The 8-year old that’s selling wands inspired by the Harry Potter series
Oscar Heeger’s love for wands began a year ago after watching Harry Potter. So much was his passion for wands that this eight-year-old started his own business, Oscar’s Wands, which makes and sells making and selling wands with designs inspired by the Harry Potter series.
We invited Oscar to our studio to ask him more about his business and love for wands.
Hello Oscar. Tell us more about yourself.
My name is Oscar and I am 8 years old. I go to school at International School Brunei (ISB). For my business, I sell toy wands that come in different designs.
What made you want to start selling toy wands?
When I was 7, I used to love Harry Potter, and I thought, since I don’t like doing my chores at my house, I should just sell stuff. I searched up stuff to make, Harry Potter stuff, and I came across wands, and I thought, what if I tried to make wands? So I watched some videos that showed me how to make them, but instead of using brown paint I used dark because I like the old and dusty look.
So you thought rather than doing chores, you wanted to go make some money doing something you love?
Yeah. I just got really excited every single time I finished a wand.
How do you make a wand?
You need one chopstick, you need a hot glue gun, and you need black paint. So first, you get the chopstick, you make your pattern on the wand, then you paint it black and leave it for a couple of hours.
How much do you sell your wands for and how many have you sold?
I sell them for $3 each and I’ve sold about 120 wands.
Do you still remember the very first place you made a sale?
I remember it was at a mall. There were all types of stuff there and so I thought maybe I should get my stuff and start selling them.
Do you save the money you make?
Now that you’ve mentioned that, I’m going to start saving as much money as I can.
Are you saving up for anything special?
Yes. This summer, I’m going to Harry Potter World in England and I want to buy some more stuff.
Where are you selling your wands?
I sell them at home. You can type @Oscarswands on Instagram and it’ll show you can buy and pick up the wands from.
Tell us about your support system. Who helps you with your business?
My dad. As for the money, we just get a bucket and throw the money inside.
How do you feel before you go to an event to sell your wands?
I feel really nervous. Because I feel like no one’s going to buy them for some reason. But my dad keeps on saying, “oh someone’s going to come along, (and) you’re going to get a lot of money”.
There are kids out there that want to start a business but they don’t know how to do it. What would your advice be for them?
I got really nervous when I had the idea, so I went into my room, I sat down on my desk and I thought, okay, I’m just going to do it, it’s going to be fine, it’ll all be over soon, and I just started making them. And when I got there I thought, why did I think of this? I was quite surprised with how that turned out.