Youth entrepreneurship camp geared for Northwest Jax teens
Starr Prescott’s quest to share the wisdom she gained on her entrepreneurial journey led her to the Sherwood neighborhood in Northwest Jacksonville.
Prescott has worked in the beauty industry for more than 20 years and created a hair care line focused on alopecia and hair loss in 2010. She moved to Jacksonville in 2021 and sought to establish roots here.
One solution: create a nonprofit that provides a foundation for future entrepreneurs.
This summer, Youth Exposure Inc. will hold an eight-week camp for children and teens between 10 and 19 years old.
“Our kids are lacking a lot of different things in the entrepreneurial space,” Prescott said. “They hear things or they see things on social media, and they think that this is going to happen tomorrow. Your true entrepreneur is going to fail forward. They are going to make a lot of mistakes, but they are going to keep going.”
The camp will be held at the Lewis Cobb Community Center from June 10 until Aug. 1. It will operate daily from noon until 5 p.m.
Prescott says the camp will have workshops that explain entrepreneurship as well as introductory information about breaking into photography, T-shirt design, hair care and more.
Florida has been the place where Black business owners have blossomed.
Black entrepreneurship in Florida has increased faster than the nationwide average. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were 18,502 Black-owned businesses in Florida in 2021, a 35% increase from 2019.
Black-owned businesses employ 108,713 Floridians and 1.4 million people nationwide.
This spring, the Wall Street Journal indicated Jacksonville was the second-hottest job market in the United States. Earlier this month, the U.S. Census Bureau announced Jacksonville’s population is one of the 10 largest in the country. Prescott says those factors indicate that as the city grows, a startup can grow alongside it.
“We are growing, and this is a great space for entrepreneurs and youth entrepreneurs. This is a great place to start and get your feet wet,” Prescott said.
