The explosion in popularity of Stanley cups is causing heartache for America’s middle schoolers.
Once the preserve of parents and commuters Stanley cups have become this winter’s must-have staple among school children.
Videos of people fighting over the latest color shade of the insulated beverage containers in target have gone viral on social media as the craze swept the country.
Now children are revealing that they are being bullied at school for have knock-off versions of the mug rather than the name brand.
‘Everybody else had one, so I just feel like I needed to have one to fit in’ one sixth grader told The Cut.
Ohio mom Danya Motycka shared a viral TikTok narrating how her daughter had been bullied for having a ‘fake’ Stanley cup that the nine-year-old had at first ‘thought was cute’
The Stanley-cup craze has led to long lines and even rumored scuffles at mega-stores that stock the product
Concerned parents argue the craze for the mugs has got out of control
Madalyn, a 9-year-old in Kentucky who owns five Stanley insist owning a Stanley is now a prerequisite for social acceptance at her school.
‘I’m, like, a little bit more popular now, and I’ve been getting more friends because of it,’ she told The Cut.
Dhalia, a 13-year-old from Dallas said her classmates will ‘only talk to me in the morning when I’m holding my Stanley.’
‘There’s this one girl at my school that, like, no one knows, and then she came in with a Stanley one day, and everyone was like, “Oh, she has a Stanley too, look!”‘ Stella, a 13-year-old from New Jersey, said.
Now parents and caregivers are speaking out, concerned that the craze has got out of hand.
Jamie Sherman said her 11-year-old niece was bullied by her classmates for bringing an off-brand version of the cup to her New Hampshire middle school.
Recent viral videos have revealed limited-edition Stanley cups disappearing from mega-store shelves within minutes
A Gen Z trend forecaster has claimed that the Stanley cup is ‘on its way out’ with the furor around the travel tumblers finally reaching its peak (stock image)
Casey Lewis, based in New York, spoke to Business Insider to discuss the 40oz ‘Quencher’ cups which have taken the world by storm in recent months
‘When girls pass her in the hallway, they laugh and point, and they say, ‘That’s not real’,” Sherman said.
‘Now, she doesn’t want to bring it to school and she doesn’t want to use it.’
‘I guess they just thought it was cool, because, like, everyone’s getting them.’
Dayna Motycka from Ohio made a viral TikTok revealing how her 9-year-old daughter was made fun of for having a Walmart dupe.
‘They made sure to let her know this is not a real Stanley. That this is fake and it’s not as cool,’ Motycka said.
‘So she comes home and she’s upset and asks if she can have a real Stanley cup.
‘Do I think a nine year old needs a Stanley cup? No’ Motycka explained.
However, Dayna went on, as a mom, if ‘you can do something to keep your child from getting made fun of to help fit in, you’re going to do it.’
So, she ultimately bought her daughter a $35 ‘real’ Stanley cup from Ace Hardware.
‘Can we afford to buy her Stanley? Yes. Did I think that she needed one? No. Apparently I’ve been proven wrong by the children in our school that are making fun of her for not having a real, name-brand Stanley,’ Dayna added.
‘But this doesn’t start with the kids … This starts with parents. What are we teaching our kids?’
The craze around the product has reached a fever pitch as of late, a phenomenon encapsulated by recent videos capturing long lines and even scuffles breaking out at mega-stores offering certain limited-edition versions of the product.
However, a Gen Z trend forecaster has claimed that the Stanley cup is ‘on its way out’ with the furor around the travel tumblers finally reaching its peak.
Casey Lewis, based in New York, told Business Insider the fad is set to come to an end now that the Stanley cup has been adopted by older generations.