When you look around in the hallways or in classrooms, you see mostly girls holding Stanley bottles. But where did these tumblers and cups come from? Why did they suddenly go viral, when the company has been around for over 100+ years. What makes a Stanley cup so special compared to other tumblers?
Well, let’s start with the history behind the viral sensation. Inventor William Stanley Jr. “forever changed the way hot drinks were consumed,” according to Stanley’s website. In 1913, Stanley Jr. fused vacuum insulation with the strength of steel and created the all steel vacuum bottle.
Since then, Stanley’s bottle has evolved into quenchers, mugs, barware, etc. However that still doesn’t answer the question: how have Stanley’s become the hottest water bottle of 2023 and so far 2024?
To answer that question, we have to go back to 2019 where Instagram account The Buy Guide was promoting the Quenchers. The account then gave social media personality Emily Maynard Johnson, who starred on ‘The Bachelor” and ‘The Bachelorette” a cup for her to promote. Johnson loved the Quenchers so much she posted about the brand, which caught the attention of a Stanley executive. The Stanley executive sent The Buy Guide more than 5,000 Quenchers and they set up a website to purchase the cups. The Quenchers sold out in five days.
In 2020, the company brought on a new president to help boost the brand. Terence Reilly, who helped rebrand Crocs, was the new head of the company. Reilly partnered with The Buy Guide and together they promoted new colors for the Quenchers such as Desert Sage and Cream. Every time the Quenchers resold with new colors, the sales for Stanley went up a significant amount.
In 2019, sales were around $70 million and in 2023 sales peaked at $750 million. Once these cups were posted to social media sites like Tiktok and Instagram, people had to get their hands on them. Celebrities like country music star, Lainey Wilson, did collabs with Stanley. One of the biggest viral moments for the Stanley cups was when a car caught on fire. TikTok user, @danimarielettering, posted a video of her car being on fire. When the flames died down, one of the only surviving things was her Stanley, which still had ice in it. The video got over 94 million views and Stanley even replaced her car.
The Stanley craze was in full swing in November of last year. The Starbucks x Stanley cup made everyone go wild in stores such as Target. People went as far as camping outside of Target for the hot pink tumbler. There’s videos all over Tiktok that show people fighting over the cups, a man even jumped over a counter trying to steal the famed cups. Some people are criticizing others for being so obsessed with a cup.
Sophomore Kaylee Skinner says it’s crazy that people are fighting each other over Stanley’s.
“I have a Stanley and I like that it’s really pretty, but the people fighting over Stanley’s are crazy and ratchet because nobody fights over a Stanley,” Skinner said.
When asked why do you think Stanley’s are so popular, Skinner said, “They are just better than any other water bottle.”
