In the early days, Camp Start-Up was an experiment.

How, I wondered back then, could we give teenagers a taste of entrepreneurial life that would be as appealing as a summer of sailing, as much of an adventure as Outward Bound, and as memorable as trekking in Thailand? A tall order, but I knew that to get anyone to risk even a little slice of the idyll we dream of as summer it would take more than listening to geezers wax euphoric about the joys of a balance sheet in a stuffy classroom in July.

via Acukiki

That first summer the camp was for girls only and we held it at a spa in Palm Springs, CA. It was pretty cool (116 degrees on some days, but cool). Palm Springs was not, then, a hotbed of tech start-ups. But the owner of the spa (Sheila Cluff) was a founding member of the Committee of 200 (a club for women entrepreneurs) and getting a chance to be ‘backstage’ at a spa, was, a new kind of experience for these girls. Sheila was an ice skating star and on tour by the time she was 16, and her tales of making money by charging interest on loans to the older (and less frugal) skaters on the tour caught the attention of the campers.

The next year we moved the camp to the Sonoma Valley (looking for a slightly cooler summer climate). And that year, Margo Fraser, the owner of Birkenstocks USA, hosted the girls (and made them brand loyal forever by giving them all cute shoes at a discount so deep they each felt the triumph of a great steal). Once again, we had an entrepreneurial role model whose story was so interesting and accessible, the girls could all imagine themselves as successful entrepreneurs.

In the beginning, our biggest challenge was getting the girls to think big, to have a vision. The most common business start-up idea for girls then was a nail salon. Not a chain of salons, or the world’s biggest salon, just one cozy little salon, their own tiny empire. Thinking big takes practice and in those days (when even the idea of Take Our Daughters to Work Day sparked great controversy), girls were not encouraged to think big. Sometimes it broke my heart how pinched their visions were. How could they change the world if they could not imagine themselves as big players in the world?

But when those ‘aha’ moments arrived and the light went on, when yet another teenager saw herself truly as a mover/shaker, who could make an idea come to life, we could see a whole new path open up for herself. The confidence and self-awareness they went home with was so transformative that parents cried, watching their daughters present their first ‘business plan’ at the camp closing ceremony. So maybe camp wasn’t quite like a hike through Yosemite, but the kids did take home some pretty amazing memories.

These days the camps are co-ed (well, we do have one that’s ‘girls only’ in Florida) and focus has widened a bit. We no longer focus just on business start-ups. Kids who have a dream to be an actor, a teacher, a ‘green activist;’ or a writer need entrepreneurial skills every bit as much as the kid with an idea to replace Google. 21st Century kids need to know how to develop financial safety nets, no matter what their career or avocation, and knowing how to make a job will be more critical than just knowing how to ‘get a job.’

Camp is still fun—golf, swimming, tennis, vegging under big shady trees with friends on a warm summer afternoon are still part of the plan. But what we learned from those early days of Camp Start-Up has made the new camp a place for teenagers to become whoever they want to be. And that is an adventure that’s hard to top.

At our California location we’ll be going on a field trip to American Apparel, one of the largest and most innovative clothing companies in the United States.

Where Are We Going?
American Apparel is a vertically integrated garment company that’s known for hip clothes, racy ads, and viral growth. Since it opened its first store in 2003, they’ve opened 260 stores in 19 countries.

What Will We Learn?
While we visit the main factory in downtown Los Angeles (the largest garment factory in the United States, according to the New York Times), we’ll talk to managers about what it means to be publicly held and what it takes to run an operation that employs over 5,000 people. We’ll also explore American Apparel’s decision to pay all of its employees a living wage and talk about how companies can have a conscious.

Want to know more?
American Apparel has a five-minute introductory video that’s worth watching. If you want to know more about the company as an investment, look at the Google Finance page. If you just can’t wait for Camp and want to know more about vertical integration, the Wikpedia entry is pretty good.

Okay, so the post title is cheesy, but how could we not be punny announcing that Camp Start-Up will be heading to DOGSWELL for a field trip.

Where are we going?
DOGSWELL produces pet food made from premium, natural ingredients, that are healthy for your dog and cat. Their “Happy Hips” brand helps maintain healthy hips and joints with glucosomine & chondroita. Basically, they keep Rover running.

What will we do?
We’ll tour their corporate office in downtown LA, which includes their marketing, sales, design, operations, and finance teams. We’ll meet the office dogs and enjoy a  cool presentation by Marco, the president and founder. Depending on what’s going on at the company that day, campers may also have the opportunity to collaborate with Dogswell staff to come up with an ad, product or packaging concept, and visit a local retailer up the street who carries Dogswell products.

What we’ll learn:
We’ll learn what it takes to operationalize a business plan.  Marco started the Company in 2003 and is still involved in all aspects of it, including maintaining strong relationships with their distributors and retailers.

Want to know more:
Checkout their website or become their fan on Facebook. You can also check out this video or this one (where Marco talks about starting the company from his dad’s couch!). Want to know more about Camp Start-Up field trips, check out this list.

Apologies for the lack of recent posts, but we’re back with another brief Camp Start-Up announcement: in the spirit of never being too young to start something great, campers at our Massachusetts location will be going on a field trip to a family-run jewelry company started by a 13-year-old entrepreneur.

Where are we going?
Campers will  head to East Longmeadow (about six miles away from home base in Wilbraham) to visit Colorful Creations Bead Company, Inc. Emily Rose started “The Friendly Place to Bead Together” with her family in 2005 after making $3,000 selling $4 bracelets at local craft fairs. Today, the retail store hosts classes and events.

What will we learn?
Emily found her first success differentiating her jewelry by including cards that described the healing and protective properties of each stone she sold. As a teenager, she spent time traveling around the country to meet her suppliers. Expect to learn about entrepreneurship, managing supply chains, the challenges of working with your family, and cool ways of marketing your product.

Want to know more?
Check out the company’s story in its own words or their values statement to get a sense of what they’re about. You can become a fan on Facebook or check out this video of a model train that’s in the store.

We just got word that campers at Camp Start-Up will visit a company that makes baseball bats for “for ballplayers, by ball players.”

Where are we going?
Teens at Camp Start-Up’s Massachusetts location will go to the Dream Bat Company, a four-year-old, family-run operation that makes custom bats for pro, minor league, and college players around the country.

What will we learn?
You’ll get a chance to meet entrepreneur, coach, and company CEO Tim Mayo to talk about what it takes to start and run a company based on your passion.

Want to know more?
The Dream Bat Company is pretty new, but you can check out its website and see players who use its bats.

Where are we going?
On one of 11 days of camp, teens will visit Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization (ECHO). It’s a non-profit that provides technical support to nonprofits that help the poor around the world—things like agricultural training for the people that will teach third-world farmers, topic-specific workshops, and a seed bank.

What will teens learn?
Even though ECHO isn’t a disaster relief organization, they do have a presence in Haiti and are talking about ways they can help in the long term. For teens, we see this as a great way to understand ways they can use the kinds of entrepreneurial talents they’ll develop at camp to help the world. It’s a good way to engage sharp minds in enduring solutions and in line with our message that entrepreneurialism is about more than just money.

Want to know more?
Wikipedia has a pretty good entry on them. You can also check out their stats on Charity Navigator or this video on YouTube or a whole library of videos on their site. Still want to know more? Post a question below and we’ll provide answers.

Our very own Scotty Claus (a.k.a. Scott Martin), founder of The Living Christmas Company, has just been featured in The New York Times.

Our 2009 campers had the chance to meet Scott, tour one of his tree nurseries, and talk with him about the ins and outs of starting his own company. It was a Camp Start-Up highlight and one we hope to repeat next summer.

The snow’s coming down outside my window today, but in our house we’re already focusing on determining what our 14, almost 15-year old son wants to do next summer … besides sleep. Hard to believe it’s time already to start planning for next summer, but at IMI we’ve been doing that since the close of our camp at Scripps College in July. I’m excited that we’re offering Camp $tart-Up Sessions in three very different locations next year.

Teens (and parents) will be able to choose from:

• The quintessential California-setting of Scripps College
• The brick buildings, shade trees and state-of-the-art Trading Floor offered by New England-based Wilbraham and Monson Academy
• And the sultry, tropical feel of Florida Gulf Coast University

And for the first time, campers will be putting together business plans, simulated budgets, and mock portfolios all in one session. Hope you’ll stay tuned for news on field trips, staff and guest faculty profiles, stories from past campers and more after the first of the year…

Something you want to know about Camp? Post a question and contribute to our FAQ.

[Editor's note: This is the first post from Melinda Little, our vice president and the woman who has been in charge of Camp Start-Up for 14 years. Look out for more frequent updates from her in 2010.]