The fidget spinner's more complex counterpart, the fidget cube, got its start on Kickstarter last year.The clicker at the end of a ballpoint pen used to be the bane of classrooms and offices everywhere. Now, a different device is occupying the hands of students and work-meeting attendees across the country: the fidget spinner.
Though the device came seemingly out of nowhere last year, in its most basic form, the spinner has been around since as early as the '90s, says Patrick Holland, owner of Signal Mountain business Mountain Top Toys. But it wasn't until recently that its popularity took off suddenly and unpredictably, to the point that it is now an obsession for kids - and adults - across the U.S.
Forbes recently called fidget spinners "the must-have office toy for 2017."
"Spinners took off so quickly and so lightning hot, it became about supply and demand," Holland says of the simple handheld device that is meant to be twirled in restless hands. "Stores couldn't keep them on the shelves."
Holland credits the sudden soar in interest, in part, to the fidget cube for adults, which got its start on Kickstarter in 2016 as a concept to relieve stress and improve focus by providing small buttons to click, flick or otherwise fidget with on a cube that fits in the palm of a hand.
While the fidget spinner was once touted as a device for children who have trouble sitting still and concentrating, it is now seen more as a collectible toy that comes in varying shapes, sizes and colors, with glow-in-the-dark or light-up options.
"Like the toy industry does, [companies] quickly began to innovate," Holland says. " You start adding LED lights and, well, suddenly the focus isn't children with ADD anymore."
As with any fad, Holland says what will be most interesting is to see where it goes next. Though he isn't certain what the future holds, he anticipates the "fidget market" will expand to other products.
"Fidget as a section will expand," he says. "I think people will start to see even more variety in devices beyond the spinner."