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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

AIBU to report my son for 'tuckshop selling'

249 replies

marl · 16/11/2016 20:37

Have just found a huge stash of chocolate under DS's duvet. It transpires he is making a good £20 a week by selling this at school which is against the school rules. His argument is 'the school don't care...one boy was caught to his knowledge and he was just 'told off'...and he 'doesn't see the problem'. As part of a small catalogue of teenagerish behaviours that have been escalating in the last 2 weeks, IDP and I are now too tired to be clear-thinking.

I recognise this is not exactly class A drugs, and some people might praise entrepreneurship. But I feel uncomfortable about it : 1. if he gets caught the principle is that 'I knew' so by letting him carry on I am condoning it. 2. I wondered why he was suddenly being a flash harry with cash - he has that over-confident tendency to talk about things that I think of as luxuries as being 'cheap' which doesn't feel great. He lives another very affluent life every other weekend with ex-h. 3. He has a £30 a month allowance to include phone top up. I remove some of it occasionally as a punishment. Obv now this holds now sway at all. 4. I don't think it's a great idea to be feeding crap to your 'friends'

WWYD? Remove his allowance on that basis that he no longer needs it? Talk to the school and get them to catch him..with the risk that I continue to be the 'poor parent' in his eyes if he realises it's me? Leave him to get on with it? I didn't get very far in talking about it with him - he remains condescending and scornful which is the norm at the moment.

Though of course, the upside is, as things stand, I now have a cupboard very full of chocolate :-)

OP posts:
ginswinger · 16/11/2016 21:21

I think he's the one I'd be leaving the family business to! Congratulations on having an enterprising kid, he will no doubt be able to pay his way through uni. I used to take on sewing jobs to fund myself through uni. It's amazing how many kids couldn't sew a button on.

caffelatte100 · 16/11/2016 21:21

My 11 year DS did something similar, there was a no sugar rule at the school and so he sold "healthier" snacks which he got them from Aldi and sold them on at about double the price. They were smoothies, cheese straws, little meat sticks, fresh croissants etc. He tried lots of things and it wasn't always the things that we thought would sell that did. We talked about strategies for selling and it was a little business venture and a lot of fun, I was proud and supportive. In the end, someone grassed him up and he was told he had the opportunity to go to the head and ask permission but he thought/knew it would be denied so it stopped. Perhaps you could get your son "on side" as well with his business? If you told the school it would make things so much worse between you. If you support him, it might help your relationship?

engineersthumb · 16/11/2016 21:26

I would be so proud. As for the fact that you know.... nothing like a conspiratorial secret to bolster relationships!

Wonderflonium · 16/11/2016 21:29

Talk to his form teacher. Maybe they could channel this and have him do some sort of sweet sale for charity or run this as a project for maths or business studies?

Suppermummy02 · 16/11/2016 21:29

he isnt doing anything illegal, leave him alone.

NorksAreMessy · 16/11/2016 21:30

At this age DS started to cheat the train fare.
I knew about it, told him I did not approve of it and let him know that any consequences were his own concern.

He was eventually caught and fined £100 which he cheerfully paid as 'fair enough'.
Natural consequences and all that

marl · 16/11/2016 21:33

No shatter here - unless it's wrapped in Dairy milk wrappers Mrs Wombat. Thanks all. I have spoken to him as he came in to talk about it. He's getting 80 a month from his enterprises (so he's telling me though of course it could be more) so I've said if he chooses to continue there is no need for him to have an allowance as things stand and pointed out that the £30 he is given is more than enough for his needs and wants. But that I don't approve, he shouldn't be doing it, it's against the school rules and if he gets caught I will be supporting the school...plus I will refuse to be summoned to the head's office like a teenager myself to discuss it if they want to escalate it as I have too much to do in my own work...so he will have the face the consequences of that. I have also suggested I would help him get babysitting as an alternative. I've listened I think - thanks all for the reality check.

OP posts:
backinthebox · 16/11/2016 21:39

Big time sweetie entrepreneur. This lad has made a fortune and a big name for himself selling sweets and branching out. I think I would be exploring ways your son can exercise his entrepreneurial spirit instead of trying to find him more mundane ways of earning money. Frankly in today's world a good school record is not going to get him as far as having drive and determination to make his own way will. So support him and find him something he is allowed to sell, and let him get on with it.

butterfly86 · 16/11/2016 21:41

My friend used to to this when we were at school he now runs a very successful business...

Ohyesiam · 16/11/2016 21:41

I can see why you don't like it, but with teens I think it's best to pick your battles, as you say op, it could be a lot worse.
If it was me, I would talk to him saying i don't like it, but I'm not going to try to stop it going on, and he will have to accept any punishment school gives if he s caught.
It might even improve your relationship with him in the long run.

Lollollollol · 16/11/2016 21:46

I'd tell him to be careful and leave him to it. I would t approve of it but I wouldn't get involved.

However, I would bollock him whenever he was arrogant or flash about money.

indigox · 16/11/2016 21:48

This is exactly how many now successful entrepreneurs started out, if it was my DS I'd be happy with his entrepreneurial spirit and initiative.

BertrandRussell · 16/11/2016 21:52

My ds used to do this. I didn't really approve so I said that I'd stop his allowance, but if he got a job I approved of I would reinstate it. After a bit he did because he preferred the steady money. Mind you I did discover recently that he sold his customer list to an up and coming Alan Sugar in the year below................Grin

Gowgirl · 16/11/2016 21:52

At fifteen I was buying 10 cheap fags and selling 5 to cover my evening embassy!

BertrandRussell · 16/11/2016 21:53

But I would have stomped very hard on any "cash flashing".

SarfEast1cated · 16/11/2016 21:57

You should back the school and it's rules. If you don't it sends the message that you don't respect the school rules so why should he. I am a risk averse non successful wage slave, so possible not the right person to ask Grin.

Embletoni · 16/11/2016 22:00

How do you feel about the school rule and his confectionery business?

Personally, besides breaking a school rule, I wouldn't have an issue with his venture. So I'd talk to him about the potential consequences of that and then keep out of it. I definitely wouldn't report him, he will not thank you in the slightest and why pick a fight over this?

I also wouldn't touch his allowance; I don't understand why you would.

It's great that he is earning money and learning all about pricing, profit, stock levels etc.

insan1tyscartching · 16/11/2016 22:00

Ds figured out a system to get himself and his mates free school dinners, obviously I didn't approve but I wouldn't have dropped him in it. Secretly I thought they should have employed him to point out all the flaws in their many systems that he exploited tbh. He was never caught but they did introduce a fingerprint system for school dinners when he'd left Wink

Littleballerina · 16/11/2016 22:04

I would be proud!

CoolCarrie · 16/11/2016 22:04

Good on him, clever lad. The eldest son of my ex boss rented out parking spaces in the field the family owned , which was next to his school , during any school fairs. Made a packet and has gone on to do well for himself.

almondpudding · 16/11/2016 22:08

DS used to do this. I didn't have an issue with this at all.

SquinkiesRule · 16/11/2016 22:08

My oldest Ds did that in high school OP, he'd buy a case of popular sweets in Costco and sold them for the same price as the local shop so kids were happy with the price. He made a fortune.
Ds 2 and his girlfriend used to take orders for Lunch, her Dad worked at the butchers, and she bought beef with his discount, and big crusty rolls, they did shredded beef and barbecue sauce sandwiches, made them up at the crack of dawn, and took them to school individually wrapped and ready to hand out. Again same price as the sandwich shop and they too made a mint.
Leave him to it, I told my boys if the school told them they had to stop, then they would have to. No one did. Both boys had teachers buy from them occasionally.

EveOnline2016 · 16/11/2016 22:19

Why not encourage him to save the profits. It will be useful for driving lessons or something of value.

GardenGeek · 16/11/2016 22:21

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Witchend · 16/11/2016 22:22

I did that with two friends in year 8 when the tuck shop was closed for a while. It was great. We made about £5 over 3 weeks, and then the tuck shop reopened.

We made sure the teachers didn't find out, except our lovely form teacher who thought we were showing excellent business skills. Grin We were aware that it would be immediate detention if we were caught by most teachers and chose to take the risk. Because we were generally seen as "good" we got away with it.
It hasn't set us up for a life of crime.