Social media has played a huge role in the Stanley cup hype. In the past year, it has become the it-girls of reusable water bottles and that’s thanks to TikTok — #stanleytumbler currently has 1.2 billion views on TikTok. On the social media app, multiple users show off their cups, and it seems like after the holidays everyone had a Stanley Quencher. Content creators post videos about their buying their first Stanley, reviews, and unboxings, many with hundreds of thousands of views. People even poke fun at Stanley carriers, especially after the recent launches of the Valentine’s Day Stanley cup and the Starbucks Stanley cup.
However, one thing is for certain, Stanley has a loyal fanbase. The insulated and reusable cup has had such an impact that many have collected several in different colors and shades as well as decorating the tumblers with accessories such as bags to attach to the oversized handle.
I spoke to Holli — Holli requested the use of her first name only in this piece for privacy reasons — also known as @doesnttiktok on TikTok, who consistently posts videos of her Stanley tumbler collection that get hundreds of thousands of views. In her bio, Holli says Stanley cups are her identity and backs that up with a Stanley cup wall display, which shows off her collection of over 100 Stanley Quenchers and has been showcased in a TikTok with 2.3 million views.
Spoon University: When did you get your first Stanley?
Holli: So, that’s kind of what’s interesting about me collecting Stanleys is I have been collecting them long before it became a thing. So, I got my first Stanley four and a half years ago directly from Stanley’s website. It was white and black. And the name of it is called Polar White.
SU: What about the cups made you want to get more?
H: The biggest and most obvious things are the size. At the time, and actually even still, I was a breastfeeding mom. So I was drinking a ton of water. I think that’s kind of what started it. Then [Stanley] just started releasing more colors, and it became fun. Then, all my kids started using them, so that’s how we ended up with multiple at first.
But the biggest things were the size, being 40 ounces, the fact that it fits in a cup holder, and has a handle. Those were the biggest things for me, oh and it kept ice for a long time, which is important living in Arizona.
SU: And what made you want to start collecting them?
H: The biggest thing for me is the community. There’s actually a very large community of Stanley people, and I’ve met some of the coolest people in the Stanley community. There’s like large groups with like 30 to 60,000 people on Facebook where I’ve met [people], even in real life.
But also, just the chase of finding new ones that release. I will say though, it is not like it used to be, I’ve actually scaled way back recently in collecting just because Stanleys — since it is becoming so popular — are releasing new colors so often. So collecting them isn’t the same as it used to be because they used to be released a lot less often.
SU: How many Stanleys do you have right now?
H: At one time, I had 200. But now, I have 112.
SU: On TikTok, I saw your wall displaying your collection. How did organizing that come about? What made you want to display them on the wall?
H: Honestly, because I just ran out of space. I had nowhere else to put them. My husband was like, ‘Do you want shelves for them?’ I’m like, ‘Sure! People put shoes on shelves. So why can’t I put my cups?’ Some of my cups are worth a sh*t ton of money. So yeah, that’s how they ended up there.
My husband actually helped me put them up. I get a lot of comments when people are like, ‘Oh, my husband would divorce me.’ Well, my husband knows something as simple as a cup can make me happy. So, he won’t be divorcing me over them. I always say like, I could be spending my money on drugs. But here we are.
SU: What made you want to start selling Stanleys?
H: I have sold some that I bought a long, long time ago because I’ve just held on to them, and I knew that one day, they would eventually be worth something. So, I’ve actually sold one for quite a bit of money. And that’s actually what pays for the majority of my collection. There was an original Stanley color called Hammertone Green, and I was able to sell that one for a very large chunk of money to another collector in the community. Then, about three weeks later, Stanley actually re-released that same color, but in [its] newer 2.0 version, because there are two versions of Stanley. Are you aware of that?
SU: No.
H: Okay, so there’s an original standard Quencher and then there’s a newer version, which is the [Stanley Quencher 2.0]. It has a different handle and a leakproof little silicone thing around the straw. So those are the newer versions that’s what’s released now.
SU: What was the highest number you have ever sold one for?
H: I have sold one for $1,500. People try to hate so bad and like, ‘Oh, why do you have so many cups? They’re useless.’ And I’m like, ‘Well, if you could sell them for $1,500, you probably would too.’
I will say though the newer ones do not go for that. So that’s not something that happens all the time. This was a very, very old color, the Hammertone Green. Within the past, I think two months, maybe three months, they re-released that color in the newer style, so the values are not as high as they used to be. I just happened to let mine go at a good time.
SU: Do you also use the Stanleys that you collect?
H: Every single day. I have a family of eight. We have six kids, and all of my kids each have a couple that they take to school. I gift them to people constantly. I’ve given one to my UPS driver, my mailman, all my kids’ school teachers — I gift them all the time. I’ve given one to a homeless man before like it’s just it’s something that brings joy. How do you get mad or be upset about a tumbler you know?
SU: Is this kind of a business? Do you sell your tumblers often or just every once in a while? Or do you mostly do giveaways to friends/family?
H: No, it’s not a business. At all. I don’t sell them often.
SU: With people camping out for the Valentine’s Day tumblers and the Starbucks tumblers that dropped earlier this month, have you ever done that?
H: I personally have not but I will say, I have teenage boys who go Stanley hunting, and they have a good time with it. It’s a family ordeal I guess you could say.
The Starbucks one that was released in the Starbucks inside Target, my two teenage boys actually did go. They went at 5 a.m., and they got one.
SU: Did they come back with stories or anything like that? Or was it just like a calm release?
H: My boys actually met some of the coolest people in line, like this older gentleman who came and brought hot cocoa for people in line. It was super fun for them. They just made the best of it, I guess.
SU: That’s so wild but intriguing.
H: Have you ever heard of people collecting tennis shoes? They line up outside of [Dick’s] Sporting Goods stores to collect shoes. Well, it’s the same thing. But you know, as soon as anything becomes trendy, the media plays out to be something bad. Or I guess the people who steal or hit or, you know, rush to get something. That’s what makes it out to seem bad. But not everything trendy is bad. And that’s what I keep going back to with Stanley cup. Just because it’s trendy doesn’t mean it is a bad thing or harmful. It’s just popular right now. And I just happened to be collecting them long before it became this thing.
This interview has been edited for clarity.