YOUNGSTOWN — It may take London Cowan only 20 to 30 minutes to crochet a headband, though it’s safe to say that certain valuable lessons woven into the fabric of her young life will endure longer than 20 or 30 years.

“I got my inspiration from my grandma (Gloria Thompkins). She taught me to crochet,” Cowan, an Ursuline High School freshman and Inspiring Minds member, said. “She told me, ‘Maybe you should make a business of it,’ and she was right.”

Thompkins’ suggestion was the impetus for what has become “London Charn’a,” a business the ninth grader launched a few years ago in which she specializes in creating and selling colorful crocheted headbands largely from acrylic yarn.

As part of Inspiring Minds, Cowan also learned about the importance of communicating with others, along with entrepreneurial skills, all of which fused and were on display during IM’s third annual summer marketplace Saturday afternoon at its headquarters, 2110 South Ave., on the South Side.

Beforehand, she and other students participated in a six-week summer enrichment program that culminated in Saturday’s marketplace, which gave some of the young, budding entrepreneurs a two-hour opportunity to showcase what they learned in the course regarding entrepreneurship, leadership and pitching business ideas.

Cowan, who learned the fine art of crocheting about three years ago and had headbands with a variety of bright colors on hand during the marketplace, recalled the strong sense of pride she felt after having made her first blanket.

“I make each of these with love and care,” she said about the headbands.

Cowan added that she hopes to become a registered nurse or to pursue another dream of being a veterinarian because “I love animals as much as I love people,” she said.

An overarching goal IM tries to instill in its young students is that running a successful business is a yearlong commitment, not a quick, haphazard effort, Tammye Hardin, IM’s program coordinator, noted. Along those lines, it’s vital they gain solid communication and leadership abilities, along with ways to effectively pitch their products, she said.

As part of a focused effort, those in the enrichment program were unable to use their phones or other electronic devices during class hours, Hardin continued.

“We want them to learn to talk to people in regular settings,” she said, adding, “From 8 to 3, they had no phones, and it was nice to hear kids talking to each other.”

Inspiring Minds, established in 2015, operates under five key pillars: education, college and career readiness, exposure to new experiences, health and wellness, and personal development. In its 10 years, the organization has served an estimated 1,000 students.

Saturday’s marketplace also featured a “secret shopper” who, in a clandestine manner, visited the students’ setups to gauge their business pitches and approaches. Also in the mix were James Lorenzi, a manager with PNC Bank’s downtown Youngstown branch, and Monica Anderson of the Youngstown Business Incubator, who serves as its Minority Business Assistance Center’s financial adviser.

Lorenzi and Anderson awarded points to students’ businesses based on aesthetics, branding and setup, professionalism and appearance, time management and responsible marketing, communication and pitching, cleanliness and organization, and customer interaction and engagement.

“All of these young adults have been outstanding today,” Lorenzi said, adding that he’s grateful for the partnership between Inspiring Minds and PNC Bank that gelled late last year.

“I really enjoy jewelry. I thought I could make a business out of it,” Cheyenne Dennis, a Cardinal Mooney High sophomore, said, referring to the core idea behind her business, “Bling by Chy,” which she launched in 2023.

Dennis, who hopes to attend Howard University in Washington, D.C., to study marketing, said she intends to start her own larger jewelry business. On Saturday, however, she seemed highly content selling some of her beaded and charm bracelets, along with bangles she made.

Myah Starkey, a Cardinal Mooney High freshman who joined Inspiring Minds in fifth grade, said that an invaluable aspect of her four years with the organization was its ability to help her “get out of my comfort zone and try new experiences,” as well as bolster her self-confidence, self-respect and how she treats others.

As a result, Starkey started a business called “Glossify by Myah” in which she sells primarily lip gloss and lip balm products.

A long-term goal of Starkey’s is to attend Harvard Medical School to study to be a dermatologist, she added.

Other student-run businesses at Saturday’s marketplace included “Coasters by Kylie,” “Sunny Scents by Gabs” and “3P: Pain, Purpose, Passion.”

The Warren chapter of Inspiring Minds hosted its summer marketplace Tuesday.