A little coffee, a lot of chaos: What started as another seasonal item in Starbucks’ holiday lineup quickly spiraled into a viral obsession that drove Americans wild. Meet the Bearista Cup — a glass mug shaped like an adorable bear, complete with a green winter hat lid and matching straw.
Priced at $29.95, or about 100 shekels, the cup sold out almost immediately after its launch across U.S. Starbucks stores. Social media videos showed long lines of customers waiting for hours outside branches — some even setting up tents.
According to reports, a few shoppers clashed over the last remaining cups, forcing employees to call security. “I haven’t seen anything like this since the first iPhone launch,” one worker said. Others described customers arriving with lists and pre-orders, only to find the shelves empty before the doors opened.
The chaos didn’t stop there. Within 48 hours, hundreds of listings appeared online offering the Bearista Cup for $400 to $500 each — up to 15 times its original price. The overwhelming demand pushed Starbucks to issue an apology.
“The excitement for this product exceeded all our expectations,” the company said in a statement. “We understand the disappointment of customers who couldn’t get one, and we’re working to learn from this experience.”
Still, Starbucks has not announced when — or if — the bear cup will return.
While the design’s charm helped drive sales, TikTok truly turned it into a phenomenon. Within hours of release, hundreds of videos under the hashtag #BearistaCup flooded the platform. Many documented “cup-hunting journeys” in POV style, drawing millions of views.
The viral wave also inspired a second trend: cynical takes mocking the excessive consumerism behind the craze.
Starbucks employees later revealed in online forums that each store had just a few units, sometimes only two or three. “It’s cute, but not practical — hard to clean, fragile, and not travel-friendly,” one barista wrote. Others claimed the company intentionally created a limited-edition collector’s item to boost holiday buzz.