Why can't we stop talking about Stanley cups?
And what do we know about them?
Stanley is the iPhone of water bottles today — you either have it, deeply desire it, or loathe its cult following. In reality, you may have to procure a limited edition Stanley tumbler for $1000 or combat your way through a massive crowd outside Target or Starbucks to buy one for $45.
I'm really not kidding about the crowd. 👇🏾
The internet, especially TikTok, is touting the Stanley as the holy grail of tumblers. It's been on hundreds of teenagers' Christmas wish lists. When gifted one, it’s only met with tears of joy or high-pitch squeals. You must be wondering: Sunaina, it's just a water bottle, which looks like any other water bottle. What are we missing here?
For that, let's take a small history lesson. 🤓
The Stanley has been around for over 100 years; this iconic water bottle is (apparently) built for life, insulated, and made from steel. In fact, a Stanley was used by pilots during the WWII war; up till recent past, it was used by construction workers. So, you get the gist: it's meant for heavy-duty business.
What made it a Gen Z favourite, though?
Why is a mere tumbler making people camp right outside Target? For its Valentine's Day limited edition cup! The Galentine's Collection launched online and offline at Target, has sold out instantly, leading to crowd hysteria. @victoria_robino_26, a Tiktok user, said this limited edition was sapped out in less than 4 minutes despite allowing only two cups per head.
Read more about it here.
When Stanley did a Starbucks collaboration, it caused a similar frenzy. There was a solution for those who couldn't get one. A woman was renting out her Starbucks Stanley for $5 per selfie. At this point, we've reached peak commercialisation and madness. So you get the madness, but how did we get here? Even before the pandemic, the Stanley wasn't selling well, but The Buy Guide (TBG) changed everything. When this blog & shopping platform recommended the Stanley 40oz Adventure Quencher, it caught the eye of a Stanley executive.
They arranged for a meeting with the founders of TBG, and in no time, they bought 10000 Stanley cups and set up a warehouse. According to Retail Dive, TBG sold the first 5,000 cups in four days and the subsequent 5,000 cups in an hour. Stanley hasn’t collaborated with influencers or blogs thus far; this was their first leap into non-traditional marketing, and look how it worked out for them!
The founders of TBG, Linley Hutchinson, Ashlee LeSueur and Taylor Cannon, soon sat down with Stanley and told them they were marketing to the wrong audience. They urged them to market it as an everyday cup, full of ample features for daily use, focusing on women.
Stanley tasted its first virality, but that was only the beginning.
If you spend ample time online, you might have encountered a video on a woman's car fire accident. What remained intact after the incident was her Stanley cup; when she posted a TikTok video recording the aftermath, the video (of course) went viral. Another marketing opportunity for Stanley? But here's what Stanley did: instead of boasting about its product durability, Terence Reilly (Stanley's president) shared a video offering her more Stanley cups and a new car.
This sparked more conversations online, and TikTokers went gaga over the Stanley cup. It became all the rage — unfortunately, to the point where Stanley devotees are now collecting the tumblers like collectibles. TikTokers are flaunting their walls of Stanley fame decked with rainbow-coloured mugs and tumblers. If you think about it, this defeats the whole purpose of a Stanley Cup, which is sustainable and built to last.
Trends on the internet barely last a season, and the Stanley tumblers are having their hero moment. But where will it go from here? Hasn't it peaked already? Can a new brand of water bottles top this frenzy? Which influencer will ignite another unexplainable trend that will enamour users, leading to more marketing case studies? Only time will tell!
But like any popular thing out there, a Stanley today has multiple dupes. It's become such a status symbol that kids who owe a dupe are ridiculed! Remember Milton water bottles we wore around our necks as kids, folks? Those days are gone. Sigh!
What do you think about this madness? Do you want to get a Stanley cup?