Scaling a DTC toy business with Sandra Oh Lin from KiwiCo

Episode notes

In this week's episode of Found, KiwiCo ’s Sandra Lin talks about building a STEM-focused toy business. She explains the importance of inspiring creativity in kids, the company’s massive growth to 50 million crates delivered, and how she sought out feedback from parents and kids alike. They also discuss how the company recently expanded from and online-only DTC to selling in brick and mortar stores. 00:00 - Introduction 01:24 - The Story Behind KiwiCo: From Idea to Business 04:53 - Turning an Idea into a Marketable Product 06:32 - Testing and Feedback Beyond the Bay Area 10:00 - Early Marketing Strategies and Organic Growth 15:50 - Expanding into Retail and New Channels 16:06 - The Product Development Process at KiwiCo 21:27 - Fundraising and Navigating the Venture Capital Path 25:51 - Balancing Entrepreneurship with Family Life 31:01 - Early Challenges and Lessons Learned 35:08 - What’s Next for KiwiCo Found posts every Tuesday. Subscribe on Apple , Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts to be alerted when new episodes drop. Check out the other TechCrunch podcast: Equity .

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