How do you catch lightning in a bottle? Well, if you’re the makers of Stanley cups (the 40-ounce kind, not the giant trophy that’s paraded around yearly on arena ice by a victorious National Hockey League team), first you paint them a pinkish-rose color and call them a Valentine’s Day special edition. Then you send a limited number to Target stores and get Tik-Tok influencers to tell everybody to drop everything and go get one before they’re gone.

Just in case you weren’t in one of the thundering herds that descended upon those Target stores the week after Christmas, here’s the info on the latest and greatest must-have product on the market. The genius marketing people at Stanley have successfully taken an all-steel, vacuum-insulated bottle, originally designed (over 100 years ago) for working folks, campers, and hikers and, over the years, transformed it into the Quencher model, the most popular water bottle of the present day. The Valentine’s Day cup came on the heels of an exclusive gold cup that was sold only at Starbucks locations around the holidays.

If you haven’t been paying attention to social trends of late, just look around next time you’re out and about. It’s difficult, if not downright impossible, to go anywhere and not see a Stanley cup of some size, shape, or form in someone’s hands. Even though the cups are ubiquitous with both sexes, women have often been the targeted audience for the special editions, which have even become fashion accessories. “You can’t wear that outfit with your green Stanley cup. You need a blue cup.”

The growth of Stanley sales (from around $70 million annually in 2020 to $750 million now according to financial sources) is due in part to the “drink copious amounts of water” craze popular among many. That health regimen is heightened at this time of year when virtually everyone has added “go on a diet” or “take better care of myself” to their New Year resolution list.

Given the popularity of the Valentine’s Day special edition, surely more cups of the same ilk will follow. Perhaps Shamrock green for St. Patrick’s Day; Red, white, and blue for Independence Day; and even gravy brown for Thanksgiving. “Be the first on your block to collect all 12 holiday cups!” Maybe the company could designate one for every day of the week. Monday could be a flat, dull color since it’s always the most put-upon day. Tuesday through Friday could be progressively more colorful and festive, with the weekend days culminating in vibrant hues that could even glow in the dark.

In time, as with most fads, the Stanley cup will possibly be relegated to the collector’s shelf along with Pet Rocks®, Lava Lamps, Mood Rings, Rubik’s Cubes®, Hula-Hoops®, and countless other items we as a society just couldn’t live without for a moment in time.

Stanley is piggy-backing on the ultra-successful marketing idea used by shoe companies over the last decade or two. People (mostly of the younger variety) have been lining up outside of shoe emporiums whenever a new, unique, and limited-themed sneaker is due to be released. For example, the JJJJound Samba sneaker will be released in March. It comes in white, black, and tan colors. And will cost only $250 a pair. How many do you want? In February, the Air Jordan 4 Bred Reimagined (black leather with gray and red accents) debuts at only $215.

With the political season about to get into full mind-numbing swing, surely many candidates for all manner of offices are looking for a way to capture that Stanley lightning-in-a-bottle idea for themselves. You know, there are already some similarities between politicians and the cups. They both have hot and cold features. Most of both are unnecessary, but you eventually end up liking one over the others. Some can be quite colorful while others are, frankly, dreary. Seemingly everyone has a favorite. They both can cost more than they should. And many will no doubt end up sitting on a shelf collecting dust at some point.

For right now, though, in terms of those running for office, it’s kind of fun to see whose ideas hold the most water for voters. Drinking a full 40-ounce Stanley Quencher of water every day can be difficult to stomach if you’re not used to it. But it can be advantageous to your health. Listening to bloviating politicians day in and day out? Not so much.

But just for kicks, check out your favorite candidates. See how many of them have a Stanley Quencher in hand or nearby when they speak. Who knows? Given the power of social influencers, that could be a deciding factor in some voters’ minds.

©MMXXIV. William J. Lewis, III – Freelance Writer