MJay Kim decided he would offer his customers some stress relief with his product in the Langley School District IDEA Summit for student entrepreneurs.
The bubble device maker was among the 65 youthful merchants offering up products they made at the May 12 summit which allowed them to spotlight their creativity, business learning, and more.
He wasn’t sure what to make when the program first started, then settled on something he figured his fellow students from schools throughout the district would find relaxing and fun.
“And then I realized like kids like bubbles for like stress,” he explained.
So he took plastic straws, empty water bottles, wooden sticks and duct tape to fashion bubble wands.
Like many students, he was able to put up his ‘Sold Out’ sign soon after the visiting students were funneled into the Langley Events Centre field-house to see what the student merchants had to offer.
This was the sixth year for the summit.
“This year we are excited to welcome 3,000 plus visitors who are students and staff. We have 65 students who are in the marketplace showcasing their products,” said organizer Kendra Simonetto, a Langley School District director of instruction.
Leading up to the summit were 20 small summits within schools where the students were selected to attend IDEA Summit. Student from Grades 4 to 8 were presenting their products while students in Grades 1 through 8 from throughout the district were bused in to visit the marketplace.
With her sold out sign up during the second wave of students on Tuesday morning, Tenli Owens was able to sit and crochet more of her small toy turtle keepsakes before the next wave of students made their way through the summit marketplace.
Mufida Mohammed is hoping people throw out her creation. She made birthday cards, about 30, and more than 100 bookmarks out of recycled paper embedded with native seeds. She then drew one-of-a-kind gift designs and greetings on them.
“Normally when you’re done with the card, you end up throwing it out or you save it for a while and then it ends up in the trash,” she said. “But with my cards, you use them and then when you’re done with them, you just plant them and you get flowers out of them.”
Clara Hartman learned that a business person has to be willing to reach out to communicate with customers.
She fashioned wooden cars and one of the best selling techniques was to have a small decorated street, that included traffic lights made with coloured clothing buttons, so customers could try out her different designs.
“I do a lot of woodworking, so I decided it would be cool to make little cars,” she explained.
Each one was then painted in unique designs.
Sophia Sitter didn’t just offer one product. The ardent crafter had miniature handbags that she stitched together; resin art such as paperweights, a mini cutting board, and necklace pendants; decorated resin dragons; seashells filled with charms set in resin; and felted wool art. She made about 280 products for the summit.
“I live in on a farm, and it sometimes when it’s raining, it can be muddy and stuff so we don’t want to go outside.… So, I like to do be doing art to keep busy instead of going on my phone,” she said.
Kaitlyn Oh made $5 flowers from colourful pipe cleaners and other supplies.
“My mom’s coworker made these for me before and then I wanted to try to make some,” she said.
She wanted to try and see if she could do well in the summit and said she enjoyed the experience.
The summit only succeeds because the students are invested, said Simonetto.
“I don’t think anything can continue without the buy-in from the kids,” she said. “They are the inspiration for the entire event. So, it’s them showing creativity and really showing the perseverance.”
At the end of the day, the students take their proceeds and allocate a portion to a charity. Many chose the Langley School District Foundation while there were other choices such as animal welfare groups and the BC Cancer Agency.
The students have to create a complete business plan to be in the summit, which gets them thinking about all aspects of entrepreneurship and product production.
“I think that’s what makes it so exciting is that it’s a celebration of students. And students get a chance to inspire other students who are younger than them for the journey that they went on,” Simonetta said. “It’s an opportunity for students to really shine and show not just their entrepreneurial skills but their innovation.”
People from the community were invited to act as judges of the student products. They chose a handful of students who then made pitches to another panel of judges, who selected winners in various categories.
“These kids are so creative and just what they’ve been able to produce is amazing,” said Victoria Mossman, an RBC branch manager.
She noted that the students had the extra challenge of incorporating recycled materials.
Vancouver Community College’s supervisor of advising and assessment services Kseniia Osopova was impressed that the kids were thinking about larger issues than just making and selling a product. Some, for instance, wanted to offer alternatives to spending so much time staring at computer or phone screens.
“We’ve just been blown away with some of the communication skills, like how well they can explain their story of their product,” commented business professor Nina Jauernig, with Kwantlen Polytechnic University.
She joked that she were so busy evaluating the booths that she didn’t have time to make any purchases but had her eye on what she wanted to pick up if she found a quiet moment.
Innovation and creativity are on full display at today’s I.D.E.A. Summit! Students are showcasing and selling their products to fellow students, staff, and community members at the Langley Events Centre Fieldhouse. Such an inspiring, fun and energetic event! pic.twitter.com/GH4g7AaYq6
— Langley Schools (@LangleySchools) May 12, 2026
WINNERS:
• Outstanding Booth Design – William Nesbitt (James Kennedy Elementary)
• Outstanding Business Plan – James Dix (Noel Booth Elementary)
• Outstanding Interaction with Consumers – Adrian Simonov (Lynn Fripps Elementary)
• Most Innovative Product – Chloe Gill (Lynn Fripps Elementary)
• Pivot Award – Leo Davis (Alice Brown Elementary)
• Top Pitch (Grade 6 to 8) – Jana Halteh (James Kennedy Elementary)
• Outstanding Idea (kindergarten to Grade 5) – Maggie Maynard (Coghlan Fundamental Elementary)
• Outstanding Idea (Grade 6 to 8) – Clara Hartman (Belmont Elementary)
• Top Pitch (kindergarten to Grade 5) – Alexandros Darroudis (Langley Fundamental Elementary)
Two overall runners up for Pitch Awards (which covered kindergarten to Grade 8) – Maggie Maynard, Coghlan Fundamental Elementary (third place), and Clara Hartman, Belmont Elementary, (second place)