It seems that with every few years there’s a new hot product that people will steal, trample, and fight for. This year, it appears that the culprit is none other than Stanley cups. Bank accounts have been ruined, brothers and sisters turned against each other, stores leveled, and wars fought in the aisles of retail. Well, maybe it’s not that dramatic, but Stanley cups seem to have become the newest obsession for consumers.
Stanley cups were created in 1913 by William Stanley Jr., who utilized a vacuum seal design to create the original portable insulated bottles that would evolve into modern Stanley cups. The same cups that have taken social media and retailers by storm in recent months. These cups appear to have the public in a stronger chokehold than a boa constrictor. In turn, people have been turning out in droves to get their hands on the new trendy thermos.
Social media has played a huge role in the cups’ newfound popularity, with several viral videos such as a Stanley supposedly surviving a fire, spreading across the internet. These viral videos coupled with several influencers reviewing and collecting the glorified water bottles have caused the general public to lose their collective minds. Though it doesn’t seem that these cups are truly worth the money or trouble associated with them.
It’s completely normal for people to go crazy for a trendy new item, but it wouldn’t be so horrible if it wasn’t for the outrageous pricing of these jumbo thermos cups. A modestly priced Stanley cup could run you back about $30 or $50, which isn’t horrible but could be considered a bit much for more money smart consumers. When resellers enter the equation things get even more outlandish. Some of these cups can reach prices upwards of $100, such as the Starbucks Winter Pink 40 oz Tumbler that retails for $399.90 on Walmart.com! The craziest part is that people will see this skyhigh price tag and still fork over their money.
These cups just simply aren’t worth the money that people are willing to spend for them. The only real draw to Stanley cups really seems to be just how durable they are, but even then one could likely still find a comparable product at a much lower price. Stanley also releases “exclusive” cups which skyrocket in price due to resellers, and even though these cups are no different from the others except for their color scheme-such as the one made in collaboration with Starbucks-they still sell .
Stanley cups may be ridiculously overpriced, but that’s nothing compared to the possible health concerns they may pose as well. According to Today.com Stanley cups possess a small lead pellet in the bottom of the cup that seals the vacuum insulation. In a statement by Stanley, they claimed that there was only a risk if the steel layer shielding the lead was removed, and that despite low odds it is possible to do so. Even though liquid within the cup does not make contact with the lead it still seems dangerous for it to be a part of the cups .
It goes without saying that when a company is manufacturing a product that they know will be used by people to consume a food or drink, people shouldn’t have to be concerned about lead being contained within the product. This feels downright negligent on the part of the manufacturers. The risk that these cups could pose if damaged is terrifying as these are items that people will be carrying around with them just about everywhere.
Stanley cups are simply overpriced potential health risks, that for whatever reason people have been going crazy for. In time, these cups will simply fade back into being trinkets that crowd the back of the kitchen cupboard.
