How the young people of today will save the small businesses of tomorrow

The light at the end of the tunnel for small businesses might just be Generation Z and their entrepreneurial, but pragmatic, spirit

A lemonade stand.
(Image credit: Bob Kreisel / Alamy Stock Photo)

I have two sons, ages 6 and 8. When I ask them what they want to be when they grow up, they say farmer, builder, artist, video game designer, YouTuber, store owner. The games they play, like Minecraft and Roblox, inspire some of their career goals, while the YouTube videos they watch (often in languages they don't speak), inform others. Every few weeks, they want to start a business — selling lemonade or their artwork, doing chores for the neighbors, their teachers, or me. I ask them why they need money when I buy them whatever they need and most of what they want. They tell me they want to have their own money to spend. They play store and are precise in their counting, but generous in their donations to each other when the money runs low. In some ways, they are typical kids of any generation. In most ways, they are the face of the latest generation, known as Generation Z, and the future of small business.

The age range for Generation Z spans from the young adults graduating from college to the children who are just starting their preschool education. In other words, like my kids, the future of small business is still very young. But it's also a huge group — roughly 69 million people strong, according to the Pew Research Center. And all of these youngsters share one major common denominator: They are the first generation born into the digital age. This influences their worldview in profound ways. As small businesses suffer and fail in the shadows of Amazon and big-box stores like Walmart, the shining light at the end of the tunnel might just be Generation Z and their entrepreneurial, but pragmatic, spirit.

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Kristina Wright

Kristina Wright lives in Virginia with her husband, their two sons, and several pets. She's a regular contributor to Mom.me and BookBub and her work has appeared in the Washington Post, Narratively, Good Housekeeping, OZY, Ravishly, The Billfold, Racked, and others. She loves reading thrillers, going to movies, baking bread, and planning family trips where everyone has fun and no one complains. Oh, and she really, really loves coffee.