Possibilities
If you can dream it, you can build it. That’s why Strawbees comes without rules, restrictions or wrong turns. You can use computers, your hands, your initiative, your imagination. You can recycle or upcycle whatever you can get your hands on.
Problems may be endless but with Strawbees, possibilities are infinite.
Learning by Trying
Learning by doing isn’t good enough. Learning by trying is the future. We believe in developing students’ creative confidence and love of technology so they can make sense of the world and solve new problems. Knowing how to build, explore, test and experiment is vital because breakthroughs don’t come gift-wrapped.
Making Connections
Strawbees is the glue that binds technologies, materials and mindsets. We merge the physical with the digital. We introduce students to their potential. We fit any teaching style, objective and budget like a glove.We inspire communities and forge exciting partnerships. We link thought leadership with grassroots endeavours.
We bridge today with tomorrow. We are a connector in more ways than one.
The seed of the idea started when I went to India with my recycling machine. I looked at the materials they had available - cardboard, plastic bottles, food packaging and of course drinking straws! I started to make clothespins, a couple of thousands in neon colors, using a very simple pattern. Clothespins in India are very useful, for outdoor solar drying spins. The pupils got excited about their new building tool and started building massive structures with these clothespins. These little connectors proved themselves to be extremely versatile. They could be combined among them and used with multiple materials to build and create, transforming what otherwise would be garbage into a playful (and useful) experience. So that’s what we started out doing at Strawbees, building value in the material and educational value, allowing kids to develop their creativity and invention literacy.
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Erik Torstensson Boije
Inventor and Co-founder of Strawbees
Invention Phase
- Erik Thorstensson went to India - made first connectors out of waste materials.
- Created first prototype with kids at Kids Hack Day.
- Name picked by 9-year-old kid at Maker Faire New York:
- “They connect straws and can bee anything, and it sounds like Strawberries and everybody loves them!”
- Founded by Erik Thorstensson and Erik Bergelin after a successful Kickstarter.
- Awarded 2014 Toy Design of the Year.
Development Phase
- Awarded for design and potential by Forbes and Fast Company.
- Acquired sister coding & robotics company Quirkbot.
- Signed MOU with United Nations adhering to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
- Pivoted to EdTech developing an educational product range.
- Launched our new technology products, in partnership with BBC micro:bit.
Growth Phase
- Launched Strawbees Classroom, providing free educational resources
- Won Kids Judge BETT Award at the largest EdTech event London, judged by a panel of kids.
- Won 2022 Nordic EdTech Award recognizing the best Nordic educational technology innovation
- Appointed Anne-Louise Wirén as the new CEO, bringing her extensive experience in digi-physical business models and digital marketing from the mobile operator gallon.
- Acquisition by the Albert Group, a leading provider of education technology solutions in the Nordics, integrating Strawbees into their digital education offerings.
- Launch of Strawbees in the UK market
- Awarded by Education Alliance Finland in innovation, pedagogy, and student engagement.
- Educator and student resources aligned to ISTE standards, NGSS, NGSS, SDGS, CS, Curriculum for Excellence, National Curriculum and more.
