Video of Target shoppers in El Paso racing to buy out limited edition Valentine’s Day Stanley cups in a matter of minutes went viral this week, prompting many to wonder what is so special about the 40 oz tumbler mugs that has people almost "getting trampled" in a mad rush to get one.
A TikTok video posted by @jazzedbyjaz showed shoppers at the Texas store flooding the stand where the holiday-themed cups were displayed on New Year’s Eve and snagging all of the cups in "less than 4 minutes," as the clip stated.
The owner of the video summed up the mad dash to purchase the products in the video’s title, which read, "Getting trampled for a Target Stanley Valentine's cup." In less than a week, the clip racked up 16 million views on TikTok and over 20 million on X.
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The video clearly shows the result of a perfect storm of branding and social media marketing, with TikTok driving extreme thirst for the cups that has seen Stanley’s profits spike tenfold in the last few years.
The insulated water bottle, officially called the Stanley Adventure Quencher Travel Tumbler – and dubbed the "Quencher" or "Stanley cup" by its loyal fanbase – has become a popular product online, recently being the star of a variety of viral holiday unboxing videos and becoming a much talked-about accessory for popular social media influencers in videos racking up millions of views.
The cup has become so popular online that the TikTok hashtag "#stanleycup" has 6.7 billion views total, most of which are to do with the tumbler, and not the famous National Hockey League (NHL) championship trophy of the same name.
The tumbler comes in a variety of colors and sizes, though 40 oz seems to be the popular standard for most. One popular account, "mia_lovespink2.0," shared a video to TikTok showing her massive Stanley cup collection. In the video, the user stated, "POV: you have a cup to match every outfit!!!"
Other videos feature social media users decorating their beloved quenchers, putting custom nametags on them, and one showing a backpack they made for their tumbler that also has room for her make-up and other small belongings.
One viral video even depicted a young girl weeping in gratitude while unwrapping the exact Stanley Quencher she wanted on Christmas morning.
Stanley has also tapped into this craze by making themed Quenchers, like the Valentine’s Day edition that flew off Target shelves this week, and by partnering with other popular brands for limited edition bottles.
Stanley recently produced an exclusive gold Quencher that was sold at Starbucks, prompting many Stanley cup fans to camp outside of store locations just to get their hands on the exclusive bottles.
The fever for the now-legendary product has been a serious boon to the cup’s makers in recent years. The Seattle-based company went from making around $70 million annually to prior to 2020, to amassing a whopping $750 million a year thanks to the popularity of the Quencher.
Business website RetailDive.com attributed the explosion of Stanley’s profits to the company focusing its marketing of the new product to women. The site explained that the brand had long been marketed to men and especially outdoorsmen, but with the help of a group of influencers, the company unlocked the power of women selling to women.
It also noted that to drive even more interest in new releases, the company adopted a system around "drops" that’s often seen in sneaker culture and used by streetwear brands. The limited drops generate attention from fans and often cause products to sell out quickly, just like the most recent one happening in Target stores.
Marketing expert and author Marcus Collins told Fox News Digital that the frenzy over the Stanley bottles is "textbook social contagion." He said, "There are a few things at play, but the biggest one is social proof. The Quencher has been around for a while now. However, what has caused a tizzy as of late is that more people have made their consumption more conspicuous as social proof."
Collins continued, saying this "has not only brought more people to buy but has also brought more people to tell more people via social platforms like TikTok."
"And, as they say, nothing draws a crowd like a crowd. Couple that with the functional benefits of the product and you start to see how social traction can happen," Collins said, adding, "It’s like most things that take off in the zeitgeist, it’s a combination of a few elements and a little bit of randomness, or what say may call ‘luck.’"
Fox also spoke to oXYGen Financial CEO Ted Jenkin, who claimed that "Stanley caught lightning in a bottle" with their product. He said, "Water bottles have become fashion accessories today because so many Americans are trying to hit their daily water intake. People always want what they can't have, so Stanley was very clever here about how they showed the indestructability of their water bottles on social media and created a scarcity issue by offering limited editions."
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Stanley Global President Terence Reilly remarked on the popularity of the product in a 2022 statement, saying, "The Quencher has become an internet sensation over the last two years. As it has quickly risen in popularity – with restocks selling out in mere minutes and videos quickly going viral on social media – we wanted to continue to provide innovative products and solutions for our consumers."
Fox News Digital’s Stepheny Price and Brie Stimson contributed to this report.
