What Little Passports does

Little Passports is a private, direct-to-consumer children's educational brand founded in 2009 by Amy and Stella, now headquartered in New York and operating as a subsidiary of Begin (an early learning company backed by LEGO Ventures, Sesame Workshop, and Gymboree Play & Music). The company delivers monthly physical subscription boxes — eight core programs covering geography, world cultures, animals, STEM science, culinary skills, crafts, and space — targeted at children ages 3 through 10, complemented by a line of standalone activity kits and products. Each subscription tier (Early Explorers, Animals Wild, Science Junior, World Adventures, Kitchen Adventures, Science Expeditions, Craft Discovery, Space Quest) is age-banded and includes hands-on projects, activity booklets, original character-driven stories, collectible souvenirs, and — in the case of Kitchen Adventures — recipes developed in partnership with America's Test Kitchen Kids using a 15,000-kid tester community. The underlying product is non-digital: physical kits shipped via postal mail with structured curriculum progression, expert-developed content, and recognition from Parents' Pics, 10Best USA Today, Parents Choice, National Parenting Publication, and CES Editors Choice.

The business model combines recurring subscription revenue (6 or 12-month automatic-renewal terms) with one-time product sales, affiliate commissions (Impact.com network at $20 per subscription and 10% on shop sales), and bulk school/homeschool purchase orders on Net30 terms. Distribution is primarily through littlepassports.com (shipping to USA, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand), with retail expansion via Target stores (16 SKUs launched September 2021) representing the company's first brick-and-mortar channel after more than a decade of e-commerce-only operations. Customer segments span parents of young and school-age children (primary), gift-givers, schools and homeschool families, and retail shoppers; marketing relies on content/SEO, affiliate/blogger networks, PR/media placements, email, and a Refer-a-Friend program. The company is led by CEO Amy Norman (co-founder) and CFO Kendall Baker, with 11–50 total employees and no public revenue disclosure.

Name

Little Passports

Legal name

Little Passports, Inc.

Website

https://littlepassports.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Little Passports is a private, direct-to-consumer children's educational brand (founded 2009, subsidiary of Begin) that delivers monthly physical subscription boxes covering geography, science, animals, cooking, and crafts for children ages 3–10, sold primarily through its e-commerce site and Target stores.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children's Educational Subscription Boxes

NAICS

Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (459120), Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (45912)

SIC

Games, Toys & Children's Vehicles (No Dolls & Bicycles) (3944)

akta.pro primary industry

Toy Rentals & Subscription Boxes (CRALAFAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Kids Crafts & Educational Craft Kits Retail (CRALACAG), Children’s Activity & Practice Books (Workbooks, Puzzles, Handwriting) (EDAGAIAE), Children’s Activity & Workbook Publishing (MPAJAFAG)

Keywords

• Kids subscription boxes
• Children's educational kits
• Monthly STEM activities
• Geography learning kits
• Hands-on activity subscriptions

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Subscription Revenue: Monthly subscription boxes delivered via postal mail on a recurring basis. Subscriptions include automatic renewal with billing before shipping date. Available in various term lengths (typically 6 or 12 months). Different subscription tiers for different age groups and themes (Early Explorers, Animals Wild, Science Junior, World Adventures, Kitchen Adventures, Science Expeditions).
2. One-Time Product Sales: Individual activity kits, toys, games, puzzles, and standalone products sold a la carte through the website and Target retail stores. Includes CREATE + PLAY science kits, My World Edition Kit, My Early Explorer Kit, 50 States Activity Book, Weather Lab Science Kit, Easter Egg Artist craft kit, and Foosball Kit.
3. Affiliate Commissions: Commission earned through Impact.com affiliate network. Bloggers and content creators earn $20 commission per subscription box sale and 10% commission on all shop sales referred through tracking links.
4. School/Homeschool Bulk Orders: Purchase orders accepted from schools and homeschool programs. Net30 payment terms. Supports classroom adoption and curriculum integration with teacher guides and lesson plans.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Little Passports designs, produces, and ships monthly subscription boxes for children ages 3-10 covering geography, culture, animals, science, cooking, and crafts through hands-on kits, activity booklets, stories, stickers, and souvenirs. The company also sells individual activity kits, books, and games a la carte through its own e-commerce site and Target retail stores, plus bulk orders to schools and homeschool programs.

Product overview

Little Passports is a direct-to-consumer children's educational brand offering monthly activity subscription boxes and standalone products focused on geography, culture, science, and art for children ages 3-10. The product portfolio consists of six subscription programs (Early Explorers, Animals Wild, Science Junior, World Adventures, Kitchen Adventures, Science Expeditions) plus Craft Discovery and Space Quest, along with individual kits available at Target. Each subscription delivers themed monthly packages with hands-on projects, activity books, stories, stickers, and collectibles. The company is owned by Begin, an early learning company backed by LEGO Ventures, Sesame Workshop, and Gymboree Play & Music.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Early Explorers Monthly subscription delivering themed packages (music, oceans, dinosaurs, animals, food, art, landmarks, space) for children ages 3-5, with interactive souvenirs, activity books, puzzles, stickers, and a signature suitcase to build geography and cultural awareness.
• Animals Wild Monthly subscription for children ages 4-6 exploring animal habitats from around the world via pop-up playsets, 3-D animals, DIY activities, and games covering 100+ animal species.
• Science Junior Monthly STEM subscription for children ages 5-8 covering topics such as Weddell Seals, volcanoes, music, chimpanzees, deep sea exploration, wetlands, and rockets through hands-on experiments and comic-style adventure stories.
• World Adventures Monthly subscription for children ages 6-10 visiting 25+ countries (Brazil, Japan, France, Egypt, Australia, Mexico, etc.) with souvenirs, collectible country coins, activity booklets, and pen-pal letters from characters Sam & Sofia.
• Kitchen Adventures Monthly subscription for children ages 7+ delivering 4-6 kid-tested recipes from America's Test Kitchen Kids, hands-on activities, kid-friendly kitchen utensils, a flavor journal, and cultural exploration. Ingredients are not included.
• Science Expeditions Monthly subscription for children ages 8+ covering advanced STEM topics including forensic science, caves and crystals, hydrology, optics and vision, and rockets, with hands-on experiments, comic books, achievement badges, and a lab notebook.
• Craft Discovery Monthly craft subscription for children ages 5-8 featuring seasonal craft projects about art, science, geography, and culture with craft kits and hands-on activities.
• Space Quest Space-themed subscription box for children exploring astronomy and space science topics through hands-on activities and projects.
• CREATE + PLAY Science Kits Individual science activity kits exploring topics including coral reefs, robots, kinetic energy, and volcanoes, with hands-on activities, games, and geography facts; sold individually at Target stores.
• My World Edition Kit Individual standalone version of the World Adventures subscription theme, sold as a one-time kit at Target stores and online.
• My Early Explorer Kit Individual standalone version of the Early Explorers subscription, sold as a one-time kit with signature suitcases at Target stores and online.
• 50 States Activity Book Standalone activity book with over 100 original activities including treasure hunts, decoding cyphers, word searches, and mazes in a road-trip-friendly format.

Quantifiable outcome

• Children spend hours on projects per subscription box
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship, supporting and minor.

• TargetcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 29 September 2021Major retail partnership marking Little Passports' first brick-and-mortar distribution channel after 12 years of e-commerce-only operations. Target launched 16 new individual products including My World Edition Kit, My Early Explorer Kit, CREATE + PLAY science kits, and 50 States Activity Book. Available at Target stores nationwide and through Little Passports website.
• America's Test Kitchen KidscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerContent partnership for Kitchen Adventures subscription. ATK Kids provides kid-tested, kid-approved recipes developed by test cooks, educators, editors, and food scientists. All recipes require an 80% 'Yes!' score from 15,000+ kid recipe testers before inclusion. Recipes include cultural information and food history alongside cooking instructions.
• Begin (Parent Company)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerBegin is the award-winning early learning company behind Little Passports. Begin offers digital, physical, and experiential learning programs including Little Passports, HOMER, KidPass, and codeSpark Academy. Backed by LEGO Ventures, Sesame Workshop, and Gymboree Play & Music. CEO Amy Norman leads the combined organization.
• Impact.comsupportingTechnology or IntegrationAffiliate network platform powering Little Passports' Refer-a-Friend and affiliate marketing programs. Handles tracking, commission calculations, and payments for blogger and content creator affiliates.
• Good Day ChicagominorGTM or Marketing PartnerTV segment featuring co-founder Amy discussing the mission of Little Passports and showing World Edition and Science Expedition activity kits.
• KTLAminorGTM or Marketing PartnerTV interview with founders discussing the meaning and purpose behind Little Passports' hands-on adventures and mission to inspire children.
• Accessible360supportingOthersThird-party accessibility review service. Reviewed Little Passports' website for accessibility compliance and provided badge indicating review completion.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• KiwiCo: KiwiCo is the leading direct competitor in the kids subscription box category, offering age-tiered STEM, art, and geography crates for children 0-14. Both companies sell monthly subscriptions through DTC and are featured together in 'best subscription boxes for kids' lists.
• Lovevery: Lovevery delivers stage-based developmental subscription play kits for babies and toddlers, competing directly with Little Passports' Early Explorers tier for the same household budget. Both are featured alongside each other in editorial round-ups of top kids subscriptions.
• Baketivity: Baketivity is a baking-focused kids subscription box that directly competes with Little Passports' Kitchen Adventures (ATK Kids) offering. Both are positioned as screen-free educational experiences for parents seeking hands-on enrichment at home.
• Green Kid Crafts: Green Kid Crafts offers monthly STEAM-focused subscription boxes for children targeting similar ages to Little Passports' Science Junior and Craft Discovery tiers. Both compete for the same parent demographic seeking educational screen-free activities.
• Atlas Crate (by KiwiCo): Atlas Crate is KiwiCo's geography-and-culture subscription that competes head-to-head with Little Passports' signature World Adventures product. It targets overlapping customers with similar monthly country-themed delivery mechanics.

Broad incumbents

• Highlights Magazine: Highlights is a long-established children's educational subscription brand with magazine, book, and activity products serving similar age groups as Little Passports. It serves as a broader incumbent with deeper institutional reach and brand trust built over decades.
• National Geographic Kids: National Geographic Kids offers educational subscription magazines, kits, and digital content covering geography and science — categories that overlap with Little Passports' World Adventures and Science Expeditions. It is a broader incumbent with globally recognized content IP.
• Crayola Experience / Crayola Products: Crayola is a long-established brand offering art and craft activity kits targeting children ages 3-10, overlapping with Little Passports' craft, science, and art product lines. As a broader incumbent, Crayola offers broader retail distribution and brand recognition.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/littlepassports
• Instagraminstagram.com/littlepassports
• Xx.com/littlepassports
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/little-passports

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Little Passports