This year’s EY World Entrepreneur of the Year winner, Moose Toys Chairman and Co-CEO Manny Stul has teamed up with one of Australia’s most successful serial entrepreneurs Creel Price to create an Australian first Kidpreneur-in-Residence internship at Moose Toys for 30 primary school children.

The money-can’t-buy-experience is the major prize of the Kidpreneur Challenge, a national competition run by Price’s social enterprise Club Kidpreneur Foundation to showcase Australia’s top young entrepreneurs, aged 9-12 years.

Working in teams of three and run in schools, the Kidpreneur Challenge teaches kids how to build a micro-business, sell at market, donate profits to charity, and pitch their idea to real-life entrepreneurs. Ten teams win with winners announced in October.

The Kidpreneur-in-Residence internship forms part of Moose Toys’ major partnership with the Kidpreneur Challenge. Kids will spend a day at the Melbourne-based head quarters working with product engineers, sales and marketing, and senior management to get a behind-the-scenes look at the business life-cycle of a toy and create their own Moose Toy product.

Distributing to over 85 countries across the globe, Moose Toys is the fourth largest in the US and fifth largest toy manufacturer in Australia and is renowned as an innovative creator, designing and distributing lifestyle brands that make a positive impact on children.

For Stul, awarded the coveted title of EY World Entrepreneur of the Year 2016 in June, offering a business experience that captures children’s imagination is what it’s all about.

“Moose Toys focuses on integrity, creating a culture of innovation and a clear purpose to make children happy. Club Kidpreneur aligns strongly with our company’s vision. What better way to empower and inspire kids than to connect them to the very people who created powerhouse brands such as Shopkins and Trash Pack, brands they know and love so much,” said Stul.

Price founded Club Kidpreneur Foundation six years ago driven by a passion for social enterprise and the notion kids can be taught entrepreneurship. Using his unique methodology primary-age children learn how to build a micro-business from ideation to commercialisation and are encouraged to donate their profits to charity.

“Club Kidpreneur was started because I believe you can teach kids entrepreneurship and in the power of using business for social good; with early exposure the potential that entrepreneurship is a considered career option becomes greater. We have worked with 10,000 kids and 500 schools nationally. To date the kidpreneurs have raised almost $400,000 for charity,” he said.

Price said it is through collaborations that real change can take effect.

“Our partnership with Moose Toys enables Club Kidpreneur to do more in this space, to reach more kids, and to connect industry with schools in a creative and meaningful way, as we cannot do alone,” said Price.

The Kidpreneur Challenge starts this month. Schools interested in signing up should contact Club Kidpreneur via their website www.https://www.theentropolis.com