Starbucks China released a glass cup with an inverted cat paw design this week to great fanfare. Fans of the Seattle-based coffee joint queued up for hours to get their hands on the cherry blossom-themed mugs, some even as early as 11pm the night before their launch.
The cups had been hyped up via social media days before and with previous limited-edition collections being resold at exorbitant markups, the cups were no less than a sensation.
When the stores opened on 26 February, chaos ensued.
The cups were limited in quantity, with smaller Starbucks stores having only 3 to 5 pieces up for grabs. The larger outlets had about 6 to 8 cups in stock.
Videos uploaded on China’s social network site Weibo showed customers wrestling, pushing and kicking one another. CCTV footage also showed people pushing through the doors upon the store’s opening. They collided with store merchandise and sent mugs crashing on the floor.
The cups cost 199RMB, approximately S$40, but are reportedly being resold for almost S$363 dollars online.
In order to placate the nationwide frenzy for the cups, Starbucks China has released a statement that there will be plenty of cups available for purchase on their online store in the coming days.
Each customer will be allowed to buy only one cup, with 1,000 cups for grabs each day. In a country with more than 1 billion people, 1,000 per day is but a drop in the ocean.
But at least on the internet, nobody has to get their claws out or get into a catfight just to get their paws on this merchandise.
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