E.L.F. and Stanley release limited edition cup and lip oil holder amid surge in demand

Stanley cups are sweeping through schools across the US as the hottest new accessory. Gen Z and Gen Alpha are flocking to the water bottles, with some reselling for hundreds of dollars. Capitalizing on the hype, E.L.F. Beauty and the drinkware company are set to release limited-edition Quenchers and Tumbler Lip Oil Holders. 

The collection includes Stanley’s signature 40 oz and 30 oz Quencher H2.0 FlowState Tumblers in colors inspired by E.L.F.’s lip oil shades: Crystal Clear Night, Honey Talks, Jam Session, Red Delicious and Coral Fixation. 

The Tumbler Lip Oil Holder comes in three Glow Reviver Lip Oil corresponding shades: Honey Talks, Red Delicious and Coral Fixation. The Quenchers and Tumbler Lip Oil Holders are sold separately. 

Stanley previously faced criticism for promoting overconsumption by releasing similar limited-edition bottles and accessories, which some say encourage an overindulgent purchasing nature. 

Wasteful purchasing?

The initial design of reusable bottles was to reduce pollution from single-use solutions. However, water bottles being trendy and owning multiples with all the accessories raises questions about the waste they may be generating. 

E.L.F. says it created the collaboration “based on collective community demand — because let’s be real, no one leaves home without their Stanley Quencher and E.L.F. Glow Reviver Lip Oil.”

E.L.F. and Stanley provide a new water bottle option to Stanley cup collectors.The collection also includes sticker sheets to personalize the Tumbler Lip Oil Holder and Stanley Quencher, which the beauty brand says is “about expressing yoursE.L.F.”

The product will be sold exclusively in Target stores and online starting this Sunday. Limited quantities of the Tumbler Lip Oil Holders will also be available on the E.L.F. Cosmetics website in the US, Canada and the UK.

Videos of people rushing Targets and getting into physical altercations over these limited-edition releases have raised questions on social media. The retailer fired some employees after discovering they were hiding some of the cups before they became available and reselling them for profit. 

Social media cult following

Platforms such as TikTok are flooded with videos of users showing off their Stanley cup collections, with some owning thousands of dollars worth of products and accessories. Video of kids (Gen Alpha) elatedly crying over receiving a cup as a gift from their parents have also gone viral.

The cup is no longer solely a water bottle but a status symbol among kids. Getting the “hot, it” water bottle is not new. A few years ago, the Hydro Flask was in trend after YouTuber Emma Chamberlain popularized the VSCO Girl aesthetic, inspired by the photo-sharing platform. Complementary accessories to achieve this look were Carmex lip balm and hair scrunchies. 

ELF Beauty recently released a “Not-So-White Paper,” suggesting that having women on boards correlates to better price-to-earnings ratios. However, the research points out that progress in diversity on boards is hitting a plateau, particularly for women. The number of women on boards has not changed since 2020, at 27%.