Eden Wilkinson
You open Netflix, eager to start the newest season of Black Mirror and see which extremity of modern-day life will be satirised. You click on the first episode.
The episode opens in sunny Los Angeles, California. Wide open streets are filled with chihuahuas, designer sunglasses, and midwestern moms slurping up the newest trend. The Stanley Cup. They boast about the colours, designs, and benefits of this $60 cup. Excitement erupts as they are blessed with the news of super-capitalist corporation Starbucks releasing a special limited edition of The Stanley Cup.
Cut to swathes of people lining up to purchase this latest signifier of wealth. A few verbal altercations between the moms as they scramble to get the last remaining cups. They know the embarrassment of admitting they didn’t get their hands on one at the next parent-teacher association meeting.
“Since capitalism began, owning expensive items has been a signifier of wealth and status.”
The episode cuts to a news flash showing the Starbucks edition of The Stanley Cup sold out in 24 hours flat. It’s followed by reports that the very same organisations are funding the genocide in Palestine.
You slam your laptop shut. It’s all a bit too real, isn’t it?
https://www.tiktok.com/@stephgmacedo/video/7192995198937386245?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7363970585355290145
Stanley Cup Consumerism
The Stanley Cup trend is divisive in our current consumerist climate. Originally popular on social media, the cup symbolises ordinary people chasing status symbols. Professor Shelle Santana, a branding expert at Bentley University, claims that the ‘scarcity of the cup’ plays into its popularity as a must-have item.
Sales rose from $70 million to a staggering $750 million in 2023 alone, showcasing the extent of this phenomenon’s hold on society, particularly its influence on the rich and influential. Since capitalism began, owning expensive items has been a signifier of wealth and status. What used to be the newest sports car or flatscreen TV has now morphed into buying certain brands. Brands, in essence, show other people who we are.
“Brand collaborations, such as The Stanley x Starbucks Quencher, pool the hype around their companies to create an even bigger craze.”
However, we are at a point where this frivolous trend needs to be associated with the newest trend, which has detrimental effects on other human beings. The Stanley Cup’s links to Israel supporters, among the current conflict in Palestine, means the corporation is directly contributing to the slaughter of innocent people.
It’s every dystopian nightmare about the perils of capitalism coming to fruition. The giants of capitalism are taking over and brainwashing their consumers into a fad trend. All the while, their profits are funding pure evil.
@staytunednbc Why are the 100 year old #StanleyCups suddenly going #viral?
Stanley x Starbucks Collaboration
Brand collaborations, such as The Stanley x Starbucks Quencher, pool the hype around their companies to create an even bigger craze. It creates an extreme ‘must-have’ effect on the consumer.
Starbucks has been infamous for supporting Israel since the beginning of the genocide in Palestine. It seems there is no remorse for how this collaboration and subsequent trend has the potential to indirectly end another’s life. It is a classic case of capitalism using people for money-making means. There is also no accountability for the shallow, close-mindedness of their consumers. Unaware of where their money is going and how it is funding genocide.
It may be downright ignorance of those living in the wealth bubble, but there’s no denying that late-stage capitalism is having far greater and more damaging effects than ever before.
Could the fantasy of science fiction entertainment become the norm? And is this “adult sippy cup” the catalyst of our current dystopian reality?
Featured image courtesy of Florencia Simonini on Unsplash. No changes have been made to image. Image license here.
