Heisei-Era Kids Get Rich: 'Earn Money This Summer!' Over 1,000 Children Prepare for Summer Business, Targeting Grandparents

UNICORN PoPo Co., Ltd. (Tokyo) has identified the drawbacks of children's allowances and, after extensive discussions with elementary and middle school students and their parents, devised a comprehensive solution.

The company has developed 'Unicorn Lab,' an experiential kit that eliminates allowances by enabling children to run 'self-employment' operations at home. Within just one and a half years of launch, it has grown into a self-employment platform used by over 1,000 children through word-of-mouth.

The dedicated app has now introduced a new feature: 'Kids Commerce.' Children, anticipating increased summer income, are accelerating their 'listing rush' by anticipating the needs of parents and grandparents.

In fact, the number of product listings in June was three times that of the previous month (May). As July—the peak of summer vacation—approaches, listings are expected to surpass even these numbers, meaning many children are expected to enjoy a wealthy, high-income summer.

Children selling the vegetables they have grown

What is Unicorn Lab?

Composed of a home vegetable cultivation kit and a dedicated web application, Unicorn Lab enables children to grow vegetables using the kit and sell them to their parents. Even without allowances, children's income increases to more than double the average allowance amount.

Additionally, parents buy vegetables from their children, eliminating allowance expenses and reducing annual household spending by approximately ¥17,000, creating a win-win relationship that benefits family finances.

The 'Kids Commerce' Feature: Parents Buy, Children Receive. Intra-Family E-Commerce

The system is simple: children list products in a family-only shop within the app, and parents or grandparents living apart place orders via the app. The sales revenue becomes the children's profit.

The Dedicated App

- Planning ahead by two months: For slow-growing plants like shiso (perilla) and basil, cultivation preparation begins as early as May, calculating backward from harvest time. Marketing strategies anticipate parental needs ahead of summer vacation.

From left: lettuce, shiso (perilla), basil

Main Features of 'Unicorn Lab'

- Hardware for vegetable cultivation combined with a web app for payments and independent business management - Target age: 5–15 years old - The dedicated vegetable cultivation kit allows harvesting from seed in as little as 18 days, providing stable income exceeding typical allowances - Rich features including an intra-family e-commerce site connecting with distant grandparents - Purchase version priced at ¥32,780; child-payment version available from a ¥7,900 administrative fee