is in good standing there, you can vend in Salt Lake County without any additional permits. You will need to bring a hard copy of your primary food truck permit with you to the DIY Fest. NO EXCEPTIONS!
• If you are normally a food truck/trailer exhibitor who wants to operate outside of your food truck in a booth/tent, you will need to apply for a Temporary Food Booth Permit from the Salt Lake County Health Department (because your primary food truck permit is only applicable to the truck itself).
• For licensing questions, please contact the Salt Lake County Health Department – our contacts are Tyler Rutner (385-468-3845 – trutner@slco.org) and Cole Dalton (385-332-1499 – cbdalton@utah.gov).
• Cooking stations must be in compliance with the Salt Lake County Health Department’s guidelines.
• All food trucks need to be registered with the local fire department. NO EXCEPTIONS! For questions, you can reach them at their main office by calling 801-256-2390.
• Food Exhibitors assume all responsibility for safeguarding their products and securing general liability insurance for their doing business. The Utah State Fairpark REQUIRES a certificate of this policy listing Craft Lake City and The Utah State Fairpark as additionally insured for the event. This certificate should not cost Food Exhibitors an additional fee by their insurance company. Email festivalfood@craftlakecity.com with any questions.
• Each commercial food exhibitor must have a hand washing station on-site at the event. During their routine on-site audit, the Health Department will shut down anyone who does not have a handwashing station, so this must be planned in advance for all food booths & trucks at the DIY Fest.
• All grease & liquids must be removed & disposed of off-site from DIY Fest grounds by the exhibitor.
• If you would like to offer samples from your commercial food truck/booth, please call or email the Health Department (385-468-3845, healthfood@slco.org) for details on securing your event sampling permitting. Food prepared in a Commercial Kitchen that has been permitted by either the Department of Agriculture or the Salt Lake County Health Department can be sampled and may require a permit if it comes from a raw animal product.
• Commercial food exhibitors planning to sell sodas, bottled water or energy drinks at the DIY Fest must purchase these directly from the Craft Lake City’s Pepsi Representative. Our team will send you a Pepsi order sheet approx. 2 weeks before the event date. Special exceptions for handmade beverages may be made at the discretion of Craft Lake City staff.

Photographs in your Application:

Focus on capturing high-quality images of five single products that can provide insight to the jury of your craftsmanship and creativity. Note: By providing these images, applicants give Craft Lake City consent to use them in promotional materials if accepted.

For more information about taking better product photos at home, check out the videos on this page. Craft Lake City also hosts Application Assistance Day events to provide additional support to folks who have questions about photographing their work or navigating the application portal.

Schools or Groups Interested in Applying:

If you are interested in having your students apply to participate in Kid Rowand would like to chat with a Craft Lake City representative about what that would look like please contact Lydia Miller, our Youth Entrepreneur Program Coordinator, at lydia@craftlakecity.com.

Jury Process:

After applications close, they are juried anonymously by a panel of third-party local arts experts. All Kid Row artisan’s personal information will remain anonymous to the jury. Jurors will solely have access to the applicant’s short answers and uploaded five images, which include a description and market price of the product.

Kid Row Exhibitor Space Info:

Each Kid Row exhibitor will be assigned a table on which to display their work. Items may be placed on top of the table for display, but for safety reasons, cannot be displayed behind, in front, or on the sides of the tables. Craft Lake City is not able to accommodate special placement requests for youth entrepreneurs. Electricity is not available to Kid Row exhibitors.

Craft Lake City allows up to two youth entrepreneurs to represent each accepted business in Kid Row. Due to space and safety restrictions, more than two youth entrepreneurs will not be allowed to represent a selected business on site at the DIY Fest. Only one application needs to be submitted per kid artisan business, but the name of the second kid artisan must be listed in the application as the business partner.

Guardian Responsibility:

A parent or legal guardian is required to serve as Craft Lake City’s primary point of contact on behalf of each applicant of the Youth Entrepreneur Program Powered By VentureLab. This includes assisting with the application process, submitting fee payments, reviewing and signing exhibitor agreements, and communicating with Craft Lake City before, during and after Kid Row.

As part of your role as parent or legal guardian, you are responsible for picking up stipend materials from the Craft Lake City office. These materials must be collected in a timely manner to ensure participants have everything they need for their projects. Please coordinate pickup times with Craft Lake City staff and confirm receipt of all supplies on your materials list.

You are also responsible for transporting your participant to the Mock Market It is essential to ensure they arrive on time and are prepared for their participation in all events.

A parent or legal guardian is required to be present with exhibiting Kid Row exhibitors at all times during Kid Row at the 17th Annual Craft Lake City DIY Festival Presented By Harmons, including for load-in, set up and load-out. Each individual kid artisan must be accompanied by one legal guardian. One single legal guardian may be allowed for two siblings who are part of the same household and the same Kid Row business.

Sales & Tax Information:

Craft Lake City does not take any money from commission or sales of Kid Row products during the course of the Festival. Sales taxes for items sold during the festival are required to be paid separately as the Festival qualifies as a special one-time event. Parents and legal guardians, please note that the Utah State Tax Commission will send tax forms to you about a week after the festival from tax-donotreply@utah.gov. You must complete these forms on behalf of your Kid Row artisan and file sales taxes on the kid artisan’s sales in order to participate. Parents and guardians may choose to file these forms in their own name, or in the name of their Kid Row artisan. For questions (or to request a replacement Special Event Tax Form should it not arrive), please contact the USTC at 801-297-6303 or specialevent@utah.gov. Reporting accurate sales tax helps Craft Lake City track the impact our events have on the local economy.

Exhibitor Responsibilities & Safety:

By applying and accepting Craft Lake City’s invitation, all exhibiting artists agree to comply with Craft Lake City, Craft Lake City DIY Festival and venue rules and regulations.

The exhibitor assumes all responsibility for safeguarding of their products and their displays at the 17th Annual Craft Lake City DIY Festival Presented By Harmons. We strongly encourage all exhibitors to purchase event insurance prior to the DIY Fest. 

All participants must attend all four in-person sessions to receive the $250 materials stipend. Additionally, participation in all virtual sessions and associated pop-up markets is required to ensure a full and enriching experience in the program.

Craft Lake City has the right to close, cancel or modify the Craft Lake City DIY Festival if any circumstances occur that would affect the safety of the event attendees or exhibitors.

By participating, the exhibitor understands that verbal and physical abuse of any kind is not welcome. Any individual who displays negative, crude, crass, belligerent or any other non-exemplary behavior that causes discomfort towards any person present at the Festival will be asked to leave. Craft Lake City reserves the right to determine what behaviors are deemed inappropriate and non-characteristic of Craft Lake City standards. We do not condone any racist, bigoted or unsafe behavior from any area of the Festival or within our community.

Parents and guardians of selected Kid Row exhibitors agree that images and information submitted through the application (with the exception of last names and contact information) may be used by Craft Lake City in promotional materials. Parents or guardians of selected youth entrepreneurs understand that any photos or video taken of guardians and Kid Row exhibitors by Craft Lake City staff, volunteers, or contractors at the public festival are the property of Craft Lake City, and can be reproduced and used/edited by Craft Lake City for documentary, educational, promotional and other purposes.

The invited kid artisan and parent/guardian agrees to hold harmless Craft Lake City and the Craft Lake City DIY Festival, sponsors, partner organizations, coordinators, volunteers or employees, for any damage, loss, or theft to artwork, displays or other personal property, or injury to their person or character, virtual or otherwise, regardless of cause, resulting from their participation in this event.

What is the DIY Festival?

The Annual Craft Lake City DIY Festival Presented By Harmons is Utah’s largest local-centric, three-day arts festival. The DIY Festival is an event created by locals, for locals, and celebrating all things local. It encompasses do-it-yourself culture as a whole, featuring handmade wares by local artists and makers, a Google Fiber STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) Building, music and dance performances, local food exhibitors and food trucks, a kids’ area, a DIY workshop area, a VIP lounge and more. The Annual Craft Lake City DIY Festival celebrates the best in all of us—our desire to make greatness from the mundane and share it with our friends. We strive to keep building upon our vision to make our community a more beautiful, self-sufficient and harmonious place through our shared love of creating.

When and how will the Annual Craft Lake City DIY Festival take place?

The 17th Annual Craft Lake City DIY Festival Presented By Harmons will  take place on Fri., Aug. 8, Sat., Aug. 9 and Sun., Aug. 10, 2025 at the Utah State Fairpark.

Unity Initiative Resources

The DIY Festival Unity Initiative seeks to create a Festival environment that is accessible to and representative of all Utahns in order to provide the community at large with opportunities to creatively and economically thrive. For more information and program details, visit the Unity Initiative page.

Accessibility

Do you have any questions about the accessibility of Craft Lake City events or programs? Would you like to request accommodations? Please contact us by emailing info@craftlakecity.com or calling 801-906-8521. 

Note: While Craft Lake City cannot guarantee that all accessibility requests can be met, our team is committed to making reasonable accommodations to ensure that attendees can successfully participate in our programs.