ZipString is the new toy in town. It’s a string long that uses different forces to defy gravity and work like magic. You can create different shapes and have a lot of fun fooling around with them. Founders Stephen Fazio and Austin Hillam got a deal with Kevin O’Leary and Robert Herjavec. Lately, ZipString is worth an estimated $5 million.
The Founders Backstory
Stephen Fazio and Austin Hillam are young entrepreneurs from Atlanta, Georgia. Fazio studied electrical engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology, while Hillam studied manufacturing engineering at Brigham Young University.
Though they grew up in the same area, they didn’t know each other as kids. However, they are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and their bishop introduced them to each other.
Fazio originally made the first version of the device at a Georgia Tech student competition in 2021. It won the advanced category prize, so Stephen was inspired to improve the device over the winter break.
Creating ZipString
Stephen ran into a lot of roadblocks until he met Austin at a dinner. They talked about the device and soon started working together, using Hillam’s family basement as their workshop.
In the end, they created a string toy that seemingly floats in the air, and the user can control its movements in different ways. ZipString manipulates forces like tension, drag, and gravity to create mesmerizing stunts and tricks.
The founders put their college education on hold to start production in late 2021 and got help from Austin’s dad. Shipping was a big challenge because of the pandemic, but friends and family helped them manage.
The Shark Tank Spotlight
ZipString made a lot of noise on social media when it launched and has got more than 200 million views on social media. Dude Perfect also featured the device on their tour.
This helped the company get a massive head start. Because of this, Stephen and Austin raised a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2021. Their initial goal was $75,000, but they raised over $90,000 from around 1,600 backers.
The founders delivered a strong presentation on Shark Tank and came in dressed like Men in Black. The Sharks also had fun playing around with samples.
How ZipString is Progressing
Their Shark Tank episode aired in December 2022 and the exposure from appearing on national TV gave a huge boost in sales. Stephen and Austin initially struggled to manage inventory levels after 100,000 people visited their website.
The business has expanded beyond the original toy with newer products including ZipString Luma and ZipString Aracna, both available through the company’s website and Amazon. The toy sells for $29.99 and is an affordable Christmas present!
By the end of the 2024 holiday season, trade coverage reported that ZipString had sold more than 1 million units. As of 2026, ZipString has sold over 2 million units.
Since going viral online, it has over 3,000 reviews with an average rating of 4.4 stars on Amazon. Hopefully ZipString will be able to get a patent to protect their invention, ZipString is already having issues with other companies knocking off their product which will impact sales. Annual sales are estimated to be around $600,000 to $800,000.
Kevin or Robert haven’t talked about the product in the media and there isn’t any evidence to suggest the deal closed once the cameras stopped filming.
