Fun Factory
Parents get three activities that fit their kids before the app asks them to subscribe, then a library they can narrow to the day they are having.
- Client
- Fun Factory
- Industry
- Consumer parenting — kids activities
- Project
- iOS App, Product Design, Marketing Website
- Launched
- November 10, 2026
What we did: Product Design, iOS Development, Marketing Website
The challenge
Parents do not run out of love for their kids. They run out of a plan. A Saturday morning turns into Pinterest, Reels, and blogs, and none of those say whether an idea fits a 4-year-old, takes twenty minutes, uses what is already in the house, or needs a grown-up in the room the whole time. The pretty ones are often the worst: glitter, a glue gun, an hour, and an age range that does not match the kid in the kitchen.
Fun Factory is a subscription app for that moment. The promise is the parent friend who always has an idea: tell us about your kids, get three activities that fit, then keep a library big enough to come back next week. The parent holds the account. Kids never sign in, and the product never asks for their names or photos.
The hard part was earning the subscription before mentioning a price. A parent staring at 2,500 activities bounces. A parent staring at "start with these three" tries one. And every activity had to tell the truth up front, because a beautiful idea they cannot do this weekend is how a free trial gets canceled.
What had to be true:
- Value before the paywall — ideas chosen for these kids, seen before any price. The survey asks for ages and interests, and nothing more.
- Facts before the photo — age, place, time, mess, supplies, and who watches, on every activity. A pretty card they cannot do today is a broken promise.
- Trust as part of the product — no ads, no chat, no kids' accounts, and no claims that an activity teaches or develops a child.
What we did
We designed and built the iPhone app and funfactorykids.com as one product. The site, the App Store listing, and the first screen tell the same story, in the same voice: short sentences, the facts first, playful without turning it into a kids' game.
The first run is a short survey. It asks each child's age in years and months, what they are into (craft, build, move, explore, or pretend), and whether siblings will play together. Then the app shows three ideas, one at a time, with age, time, and mess on the card. If the fit is wrong, the parent changes the answers and gets another set. Price is not on this screen.
What shipped
- A library of 2,500+ activities — crafts, building, active play, exploring, and pretend, with new ones every week. Filters match the day they are having: home, backyard, park, a restaurant, the beach, a hotel, a travel day; while you cook, after school, stuck inside, quiet time, or a sick day; under 30 minutes or a whole afternoon; low mess or bring it on.
- One shape for every activity — who it is for, where it works, how long, how messy, the supplies, the steps, and safety in full. Supervision and small-part warnings sit on the screen. They are not tucked behind a tap.
- A plan for the days ahead — line up to three activities on a day, keep favorites, and stamp the ones you did together. The subscription is for "what should we do next," not a catalog to browse once.
A free account includes 3 activities, so a parent can try the fit before they pay. The full library is an App Store subscription: $9.99 a month or $69.99 a year, each with a 7-day free trial. Android is planned for later.
The results
Fun Factory version 1.0 went live on the App Store on November 10, 2026, for iPhone on iOS 16.4 or later. The same story is on funfactorykids.com, where a parent can see how matching, safety, and the trial work before they download.
The app answers a question that used to take an evening of scrolling, and it answers it with the constraints of a real house.
- An answer before the scroll — three activities chosen for their kids, then a library they can narrow to the afternoon they are actually having.
- A trial that has already shown the product — the ideas come first. A free account includes 3 activities, and a 7-day trial opens the rest. The price comes after the fit is obvious.
- A plan that survives the house — supplies, mess, and who needs to watch are on the activity before the first step, so Saturday does not fall apart halfway through.
Questions we get asked
What is Fun Factory?
Fun Factory is an iPhone app for parents, grandparents, and caregivers of kids from newborn to 12. A short survey about ages and interests returns three activities that fit the time available and how much mess is okay. The library behind that has more than 2,500 activities. The site is funfactorykids.com.
What did the project include?
The iPhone app and the public site, written as one product. The app covers the survey, the first matched ideas, a library with filters for place, time, and mess, activity steps with supplies and safety notes, and a plan for the days ahead. Kids do not get accounts, and the app does not ask for their names or photos.
How does the app decide what to show?
The parent enters each child's age in years and months and what they are into: craft, build, move, explore, or pretend. The first screen is three ideas for those kids. Filters then narrow the library to where they are, how long they have, and how messy they are willing to get.
How does someone try it?
A free account includes 3 activities, so the fit is visible before anyone pays. The full library opens with a 7-day free trial, billed through the App Store. Android is planned for later. There are no ads and no kids' accounts.
