He\u2019s the new vending machine king of Brooklyn \u2014\u00a0and Linus Piepmeyer hasn\u2019t even finished the third grade.<\/p>\n
What began as a lesson about the value of money \u2014\u00a0and savings \u2014\u00a0has become a minor sensation on one block in Boerum Hill, where the 8-year-old boy with an artist\u2019s eye has been hawking homemade Big Apple-themed buttons out of a gumball dispenser his dad snapped up on a whim.<\/p>\n
With his parents\u2019 help, Piepmeyer spends his weekends cranking out his so-New York designs \u2014 from pigeons to pizza slices, to taxis, hot dogs and rats \u2014\u00a0packaging them in brightly-colored plastic capsules and hoping that passers-by will shell out two quarters a pop. <\/p>\n
Linus Piepmeyer is having a (gum)ball with his Boerum Hill vending machine. Tamara Beckwith\/NY Post<\/p>\n
So far, so good \u2014\u00a0since hanging out his shingle on Wyckoff Street in July, the school kid has sold hundreds of pins.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve run out of room in his piggy bank from all the quarters,\u201d mom Alison, 39, told The Post with a laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cGetting the money has been cool,\u201d Linus told The Post, though he confessed right up front that when he heard about the idea, he had something slightly different in mind. \u201cI was hoping it could be a snack machine that we could fill with Cheetos or Twizzlers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDuring one conversation, the vending machine came up and it seemed like a tangible way to showcase how creative ideas and hard work can make money,\u201d said Alison, founder of @Seen, a social media company, and the former chief marketing officer at Color Factory, the interactive art exhibition company.<\/p>\n
It was also the perfect project for Linus, who\u2019s got a clear creative streak, his parents said. <\/p>\n
\u201cLinus is always drawing stuff \u2014 he loves making comic books,\u201d said dad Zach, 39, co-founder of Magical, an AI platform company.<\/p>\n
Linus is creating designs that are turned into buttons. Tamara Beckwith\/NY Post<\/p>\n
The 8-year-old is hard at work creating the trinkets that sell for 50 cents a pop. Tamara Beckwith\/NY Post<\/p>\n
\u201cGetting the money has been cool,\u201d the art-repreneur told The Post. Tamara Beckwith\/NY Post<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we talked to him about chores, we thought, \u2018Should chores be for money \u2014 or do you do them because you\u2019re part of this family?’\u201d he recalled to The Post.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe decided maybe it\u2019s better for Linus to feel like he\u2019s making something \u2014\u00a0and that this will teach him the idea of creating value that other people want to pay for. That was the bigger idea,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n
Nine months ago, Zach bought the vending machine on Amazon and placed it outside their home, tucked into a line of restored, two-story Brownstone Brooklyn beauties.<\/p>\n
Originally, the plan was to use it to showcase the work of local artists, who would make buttons showing their work, but that idea fell flat. So it stayed empty for a few months, which initially caused a minor commotion in the neighborhood.<\/p>\n
This also proved to be an important life lesson for the elementary school student.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt got snowed on, someone did graffiti on it, it got hit with a baseball bat, and someone punched a hole in it, so we had to replace the glass,\u201d Linus said.<\/p>\n
Linus opens the lock that accesses his bountiful buttons. Tamara Beckwith\/NY Post<\/p>\n
The young Brooklynite checks out his wages, by way of shiny quarters. Tamara Beckwith\/NY Post<\/p>\n
In addition, some neighbors weren\u2019t shy about asking exactly what was going on with this glass box on a black stand bolted to a heavy planter using a large bike lock.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor a while it was languishing, and people were, like, \u2018Could we move this?\u2019\u201d said Zach. \u201cIt was this empty, weird thing sitting outside on the sidewalk in front of our house.\u201d<\/p>\n
But then, Linus struck a deal with his parents to put his drawing skills to use. <\/p>\n
Creating the pins is a whole process. First, the icons are created in the design program Canva, before being color printed at a nearby print shop and punched out to create buttons, using a Vevor machine the couple had on hand (they\u2019ve been making buttons for birthday parties for years).<\/p>\n
In addition to creating the artwork, Linus is in charge of marketing \u2014\u00a0another valuable exercise, his parents said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we put up signs or market the machine in chalk on the sidewalk, we\u2019ll see a direct correlation with more sales,\u201d Alison said. \u201cThat was a fun thing to explain to Linus \u2014 and show him firsthand.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve run out of room in his piggy bank from all the quarters,\u201d Linus\u2019 mom Alison (right) told The Post. Tamara Beckwith\/NY Post<\/p>\n
Cathy Meier, a creative arts therapist who lives across the street, said it\u2019s been so fun watching people gather around the machine.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll be having breakfast and notice all these people coming by and stopping, looking and figuring it out,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s very community building.\u201d<\/p>\n
What Meier appreciates most about this street project is that the pins depict the best of New York City, all from a child\u2019s perspective.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s something so innocent about this,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s such a creative idea, and it gives you all the warm and fuzzy feelings. It\u2019s taking a piece of art and sharing it. It\u2019s a cool thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The kids on the block get a kick out of it, too. Some have even encouraged Linus to add new designs, which would incentivize repeat buyers or, perhaps, add a rare pin to the inventory.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo many of the kids in the neighborhood have been asking Linus to make super rare ones \u2014 they\u2019re obsessed with that \u2014 just like they are about Pokemon cards,\u201d Zach said.<\/p>\n
No matter what\u2019s in the machine, just the idea of seeing a toy vending machine on a random leafy Brooklyn street seems to lead kids \u2014\u00a0and their parents \u2014 to return and check it out.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s, like, \u2018What did they do this week, did they change the pins or are they doing something different?\u2019\u201d Meier said. \u201cIt gets people talking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we put up signs or market the machine in chalk on the sidewalk, we\u2019ll see a direct correlation with more sales,\u201d said Alison, shown restocking the machine with her son. Tamara Beckwith\/NY Post<\/p>\n
And just in case anyone is short on change, the Piepmeyers always keep extra quarters on hand for anyone who wants a pin.<\/p>\n
\u201cI keep a bunch of quarters by the front door,\u201d Zach said. \u201cIf I see some little kids who want one of the pins, I\u2019ll run out there and give them the change. When I do that, their faces light up.\u201d<\/p>\n
After shelling out startup costs for the vending machine (about $230), a button maker ($120), circle punch ($15) and other miscellaneous expenses, Alison said that \u201cat this point, we\u2019ve broken even, but it\u2019s not really about that. More about having fun, doing something exciting for the community, and teaching our kids new skills,\u201d she told The Post.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Of course, she did confess that it may not be the most sensible venture in the long run.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not really a viable business model,\u201d she\u00a0added with a laugh \u2014 but that\u2019s not stopping the entrepreneurial family.<\/p>\n