Things To Sell At School To Make Money

A school can be a perfect place to make some extra money. Most of the time, the school setting is lower in competition but high in demand. 

There are several times that you can sell during the school year. Whether it be for you the student to make money, or a market or special fundraiser event, here are the best things to sell at school to make money. 

Best Things To Sell At School

Can you sell stuff at school? If you are looking to sell at school on a day-to-day basis, there are three main categories that you should consider. Let’s look at those categories and decide which ones make the most sense for you. 

Snacks To Sell At School

Kids, parents, and teachers are always hungry. When away from home, one of the main things that people are going to look for is access to food and snacks, especially candy.

Here are a few ideas for snacks to sell at school. You have to be careful about which ones you choose so that you can remain profitable. 

Chips and Crackers

Try to choose things that are not going to crumble in your bag. If you are mobile and walking around the school, the bags of chips will get crushed.

This can be a bit of a problem, and it is worth looking into packages that hold up to pressure. 

Candy

Candy is probably the best-selling choice. If you want to make a lot of money at schools, find the candy everyone is looking for.

Many kids like the Sour Patch or Starburst candy. These are excellent choices for the seller as well because they won’t melt during the day. Be careful with chocolate, as you may end up losing some of your product to melting. 

Soft Drinks

Drinks like Gatorade can do quite well; the issue is that they will get heavy. If you want to start small and work your way up, Gatorade is a great place to start.

The smaller bottles would have some good markup on them if you purchased them in bulk. All of the snacks that you sell at school should be purchased in bulk, so you get the lowest cost per unit. 

Baked Goods

If you have a great recipe for cookies or even banana bread, you can do quite well selling it at school. In fact, although you may think that kids will just want candy, some are thrilled to have a homemade baked good instead.

Choose something that holds up well in your bag and that does not need to be refrigerated. The great thing about baked goods is that if you have an excellent day of sales, you can do some more baking when you head home for the night. 

School Supplies And Stickers

Another great way to make money at school is to sell school supplies and stickers. Most of the kids in the school will have the necessary school supplies that they need, but many will want something more unique.

An exciting custom-made pen or a notebook cover that is unlike any other in the classroom are both going to sell well. 

Stickers are another great product when you look at markup. If you shop well, you can find large multi-packs of stickers for a very low price.

Then you can separate them into sheets and sell the sheets for $1.00 or something similar. The person purchasing will think that the value is relatively high, considering the number of stickers they are receiving. Essentially, stickers are an easy sell. 

Locker Decorations & Accessories 

If your school allows locker decorations and accessories, you can build yourself an excellent little business. The best way to start this is to start letting people order locker decorations for birthdays or special occasions. 

Let people know about your business, and then they will start coming to you when they need a locker decorated. You can use supplies for a party supply warehouse to decorate and personalize the locker.

Make sure that you charge for both your time and the supplies for this one. Other ideas to make money with lockers includes selling accessories for the inside of the locker.

Most lockers will be magnetic, so you can sell magnets or even an organizer for the locker as well. Again, the biggest thing to make sure of with locker decorations and accessories is that the school allows you to do this. 

Ideas To Sell At School Market Day

If your school has a market day, it is a perfect opportunity to set up a shop and start selling. The great thing about the market day is that you are going to get a specific location and likely a table for you to set up your supplies.

This can certainly help when it comes to selling some unique things to sell.

1. Slime

Kids love slime. As you remember, if you want to make money selling at school, you need to appeal to kids. Slime is fun, it can be made in a number of different colors, and it is easy to give out in individual packages. Most slime is made quickly and easily with basic ingredients. 

2. Tie-Dyed Items

Tie-dye is still a popular thing that kids and adults love. Making a tie-dye t-shirt is not challenging to do, and you can get a pretty good idea of the sizes that you will need based on the school that you work in.

Tie-dyed items don’t need to only be t-shirts; you can die dye notebook covers and other items as well. 

3. Homemade Dog Treats

Who doesn’t like to bring home a treat for their dog? Let’s not forget how much we love those pets. If you can make a healthy and affordable dog treat for a dog, they will sell quite quickly.

Try to make something that has a long shelf life so that it doesn’t need to be consumed in one day. You will sell more volume this way. 

4. Bracelets

Bracelets don’t have to be made with gold and silver. In fact, some bracelets can be made with a string and a clasp, and they can be sold very easily on a market day.

There are so many unique ideas on Pinterest for making different types of bracelets. If you use something from nature or a local symbol, just make sure you market your bracelets as being unique. 

5. Baked Goods

Make sure you have a few taste testers before you start selling baked goods. People are very picky when it comes to baked goods. The texture, smell, and taste have to be perfect to get repeat or volume customers.

When selling baked goods, try to use flavors that a large majority of people will enjoy (i.e., chocolate chip cookies). If your market day is outside, don’t use chocolate in your baked goods, or things will start melting on you. 

6. Bead Jewelry

You can purchase a bead kit with beautiful and unique beads for a very low price. Putting the time in to string the beads and tie the bracelets can be tedious, but it will be worth it; the markup on bracelets is relatively high. 

7. Bookmarks

Believe it or not, the majority of people who enjoy reading still prefer a book in their hands as opposed to reading on a tablet. Bookmarks can be a great way to make money because they are simple, and you can get creative with them.

If you happen to be skilled at woodworking, thin wood bookmarks are very unique and will sell well. 

8. Magnets

There are a few things you can do with magnets for a market day. For starters, you can order blank magnets and paint or draw on them yourself for a unique design.

You can also use a company that prints on magnets to get them custom-made for an event or a local school cause. The magnets that go on the back of a car are very popular, especially if they are specific to the school. 

9. Jello Lip Gloss

Surprisingly enough, you can make lip gloss. By following a simple recipe, jello lip gloss can be made in a matter of minutes.

If you are in a colder environment where the cool air and wind may have people looking for lip gloss, this is a great choice to consider. 

10. Custom T-shirts

The custom t-shirt business is a very lucrative one when you have a unique concept. Whether your t-shirt design is directly related to the school or the local area, the custom shirts will sell fast.

The only issue with this is that you will most likely be doing quite a bit of work after the market day. You will bring some shirts with you as samples and then take orders and figure out the delivery.

The process is time-consuming and a bit longer, but the profit will be there. 

11. Printables For School Binders

For school binders, you can make dividers, covers, or even organizers to sell. These are usually done at home on a printer with some heavier quality paper, the process is not complicated, and your markup will be quite large.

Make sure you are accounting for ink and your time when you set your pricing for printables. 

Summary 

If you have ever thought that you could make money selling at school, chances are you are right. There are many great ways to sell at school or online and turn a profit.

You will also want to make sure that the school allows you to sell, but chances are if you have a proper business setup, then you should be allowed. 

In addition to selling, you should work on putting together some goals for how you want the business to grow. Make sure that you are getting repeat customers and referrals as well.

The best way for a business to grow is organically. If you do an excellent job inside the walls of a school, your business will spread fast, and people will be looking for more from you.