Spilling the tea
Trending tumblers at Stanley
Good morning, well-hydrated readers. This is your Stock Market Rundown for January 29th, 2023. Thanks for joining me for another week of finance follies. Let’s dig in:
TODAY’S TOP STORY: THERMOS THROWDOWN
You might not expect the brand of thermos that plumbers and electricians carry in their lunchbox, could become a must-have lifestyle accessory for 15-year-old girls. But recently, Stanley has gone from blue-collar icon to TikTok trendsetter. And it’s an MBA case study in marketing strategy.
In 1913, William Stanley Jr. invented an all-steel vacuum flask, dubbed the “Stanley Bottle”. Stanley’s tough thermoses were perfect for construction sites and campgrounds. They even flew with B-17 pilots in World War II.
The 40-ounce “Quencher” bottle was added to the product line in 2016—and initially flopped. But its big potential was showcased when a women-run blog based in Utah made a wholesale order and sold 5,000 of them in five days.
The craze really got rocking when Stanley hired former Crocs marketing exec Terence Reilly in 2020. He tapped into using TikTok influencers as ambassadors for the product. Apparently there’s something called #watertok where people post videos about drinking water. Doesn’t sound too scintillating, but boy does it move units.
Reilly sold the tumblers in cute pastel colors—perfect for coordinating with your outfit—and offered limited quantities to create a frenzy among consumers. Soon fans were camping outside Target stores to grab a special-edition Quencher. (Now that it’s sold out, they’re going for hundreds of dollars on EBay. Yes, hundreds of dollars for the adult version of a sippy cup.)
We may be at Peak Stanley, as the company’s sales increased tenfold from 2019 to 2023. But fads fade, and teens are fickle. Chances are it won’t be too long before, just like S’well, Nalgene, and Hydro Flask, these bottles are relegated to the back of the cupboard.
SO WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
While Google Glass was a flop, Silicon Valley hasn’t given up on virtual reality headsets. Apple’s Vision Pro headset, set to be released in February, is sure to be snapped up by Apple superfans, despite the $3,500 price tag. Can I use them to talk to Hologram Steve Jobs and ask him to explain why I spent a mortgage payment to look like Robocop?
Intel forecasted a gloomy outlook for the quarter, due to a weak PC market. Apparently, a lot of GenZers stopped using a PC when they hit puberty and grew out of being obsessed with Minecraft.
Colgate-Palmolive is expecting lower sales this year because they jacked up their prices. Colgate, I’m sorry to break it to you: toothpaste isn’t a luxury product. It’s just something everybody spits out twice a day.
Amex’s stock just hit an all-time high as its affluent customers continue to spend, spend, spend. Whether you’re buying a new saddle for your polo pony, adopting a purebred goldendoodle, or booking yet another rehab stint for your butler, the Amex Black Card is a must-have.
That’s it for today, my friends; catch you back here at the usual time tomorrow morning. Yours in capitalism, The Axe