Starbucks’ newest holiday collectible may be cute… but its rollout is also causing decidedly un-jolly chaos due to limited supplies and sky-high demand, not unlike the (now crested) Labubu craze.
The brand’s limited-edition Bearista Cold Cup, a 20-ounce bear-shaped glass tumbler with a green “beanie” straw, sold out almost instantly when it dropped on November 6.
On Reddit’s r/Starbucks, fans described scenes of frustration and disbelief. One user summed it up bluntly: “Corporate only sending two per store on average was no matter what gonna cause a bloodbath.” Another called it “manufactured demand — 100% purposeful,” while one barista chimed in, “We had 30. A scalper bought 25 of them.”
Others described watching employees scoop up the cups before doors even opened. “We witnessed an employee pulling both off the shelf and buying them two minutes before open,” one shopper wrote, adding that they’d “waited an hourish before open” to snag one.
Not everyone was angry, though. One commenter wrote, “If employees genuinely want them, I’d be happier they got them than customers. They deal with enough BS daily — they can have my bear cup.”
In a statement to People, Starbucks said demand “exceeded even our biggest expectations” and apologized “for the disappointment.” But with resale prices already soaring online, this little glass bear has already become the must-have of the holiday season — part status symbol, part chaos generator, and Starbucks’ most viral merch drop since the Stanley Cup craze.