ST. LOUIS COUNTY — The only teacher-supply store in St. Louis County expanded — twice — last year, in the middle of the pandemic. Not for more workbooks, flashcards or educational technology.
The Teachers’ Lounge in Sappington added a room full of fidget toys: pocket-sized dimpled silicone discs, pull-apart plastic loops, and plush animals that expel gel-filled bubbles from their mouths — or their other ends.
“Everyone’s searching for the next cool fidget all the time,” said Scott Gurley, who owns the store with his wife, Laura.
Fidget toys have taken hold among kids, and sometimes adults, during the anxiety-inducing, screen-filled days of COVID. They come in countless iterations — stress balls, shape-shifting cubes and stretchable noodles — and have migrated from toy stores to groceries, gas stations and Etsy sites. For years, the sensory inputs filled a niche for children with autism or special needs. But now they are a must-have elementary school prop, for playing, trading or starring in social media posts.
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And St. Louis store owners are responding, dedicating more shelf space to the $5 diversions, and, in the case of the Teachers’ Lounge, rebranding a wing as Fidget Headquarters and then expanding to a second location in Des Peres.
Pop Its, like infinitely pokable bubble wrap, ignited the fidget phenomenon with the assistance of a simian trendsetter. In October 2020, a capuchin monkey from North Carolina named Gaitlyn Rae demonstrated the hypnotic pop-pop-pop to her 7.7 million TikTok followers.
Nine-year-old Zoey Weinmann of south St. Louis County saves up her allowance to fortify her stash of Pop Its.
“Anytime they get any money, they want to spend it on that,” said Chrissie Weinmann, mom of Zoey and her 6-year-old sister, Cora.
Advent calendars provided a door into the fidget market for Kimmy Sauer of Webster Groves. She launched a home-based crafting company, 2+3=We, in October. A couple weeks later, the mother of three fidget-collecting children realized the potential of a Christmas countdown loaded with tactile trinkets.
Sauer posted the idea on Facebook and promptly fielded 85 orders. She’s already revamped her plans for her Valentine’s Day buckets.
“All my stuff, if it’s for kids, it’s going to include fidgets,” she said.
‘Pretty substantial’
The Novel Neighbor in Webster Groves specializes in books and literary-themed merchandise. Last spring, the children’s section buyer, Melissa Posten, heard from another employee how popular fidgets were with her children and their friends.
Posten was skeptical, but ordered some anyway. They sold out in two days.
Now there’s a wall at the entrance to the children’s section dripping with dozens of candy-colored fidgets. They’re an impulse add-on to the picture books or paperbacks that shoppers come in for.
For Happy Up Inc., with locations in Edwardsville and Clayton, fidgets are the bait that gets many customers through the door. Owner Shawnta Ray has always carried them, but noticed a new wave of demand swelling in the fall of 2020.
What she refers to as the “moody octopus,” a reversible mollusk plushie that vacillates between grins and frowns, sold 500.
“For a little store like mine, that’s a pretty substantial item,” said Ray.
She credits the craze to social media. Children come to her store, take a video and include Happy Up in the hashtag. Then, more children come.
“The kids are driving the trend, which I think is pretty spectacular,” said Ray.
Preschool teacher Troy Torrez has been stockpiling fidgets for years, since they were recommended during a workshop on social and emotional learning. She stored them in a big basket, and let the kids pick through it when they were anxious or upset.
“I would have them describe the fidget,” Torrez said. “‘Is it hard? Is it soft? What does it look like?’ They’re so soothing and relaxing.”
And less messy than chewing on a pencil or tearing up a piece of paper.
Torrez bought most of her fidgets at the Gurleys’ shop in Sappington, where — at the time — they took up a couple shelves in the special-needs section.
A fidget destination
When the pandemic started, Gurley said, everything changed.
Students were on Zoom or sitting 6 feet apart from classmates, and they were desperate for something they could touch. Two shelves at the store became 10, and soon the Gurleys were eyeing their back room, which has its own entrance, as a dedicated fidget space.
In April, they officially opened Fidget Headquarters. It was an immediate hit.
“Kids started telling us they heard about us on TikTok,” Gurley said.
One influencer in particular was driving traffic to their new shop: Just a mile from the Teachers’ Lounge, in Green Park, Grandma’s Playroom was a fidget mecca. Owner Sierra Zagarri took over the indoor play space a year and a half ago, and earned a social media following by heralding the playroom’s happenings.
When Fidget Headquarters opened, she posted about the treasures she found to her 1.4 million YouTube and TikTok fans.
“I kept buying and buying,” said Zagarri. “Social media was a perfect cover for my new addiction.”
The videos — of Zagarri shopping for fidgets, unboxing fidgets, deconstructing fidgets — attracted the Gurleys and other sponsors.
Zagarri was on hand for the grand opening of the new Fidget Headquarters on Nov. 1, inside West County Center, which is three times the size of the original and features a photo backdrop to encourage Instagram uploads.
Torrez was there, too, as the newest part-time employee. The Gurleys initially signed a lease through this month but hope to hold onto the space indefinitely.
“We’ve become a destination,” Gurley said.
First grader Ella Howell of Imperial chose Fidget Headquarters as stop No. 1 of her birthday party last month.
“I love fidgets,” the new 7-year-old said. “You can just play with them. You can take them with you.”
Ella’s friend Caroline Parrot, also 7, chose a Wacky Track, which looks like a plastic multicolored bicycle chain.
“I like that you can get out stress,” Caroline said as she clicked through each segment.
The Fidget Headquarters visit is like a personalized goody bag, said Ella’s mom, Christina Howell. Even the promise of McDonald’s and Bounce U. couldn’t hurry the girls through the hands-on Xanadu.
“They will spend forever in here,” she said.