By Riley Dauber
Lifestyle Editor
When people hear the phrase “Stanley Cup,” some may think of the famous hockey trophy. But thanks to the recent trend of the same name, many social media users think of the popular, $45 water bottle with a handle and straw.
According to Time, the Stanley brand has existed for over 100 years. However, it was not until recently that more and more people flocked to the company to buy their own tumbler or water bottle.
Social media apps, including the video-sharing platform TikTok, helped the Stanley Cup grow in popularity, specifically in the subcommunity “WaterTok,” according to The Cut.
In videos marked with the “WaterTok” hashtag, users proudly display their rainbow-colored collections of cups or create different drinks. Even though the reusable water bottles are intended to reduce plastic waste, fans buy many cups in different colors, highlighting the overconsumption aspect of this trend.
Since the popular cup can be seen all over the social media app, users are oftentimes encouraged to buy their own to take part in the trend.
“Consumers don’t just want the item, but they want to go online and show off that they got one and show the scene as it’s happening,” professor of fashion and apparel studies at the University of Delaware Jaehee Jung said.
Social media users do not want to feel left out, and in the end, buying a 40-ounce tumbler may encourage them to drink more water.
Students at Washington College, including sophomore Maddy Gaydon and freshman Gina Phillips, carry their own Stanley Cups around campus to keep hydrated throughout the day.
While Phillips said she got her Stanley Cup for free and would not otherwise buy it because “it always spills,” Gaydon said she bought hers because she is “easily influenced.”
“I’m trying not to be as easily influenced to buy random things, but sometimes I cave,” Gaydon said.
The Stanley Cups are not only popular with millennials and generation Z; younger kids in elementary and middle school bring their own water bottles to class. According to The Cut, they are seen as a status symbol; if you have a Stanley Cup, you are considered cool.
“The tumblers have particularly taken off among preteen girls, launching something of a cup-based social hierarchy in middle and even elementary schools…But if you don’t have one, or worse, have a fake one? Two words: social suicide,” Julia Reinstein wrote for The Cut.
Along with the middle and elementary school takeover, the Stanley Cup popularity has also led to many fans lining up outside of Target just to get their hands on limited edition merchandise. Once inside the store, some fight over the product — or worse, steal merchandise, according to Forbes.
On Dec. 31, Target released a special edition Cosmo Pink and Target Red version of the Stanley Cup, according to Time. A now-viral TikTok video shows women, men, and young children crowding around the display. A few people are even holding multiple cups.
A few days later, on Jan. 3, Starbucks released a winter pink Stanley Cup in Target stores, another exclusive item that fans simply had to get their hands on.
“That’s insane to me,” Phillips said. “It’s just a cup, it’s going to be okay. That seems pretty unnecessary.”
Phillips also pointed out that, with so many different water bottles to choose from, there is no need to fight over the Stanley Cup in particular.
Along with the fear of missing out associated with the popular cups, many users were intrigued by the “limited edition” label added to the Target and Starbucks products. According to USA Today, once people know that a product is “exclusive,” they will race to buy it.
Following the release of these viral videos showing customers fighting over the cups, some news sites announced that Stanley Cups contain lead.
On Jan. 26, CNN said, “There is some lead sealed within the base of some brands of travel drinking cups — including the wildly popular brand Stanley.”
While the lead is protected by a stainless-steel cover in the vacuum-sealed cup, the harmful element may be exposed if the cup is dropped or damaged, according to CNN. While this issue may not be a problem for adult users, elementary and middle school students are bound to drop and damage their cups, potentially putting them at risk.
Due to the overconsumption, fights, and lead risks, Stanley Cups have certainly left their mark on both social media and popular culture in general. According to Time, however, they may soon be replaced with a new water bottle brand: Owala.
Unlike Stanley’s iconic 40-oz tumbler, the Owala brand is growing in popularity because of its FreeSip, a water bottle with a cover to prevent spilling and contamination. These new water bottles also come in a variety of bright colors.
“I want one of those, I think those are cute,” Phillips said.
Despite the recency of the Stanley Cup’s popularity spike, social media users may start to shift toward a new water bottle brand or an entirely different product altogether. Like the Hydroflask that came before, the Stanley Cup may soon become just another part of social media’s obsessive and consumeristic history.