Our Story
School Project +
THE STORY OF ZIPSTRING
Here at ZipString, our big goal is the Smile of Wonderment: that open-mouthed, eyes-wide instant when curiosity bursts into delight. This feeling pushes our team to dream up the most inventive and surprising toys on the planet.
Press play on the video and browse our history underneath!
The Smile of Wonderment
The Smile of Wonderment
So much fun for every age, from big kids to little ones! Thank you for bringing your clever, original ideas to the world!
— Catherine W.
Our History
2020
Train Card Protoype
The story starts in December 2020. Stephen Fazio, a student at Georgia Tech, got a class assignment with a single requirement: design a circuit board that fits within a credit card and does whatever he liked. A YouTube clip by Bruce Yeany, demonstrating a tabletop string launcher, got him wondering, “Could this fit in your palm, with the controls right where the string comes out?” It could. Taking his transit card as the pattern, he created the first handheld flying string shooter anywhere.
2021
Circuit Board Complete!
Here is the board Stephen ended up with after he won the contest.
August 1st. 2021
The Viral Moment
Next, a friend from church, Austin Hillam, joined him. Together with Austin’s dad, Mark, they put together an updated prototype, and Austin and Mark both knew right away that it was something special and agreed to keep it quiet for now.
Stephen had other plans.
He put a video up on TikTok on August 12, 2021. In a matter of hours it had 20 million views, and by that night it hit the front page of Reddit. Then everything went wild.
2021
Kickstarter
Copycats were sure to follow quickly, so the pair hurried to apply for patents. They then took a break from school (Austin at BYU, Stephen at Georgia Tech), ran a Kickstarter that succeeded, and set to work. While waiting for their factory to be ready, they assembled the first 4,000 ZipStrings by hand down in the basement of Austin’s parents.
2022
Shark Tank
Stephen Fazio and Austin Hillam stepped onto the popular TV series Shark Tank in 2022, and their presentation went over brilliantly. Every one of the five sharks wanted a piece of the product, and offers soon started flying. Following the episode’s broadcast, ZipString sales climbed sharply and the name became familiar in homes everywhere.
2023
Luma and Dude Perfect!
ZipString Luma arrives after 18 months of development. It is the ZipString that glows in the dark.
Later that year, ZipString partners with Dude Perfect on a co-branded ZipString sold in Walmart.
2024
1 Million Units Sold!
- ZipString hits its millionth sale!
- ZipString goes global
- ZipString Luma collects many awards
2025
- ZipString arrives at Target
- ZipString sells out at Target
- The Aracna debuts through a viral Kickstarter campaign
- Aracna and Luma both sell out in Q4
2026
- Aracna earns a Toy of the Year 2026 nomination
- ZipString lands on store shelves in 30 countries
2,000,000+
Over 2 Million ZipStrings Sold
1,000,000,000+
Over 1 Billion Views
3,000+
Thousands of 5 star reviews
We've made some rounds
