Allison interviews Lou Rice, CEO of Strapsicle, about their straps that allow you to comfortably hold e-readers and tablets with one hand.
Strapsicle is a strap that easily attaches to the diagonal corners of your device, leaving a space on the device’s backside through which you slide your open hand. The straps are made from soft, springy silicon, so they keep the device firmly pressed against your open palm. This allows you to easily maneuver and orient the device with one hand without having to grip it.
You can use either one or two straps to secure your device, depending on your preference. Straspicle straps are available in a wide range of colors and multiple sizes to accommodate a variety of device sizes.
For larger devices, such as an iPad mini or iPad, Stripsicle offers a clear case with straps built into the backside of the case. The case has a magnetically attached foldable cover to protect the face of the device. Strapsicle also offers a silicon clutch that fits many e-reader sizes and matches the colors of their straps.
Using Strapsicle helps to reduce fatigue from holding a device in one hand for long periods of time. Strapsicle is also a solution for some people who have arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, or mobility issues with their arms or hands.
Learn more at https://www.strapsicle.com/
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Transcript of Interview:
Allison: A lot of the audience I know uses Kindles and iPads to read and there’s a lot of issues with being able to hold on to them easily and maybe accidentally dropping them on yourself or on someone else. So I’m here with Lou Rice from Strapsicle to tell us about her solution.
Lou: That’s right. Yes. I unfortunately dropped my Kindle on baby Archie’s head when I was breastfeeding him. He’s fine now, he’s four. But my partner Ben designed me a quick strap to hold my Kindle, and after a while, I didn’t want to use it without. So this is Strapsicle.
Allison: So, describe this for the audio-only audience as well.
Lou: Oh, sure, absolutely. So it’s basically a strap, two straps, attach your Kindle in seconds, they pop on or off. They’re made of soft silicone, and what they mean is you can never drop your Kindle again, basically. It’s kind of attached to your habit in a good way, and it eliminates thumb and hand cramps.
Allison: So it’s a diagonal strap from one corner to the other and then a second diagonal strap from one corner to the other. Can you use it with just one?
Lou: Absolutely. I can slip on. I can have one or two. People have a personal preference. You see, I can put one finger under there. It’s not going anywhere.
Allison: That’s really nice. It’s really simple and soft, and you just took it off. Simple yet elegant. Is that what you were going to say, Steve?
Lou: Simple, we say functional and fashionable.
Allison: Yes, this one’s baby blue. I know you like colors.
Lou: Baby blue. Yeah, we have a lot of different pastel colors and bright neons. So yeah, we launched three and a half years ago. We were on Shark Tank last year, and we’re just here to make reading more comfortable and accessible for everyone.
Allison: I like it. I have to say that the newer Kindles are too wide for my hands. I ended up buying the cheapest Kindle because it was the narrowest one. But still, my hand bothers me when I’m reading.
Lou: You need a strap, and then you just wouldn’t have that problem. And so tonight we’re actually launching the solution for the iPad Minis. So we have a similar strap product. It’s actually a world first. There is no strap device available for an iPad Mini or an iPad.
Allison: So, describe this. It looks like it’s an entire case.
Lou: This is an entire case. So Ben, my co-founder, my partner, product designer, he originally designed straps, but then he realized, you know, it’s an expensive piece of tech. Straps maybe aren’t going to protect enough. You got the camera issues. So he’s now just gone and made a whole case which has straps that basically can pop in and out. You can slide your hand under there.
Allison: Okay.
Lou: These are actually in the design.
Allison: So it’s the same silicone strap material, but it’s actually part of the case.
Lou: Yeah, but you can actually pop them out, change the color if you’d like. And this cover, this is genius. So you’ve got your cover, everyone’s used to the folds, right? The way the cover folds. But now Ben’s made it so you can literally pop it off.
Allison: Oh, it slides off because it goes through little slots.
Lou: Yeah, you’re using the strap, and you don’t want this around, and then you just pop it back on. So what we realized when we launched the straps for reading the Kindles is how many people struggle with arthritis, with carpal tunnel, with mobility issues, right? Like, even someone messaged me with cerebral palsy, she couldn’t even pick up a book. And now we are helping her enjoy reading again, which is awesome.
Allison: Fantastic.
Lou: It gives me chills saying that. So then we realized, you know, with tablets, there’s like millions and millions of Americans alone struggling with the same problems in their hands and arms, and they don’t have any solution.
Lou: Now we’ve got it.
Allison: If people wanted to get Strapsicle, where would they go?
Lou: You can get them on our website, strapsicle.com, or Amazon, 19.99 for a set of two, pretty reasonable. We have the matching clutch, which is.
Allison: Oh, what’s the matching clutch? We need to see the clutch.
Lou: See this beautiful soft silicone again.
Allison: So it’s like it’s a silicone case.
Lou: Silicone case, obviously matching the straps, because we’re all about fashion. You can mix and match, and you can pop your Kindle in there. So that helps protect the screen because I know that still bothers a few people. And you can also throw your phone in there. I’ve got Tim Tams in there as well.
Allison: Ooh, Tim Tams. She’s from Australia.
Lou: I’ll be giving you those.
Allison: Yeah, I’m so taking the Tim Tams.
Lou: Yeah, yeah, yeah. But yeah, you can throw anything in there. So people actually love it for travel because you don’t need anything else.
Allison: Now, Kindles come in a lot of different sizes. Do the Strapsicle come in different sizes?
Lou: Yes. Yeah, we have three different sizes to fit most Kindles and Kobos.
Allison: Oh, good.
Lou: The most popular Kindle I think here, especially in the States, is the Paperwhite. So the size large straps will fit those, but it’s all very clear on the website and Amazon which ones to get. Yeah.
Allison: Very good, very good. Well, these are pretty, functional, and I think they solve a real problem for both Steve and me at least, and I bet a lot of people listening.
Lou: Yeah. I mean, I’d love to send you some cycles.
Allison: Well, I might be amenable to that. We’ll see how that all works out.
Lou: We’ll sort that out. Yeah.
Allison: Last question. Steve’s asking about the website — strapsicle.com and also on Amazon.
Lou: That’s right. So Strapsicle Kindle strap and come follow us on the socials. We’re on TikTok, Instagram, having fun.
Allison: All right, sounds good. Thank you very much, Lou. This is fantastic. Thank you.
Lou: You’re welcome.