Merry Coffee? Starbucks 2019 holiday cups arrive in Vancouver Thursday
Credit to Author: Harrison Mooney| Date: Thu, 07 Nov 2019 01:06:57 +0000
Christmas is just around the corner, which means it’s time once again to complain about the Starbucks holiday cup designs.
If it feels a bit early for this discussion, that’s a valid first complaint. It’s never too early if you’re trying to sell stuff to people, however. Christmas may come but once a year, but it’s really more of a fiscal quarter — best to get started as soon as possible.
That’s what the coffee chain is doing. Beginning Thursday, Nov. 7, Starbucks stores across Metro Vancouver will transition into holiday mode, unveiling this year’s quartet of Christmas-themed cups, each one more Christmas-y than the last.
But not too Christmas-y. While the cups are unmistakably festive, covered in red and green designs and looking for all the world like gift-wrapped presents that will burn you if shaken, not one of the four designs — polka dots, merry dance, merry stripes and candy cane stripe — actually has the phrase “Merry Christmas”.
Two come close, with the word merry splashed all over the design, but the ensuing C-word is “Coffee”, not “Christmas”. That’s more on-brand for Starbucks, to be certain — they don’t sell Christmas, no matter how hard they try — but it’s also more likely to raise the ire of those that continue to accuse companies like Starbucks of waging a war on the Christian holiday.
You’ll recall the controversy of four Yules past, when Starbucks went minimalist with an all-red holiday cup, a blank canvas that encouraged customers “to tell their Christmas stories in their own way.” This inclusive approach outraged the anti-inclusivity crowd, many of whom believe the real meaning of Christmas is forcing others to agree with them.
Expect to hear similar outrage over the phrase Merry Coffee, which also appears on another all-red cup available this year. Participating stores will be giving these limited-edition, reusable cups away free to customers who order a holiday beverage on Thursday.
Customers who hold onto these cups and use them through the holiday season will get 50 cents off their Starbucks holiday beverages.
Those holiday beverages are back as well, as customers who want a little coffee with their sugar can once again enjoy their favourite seasonal drinks, including the peppermint mocha, gingerbread latte, caramel brûlé latte, chestnut praline latte, and eggnog latte.
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