CONNETIX, Australia

CONNETIX began with a bit of small talk between two parents,
waiting at the primary-school gate for their children.

Brea Brand (CEO) is a primary teacher,
with a master's in early childhood education—and a mother of three.
She's devoted to learning through play,
and firmly believes in the value of open-ended toys for a child's growth.

Dave Alexander (co-founder)
came from mechanical engineering design, with a background in business and start-ups,
and looks after manufacturing and supply chain—a hands-on dad himself.

Their children went to the same school.
In those after-school waits, like most parents,
they naturally got talking about their kids, swapping notes on raising them.
One day it turned to: "What toy do your children love most?"
—and they realised both families' kids adored magnetic tiles,
and that you could *see* them genuinely learning as they played.

So the two families decided to make their own—
one stronger, safer, with clearer light-catching tiles.
Brea's education background and Dave's engineering-and-manufacturing one
fit together just so, and made fine partners.

CONNETIX launched in June 2019, out of a garage in Perth,
and within months met COVID-19.
They spread only through small independent toy shops and word of mouth among mothers,
almost no advertising—and with families suddenly home together, the tiles spread fast.

Brea once said in an interview:
"Children are learning while they play, and parents enjoy playing along—
it never feels boring or repetitive."
"As they play, they pick up shapes, numbers, colours, magnetism, patterns, push and pull, engineering—
even persistence, resilience, teamwork—without ever realising they're learning any of it."

— Where play and learning connect. —

That's the heart of CONNETIX, and what Brea and Dave set out to make.
When a child isn't passively fed information but learns by taking part,
the learning tends to hold better.
So much of children's education research says as much—
and it's why play itself has always been the finest way to learn 🙂

【 Certifications & awards 】
As parents, we all care whether what our children play with is safe and trustworthy.
For those of you who mind the same, here are CONNETIX's:

· STEAM accredited toy (official)
· MESH certified — high marks across problem-solving, perseverance, adaptability, cognition
· 2022 Australian Toy Association Award — STEAM/Educational Toy of the Year (beating Lego to it)
· 2022 New York Toy Fair — Creative Category TOTY finalist (the toy world's Oscars)
· Meets safety standards across 90 countries
· Recommended age 3+ (contains magnets and small parts)

【 What sets CONNETIX apart 】
Compared with other magnetic tiles, three design signatures:

✦ Bevelled edges (the brand's signature)
A slight bevel rather than a flat edge makes the structure stronger, and the light refracts more clearly and beautifully.

✦ Ultrasonic welding + riveted double seal
Keeps magnets from coming loose; the tiles take drops and last.
(A swallowed magnet is a deadly risk to a child.)

✦ Food-grade ABS
BPA-free, lead-free, phthalate-free.
In daily life I try to reduce plastic and keep my child away from plasticisers.
For someone as sensitive to materials as I am, CONNETIX is a choice I can accept with peace of mind 🙂

The magnets are also unusually strong, which means children can build high and big without it all toppling at a touch—
sparing them that "built it so carefully and it suddenly collapsed" frustration.
They're compatible with other mainstream brands, though because CONNETIX's pull is stronger,
the others may not quite "hold up" in a mix—something to keep in mind.

The range runs from the classic Rainbow originals, to eight earthy Pastel tones,
to the clear, colourless Clear series, plus themed sets.
What we offer in our lounge is the Mega Pack family set—
212 pieces in all, enough to carry a child through creative ideas of every size 💪

【 CONNETIX & open-ended play 】
Those who've visited may have noticed 🙂
almost every toy we choose at Play With Me shares one quality—
no instructions, no right answer, no "correct way to play."

Nine in ten of the toys here are open-ended: only materials, no set rules.
Using the natural limits built into the material,
they ask a child to think, to feel, to work with their hands—
to find their own ways of letting imagination run.

An ordinary toy tells a child how to play first,
so their creativity can only look for gaps within fixed rules.
An open-ended toy lets the child decide—
take away the fixed limits, and there's room inside them to unfold freely,
and, in play, to instinctively learn the many possibilities of a life 😊

💚
Vira

P.S. If you love CONNETIX too, come book a slot and play to your heart's content~

📌 Next post: a creativity class a six-year-old boy gave us with CONNETIX on a visit 🙂