*By: Madison Alworth*
Many toy makers may feel imperiled by the closing of Toys 'R' Us, but KiwiCo seems to be doing just fine.
The company, which sells kits that encourage kids to build and create their own toys, says sales have grown at an annual rate of about 60 percent a year since its founding in 2011.
"This year we are approaching $100 million in sales," said Sandra Oh Lin, the company's founder and CEO, in an interview with Cheddar.
KiwiCo took in a round of financing to the tune of $10 million early on. It started producing STEM-based toys, but evolved to sell crates of materials to build toys for everything from engineering to art to more.
"In a few weeks we are actually launching a new line called Atlas Crate, which is all about geography and encouraging kids to see themselves as global citizens," Oh Lin said.
"We are really about encouraging kids to see themselves as young innovators. We want them to embrace the thought that they are makers, that they have innate creativity. What we are trying to do is instill that creative confidence as well as the tools."
The crates are available as stand-alone products and through a subscription service. A [monthly subscription](https://www.kiwico.com/) starts at $19.95 but goes down in price if customers sign on for longer periods.
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/kiwico-subscription-services-for-stem-toys)
A flow of recent data from the U.S. government has made one thing strikingly clear: A surge in consumer spending is fueling strong growth, demonstrating a resilience that has confounded economists, Federal Reserve officials and even the sour sentiments that Americans themselves have expressed in opinion polls.
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McDonald's reported better-than-expected profit and sales in the third quarter.
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The Food and Drug Administration issued an alert and specifically mentioned 26 eye drop products from a number of brands.
Workers at a number of pharmacy chains nationwide were planning a walkout Monday and going through Wednesday.
President Joe Biden on Monday will sign a sweeping executive order to guide the development of artificial intelligence — requiring industry to develop safety and security standards, introducing new consumer protections and giving federal agencies an extensive to-do list to oversee the rapidly progressing technology.
