It’s late at night in Tampa, Florida, but sleep is the last thing on Chris Bartling’s mind.
Chris, CONNETIX’s Product Development Manager, is mid-call with co-founders Brea Brand and Dave Alexander, who are just starting their day in sunny Perth. What was meant to be a quick check-in has evolved into a lively exchange: ideas bouncing across time zones, screens tilted to show experiments, all the while with sounds of young children getting ready for school drifting through the background.
Earlier that day, Chris and his team had been experimenting with light in a home garage. Flashlights were pulled apart, battery-powered prototypes rigged up, and makeshift dark spaces set up to watch how light refracted, softened and moved. It wasn’t brightness they were trying to achieve, but childhood wonder – the magic of light and the way colours shift and dance in the dark, inviting children to imagine, experiment and create.
That late-night, early-morning exchange would help shape a new innovation for the magnetic tile brand in 2025: the CONNETIX Light Star Pack. The team had achieved what they set out to do – creating a first-of-its-kind, rechargeable light-up tile that needed no additional pieces, fitted wherever a standard magnetic square could go, and cast exactly the quality of light they’d been experimenting with: soft and even, enhancing colour and shadow. Perfect for cozy nights of creative storytelling.
“A play session turned into reminiscing about the joy of light-up toys and the wonder of watching coloured light bounce around a dark room.” – Chris Bartling, Product Development Manager
Play-led Innovation, the CONNETIX Way
That spirit of curiosity isn’t unique to one product – it’s how innovation happens across the globally award-winning Australian company, which now has a team spread across multiple countries. From early prototypes to global launches, every new idea is shaped by hands-on experimentation, close observation and a deep respect and understanding of how children play.
In 2025 alone, that approach gave rise to a series of landmark releases: the Light Star Pack, Glitter Castle and Glitter Unicorn, Bright Portals, and the Constructor PRO set. Each started with the same question: what are children trying to do next?
One of the clearest expressions of this philosophy came with the Bright Portal Pack. The idea began when the team experimented with large squares and noticed how much unused space sat in the centre. It opened up an exciting new possibility: building through the tile itself.
By reimagining the square and embedding magnets into the frame, Portals transformed into gateways – allowing movement, layering and entirely new construction possibilities. On flat surfaces, Portals became creative boards. In three-dimensional builds, they turned into doorways, tunnels and racetracks, encouraging architectural thinking and imaginative storytelling.
“The goal was simple – try to do something impossible, then figure out how to make it real.” – Chris Bartling
The result was a product that reshaped magnetic tile play and earned international recognition for its originality and educational value.
An Educator-founded Brand
CONNETIX’s play-led approach is deeply rooted in the brand’s origins, which started as a conversation one day between two parents and friends at the school gate.
Former teacher Brea Brand, then on maternity leave and active in the online world of play-based learning, and Dave Alexander, who had a background in mechanical engineering and entrepreneurship, spent time observing how their children used magnetic tiles. Seeing how open-ended play sparked creativity and learning, they realised they could bring something new to the category.
By combining Brea’s educational insight with Dave’s design and engineering expertise, they set out to create magnetic tiles that truly reflected how children play and learn – strong, versatile and thoughtfully designed to invite exploration at every stage of development. What began as a shared observation quickly grew into a clear philosophy, one that would guide the brand as it expanded far beyond its Australian beginnings.
Global Growth, Grounded Values
Today, that philosophy has resonated well beyond Australia. CONNETIX partners with retailers across 80+ countries and continues to expand globally, supported by a passionate community of more than one million followers on social media, who share builds, ideas and inspiration every day. That exchange continues to influence how CONNETIX evolves, as the brand closely observes how families and educators use the tiles to inform future design.
Education at the Heart
Despite its global scale, CONNETIX remains closely connected to education. Teachers and parents review prototypes before products are released, providing practical insight that helps ensure each design is safe, engaging and meaningful. Products are designed to naturally support STEAM learning – not through instruction, but through freedom to explore.
“For CONNETIX, everything starts with fun and imagination,” Chris explains. “Kids are engineering as they build, expressing artistry in their creations, and applying geometry to make sure structures stand tall.”
A Global Year, a Homecoming Moment
After a major international trade show season spanning Nuremberg, London and New York, CONNETIX is excited to return to Australian Toy Fair on home soil in Melbourne. The brand will showcase its latest innovations, including the Pastel Portals Pack – a natural evolution of the award-winning Portals concept, reimagined in CONNETIX’s signature earthy pastel palette and shaped by community feedback to expand play possibilities even further.
Discover What’s Next
Visit stand H21 at 2026 Australian Toy, Hobby & Licensing Fair to see CONNETIX up close and explore their new releases, best-selling ranges and upcoming innovations.
This article also appeared in Edition 20 of The Toy Universe Magazine
