0:05

Bella. Boy is eighteen years old.

0:08

And. She lives in Florida. The.

0:10

Other day we gotta live video call.

0:12

And. She showed me her collection of

0:14

water bottles. I have

0:16

all of them here on. This

0:19

one is called Iris. It's a blue

0:21

color in this one's a thirty ounce

0:23

cup. And

0:26

then I have another thirty ounce in.

0:28

This is called Sizzling Pink or her.

0:31

I got a lot of these for

0:33

Christmas. These are just any water

0:35

bottles. These are Stanley water bottles

0:38

also known as Stanley Cups. Stanley

0:41

cups are insulated. Travel mugs are

0:43

the most popular style. The one

0:46

Bella has eleven versions of is

0:48

called the Stanley Quencher. It costs

0:50

around fifty bucks. And this

0:53

is the Starbucks family. Very

0:55

sparkly. Very. P. And

0:57

if you have a teenager or have

1:00

been on social media recently, you've probably

1:02

heard about Stanley Cups. They're insane. We

1:04

popular right now. In

1:06

this one is the forty ounce so it's

1:09

bigger than as other to. Here

1:11

is one of the Valentine's Day wines.

1:14

It's super que with the little heart

1:16

next to the logo and the different

1:18

colors up top by the straw. That

1:21

they're like still trying to wrap my head

1:23

around is like why it gets a cop

1:25

requires that. Such a big deal. I

1:29

gotta laugh about it too. Sometimes I'm like

1:31

do I really need eleven cops and it

1:33

is kind of crazy but no sense. It's

1:36

like if you have interest or and something

1:38

you know it's okay if you like it

1:40

and if you want to get them on

1:42

everybody has now things are interested in that

1:44

other people just don't understand and it is

1:47

like I do think it's silly at a

1:49

cat but I really do. I just. I

1:51

love Stanley Cups! This.

1:57

Type of love for millions of

1:59

people like. Well have been

2:01

great for Stanley's business. The.

2:03

Company's revenue according to it's

2:05

president, has gonna buy a

2:07

thousand percent in just three

2:10

years. Welcome.

2:14

To the Journal or

2:16

Show about money, business,

2:18

and tower. I'm Reaganism.

2:20

It's Friday, January nineteen.

2:27

Coming up on the show how

2:29

the Stanley Cup became a viral

2:31

sensation. Are

2:48

calling Callum Borscht Years has been writing

2:50

about the Stanley craze. So.

2:53

I just noticed that you took a sip of something.

2:55

Was it from a Stanley Cup? I. Do

2:57

have a stanley but now I usually keep it in

3:00

the car because you can put it in there. And

3:02

a damning true to the branding, the stuff goes, stay

3:04

cold in there. And

3:07

you team. In the history of Stanley

3:09

Stanley Cup, it has been around for

3:11

more than a century. It's good. I

3:13

think of it with like my Eagle

3:15

Scout father from New Hampshire right like

3:17

toting around camping gear in the woods

3:19

and that sort of what's the brand

3:21

had been for a long time. This

3:25

daily brand was founded by inventor

3:27

William Stanley Junior in nineteen thirteen.

3:29

He invented the steel vacuum insulated

3:31

bottle that Stanley and tons of

3:34

other brands so used to this

3:36

day. The technology is really good

3:38

at keeping hot things hot and

3:40

cold things colds for hours. Over

3:43

the years Stanley became popular with

3:45

campers and construction workers. In one

3:48

of the companies ads from the

3:50

nineteen seventies, a Stanley bottle tix

3:52

a big tumble under construction sites

3:54

and comes out on stage like

3:56

soft all steal from as bottled.

4:01

We'll go only zero. For.

4:06

Decades, Stanley enjoyed modest success

4:08

selling various cubs and mugs

4:10

as well camping cooking sets

4:12

and Coors. They were useful,

4:15

but they definitely were not

4:17

cool for trend. In

4:22

Twenty Six Team, the company introduced

4:25

a new products called the Quencher.

4:27

The clincher is a large cup with

4:29

a giant handle in a strong and

4:32

unlike many other large water bottles. it

4:34

has a skinny bottom that fits into

4:36

most car cup holders. Part.

4:38

Of the novelty of the Stanley Quench,

4:40

your is just the size. I mean

4:42

forty ounces is a giant water bottle.

4:44

I'm it weighs four pounds. when it's

4:46

full with somebody shows up with like

4:49

this giant water bottles be kind of

4:51

catches people's eyes. But.

4:53

The quencher landed on the market with a

4:55

thud. Stanley's typical male customer

4:58

didn't seem to care. And

5:00

it didn't sell that well. So.

5:02

After a few years, Stanley pulled

5:04

back on the quencher. it slow

5:07

down production and eventually stop restocking

5:09

it. But just when it

5:11

look like the quencher was gonna disappear

5:13

into the dustbin of retail history. A

5:16

woman pulled one off the shelves at

5:18

a Bed Bath and Beyond And the

5:21

Cubs fades changed forever. I'm

5:24

honestly this clears am forty four years

5:27

old and I am and cofounder of

5:29

the By Guys. The

5:31

By Guide a female oriented shopping

5:33

blog that's run by three mom's

5:35

to whom live in Utah. Where

5:39

did you first hear about the Stanley

5:41

Cup Quencher? So

5:43

I found the cleanser totally organically out of

5:46

bed, bath and beyond. I had a cupboard

5:48

full of water bottles and taps, the sake

5:50

of you and as and none of them.

5:52

Something about every single one of them bothered

5:55

me. And when I found the cleanser, I

5:57

was like. This is it. Check

6:00

out about this. A

6:04

What was it about the cupboard? Check all the boxes. It.

6:07

Has a straw for easy drinking while driving. It

6:09

fits into my car cup holder, It

6:11

is dishwasher safe and also I love

6:13

the feature of having a handle. I

6:15

don't know that you, but most of

6:17

the women I know when we're getting

6:20

into our cars we have our bags

6:22

and our laptops. And our kids.

6:25

And our per se as an to have the handle

6:27

feature allows you to juggle. More things at once. You're.

6:30

Sitting at your pinky there for a

6:32

second disease like dangles the clincher. We'll

6:34

see. We'll see that as a new

6:36

phase. Conservative or

6:38

so of the of you carry it on like

6:40

we must to see really strong I don't. I

6:42

doesn't bother me. After

6:45

she discovered The Quencher and Twenty seventeen,

6:47

Vaseline or cofounder started recommending it on

6:49

the By Guide. And. As a

6:52

way to promote their sides, they

6:54

also said curated gift boxes to

6:56

popular influencers online. One. Of

6:58

the people they sent one to was

7:00

Emily Maynard, a star of the reality

7:02

tv show The Bachelor ads. Heard.

7:04

This box had a clincher in it. And

7:07

we mean or had a through the baby. Is

7:10

like a nursing mom thirst.

7:12

so. He sent her a box as

7:14

some traded items that we'd sound the by

7:16

Aid and see, opened it on her instagram

7:18

stories and was excited about the. And

7:22

employee it's Stanley saw the post.

7:24

Her name is Lauren Solomon. Lorenza.

7:27

Emily Maynard Story and thoughts:

7:30

What Is this? Darling.

7:33

Reality television star

7:35

Acehnese say. At

7:37

doing on Instagram with this cop I

7:40

work with this company were mostly outdoors

7:42

the monthly markets. A man it felt

7:44

like worlds colliding for her. Lord

7:47

got in touch with the women at the By

7:49

Guide and started quizzing them about why they liked

7:51

it so much. She. Decided to

7:53

help them purses five thousand quenchers wholesale

7:55

that the by guide to the and

7:57

resell for full price on it's website.

8:00

And keep the profits. But.

8:02

You get the Cubs! Ashley inner cofounders

8:04

had a paid tens of thousands of

8:06

dollars which was a lot of money

8:08

for their small operation. They.

8:11

Took every dollar that we had earned

8:13

to that point in our business account

8:15

and had the settlement. Some friends personally

8:18

from the three of us and we

8:20

placed a wholesome murder with suddenly six

8:22

weeks we were able to our location.

8:25

They offered it's going to do with great. With that we

8:27

can both. Is and We

8:29

services they say in. A.

8:32

Secured. Warehouse. I'm sitting face

8:34

and. We are ninety five thousand apps.

8:38

And they sold out I think. And

8:40

five days. How did you

8:42

feel when you saw them flying off your

8:44

virtual shelves like that? It's

8:47

the best being right? Always felt

8:49

that price for the sale and

8:52

sisters. It was exciting. I was really

8:54

exciting. So. They ordered

8:56

more cops and did it again. And

8:59

again. And a cups cups

9:01

selling out immediately. Seeing.

9:03

This success oscillator cofounders push

9:05

Stanley to go bigger. In

9:08

a meeting with the company's executives, they said

9:10

the company was marketing the cop all wrong.

9:13

They shouldn't be pitching it to men. Be.

9:15

Needed to be selling it to women. And.

9:18

They should make the cup and more colors. Still,

9:21

Actually says Stanley wasn't entirely

9:23

convinced. Some.

9:26

Of the executive at a really difficult

9:28

time imagining. A

9:31

more female leaning color palette on the

9:33

selling products. They had developed a very

9:35

strong, very reputable brand. over a hundred.

9:37

Years and you know how?

9:39

Skaggs Family strong. Was really important

9:42

to them and they didn't wanna do

9:44

anything that they felt like way to

9:46

compromise. The strength of that

9:48

brand identity so is. It

9:50

takes some condensing. Eventually

9:53

Stanley did decide to partner with

9:55

the By Guide and then the

9:57

company got a new presidents who.

10:00

Through we believe in what the by guy was doing.

10:10

Courage. I learned it for my

10:12

adoptive mommy. And.

10:16

Learn about adopting a scene from foster care

10:18

at adopt. Us kids.org You can't imagine that were

10:20

lord bless you. Buy that, The U S Kids,

10:22

The Us Department of Health and Human Services. And

10:24

yeah, Council. In

10:32

twenty twenty, amended, parents rallied

10:34

join Stanley's it's New President's.

10:37

Years or colleague Callum again. When. Terrence

10:39

Riley took over this brands. This was

10:41

still a very male focus brand right

10:43

at the outdoorsman. That was sort of

10:45

food. A key demo was. And

10:47

I think the biggest thing that he

10:49

did when he arrived stand the was

10:51

to sort of broaden the idea of

10:53

who the Stanley consumer was going to

10:55

be. During. His first

10:58

week on the job, he got an idea for

11:00

how to do that. When. You started

11:02

asking employees about what was working at the

11:04

company and what wasn't. Here.

11:08

He is on a podcast the summer. Lauren

11:10

Solomon, one of our brilliant

11:12

sales associates, Stanley told me

11:15

that there was a group

11:17

in Utah the had a

11:19

genuine love for this little

11:21

product called The Clincher since

11:23

he was forty ounces as

11:25

immediately. I knew the that

11:27

was it. The way

11:29

described to me was he wanted the

11:31

the Stanley Quencher to be akin to

11:33

a woman's handbag and how a woman

11:36

might on multiple handbags and matches to

11:38

whatever else are coordinated to whatever outfit

11:40

she was wearing. Like Dicks that's got

11:42

was his goal to stand the quencher

11:44

that he would get it in different

11:47

color ways, are indifferent finishes, and and

11:49

you wouldn't need just one. And depending

11:51

on what you were wearing that day

11:53

or what your mood was that day,

11:55

you'd pick your Stanley for the day.

11:58

rally kept listening to the advice of the

12:00

women at the buy guide. And Stan Lee

12:03

began making changes to the quencher. They

12:05

redesigned the cup straw and began offering it

12:07

in more colors. Here's

12:09

Ashley again from the buy guide. I

12:12

think the biggest difference when Terrence came on was

12:14

just that enthusiasm. We didn't

12:17

get pushback. We got enthusiasm. He was

12:19

excited about working with us. He

12:21

understood. He understood what

12:24

was possible with this women

12:26

selling to women, the viral sensation that could

12:28

happen, the

12:31

way organic sales works

12:33

in the real world. He understood all

12:35

of those things. And he understood that we have

12:38

the potential to really bring

12:40

this to the level we

12:42

wanted it to. A

12:47

lot of this playbook of trying to

12:49

make a relatively boring product cool was

12:52

similar to Riley's strategy at his

12:54

old job, Crocs. Those rubbery,

12:56

weird looking sandals. At

12:59

Crocs, Riley took the advice of

13:01

an intern and decided to partner with the

13:03

rapper Post Malone who just so

13:05

happened to be a major Crocs fan. And

13:07

it was a huge hit. He helped

13:10

revive that brand. People think

13:12

they're ugly or they're uncool

13:14

or people love them, right? And so

13:17

he was able to develop kind of

13:19

a cult following around those and has

13:21

been able to kind of replicate that

13:23

success with the Stan Lee. At

13:26

Stan Lee, like at Crocs, he

13:28

partnered with people who were already passionate about

13:30

the product. And he teamed up

13:32

with influencers who promoted the brand on social media.

13:36

Social media influencers certainly existed before them. But

13:38

this is part of what I think you

13:40

have to give Terrence Riley credit for as

13:42

he helps take over this company is finding

13:45

a way on the cheap, right? To not

13:47

have a big splashy marketing campaign but to

13:49

find people who will help push your product

13:51

out into the wild and make

13:54

it really popular on social media. Starting

13:56

on Instagram and then migrating to TikTok.

14:00

The strategy worked. Stanley Cup

14:02

videos started appearing all over social

14:04

media. The hashtag Stanley

14:06

Tumbler has over a billion views

14:08

on TikTok. Oh

14:11

my gosh! I love

14:13

my family! I love the

14:15

stuff for Christmas and I honestly love

14:17

it. Beautiful. $40 for 40 ounces

14:19

of water is not that bad if you think about it.

14:23

Stanley pays close attention to these TikTok

14:25

videos. A few months ago, a

14:27

woman posted about how her car caught

14:29

on fire, but her Stanley Cup survived

14:32

and it even still had ice in it. Stanley

14:34

saw the video and posted its

14:37

own TikTok in response. Hey Danielle,

14:39

my name is Terrence Riley. I'm

14:41

the president of Stanley. And

14:43

we've all seen your video. Wow.

14:45

Riley had a surprise for her. But

14:48

we'd love to replace your vehicle. Yeah.

14:51

All of us at Stanley, we'd really like

14:53

to replace your vehicle. So check

14:55

your DM's for... Stanley bought the woman a

14:58

new car and the

15:00

video the company posted on TikTok about it has

15:02

more than 55 million views. Stanley

15:08

also started partnering with brands like

15:10

Starbucks, Olay and Target to release

15:13

limited edition cups and new colors.

15:16

And people will stand in line for hours for them.

15:18

Stanley came out with a blue cup. Blue is my favorite

15:21

color, meaning I need it. So we're at Target and we're

15:23

gonna try to find one. There's

15:27

one. We checked inventory so they have

15:29

13 and hopefully

15:31

we just need one. All

15:33

of this made Stanley cool. And

15:36

teenagers especially seem to love it. It's

15:39

sort of like the iPhone in a

15:42

way when you see your older sister

15:44

with it or your parents with it.

15:46

Yeah, maybe they're using it for work

15:48

stuff but whether it comes down to

15:51

the sleek design or the

15:53

expense of it, right? It's kind of like a

15:55

status thing still a little bit. I mean, it's

15:57

still a very posh water bottle relative to some

15:59

of the... the other options, what

16:02

they've managed to do is make

16:04

the Stanley Quencher aspirational for the

16:06

tween crowd. As

16:09

a result, Stanley's revenue has

16:11

exploded. Before the Quencher

16:13

craze, the company's annual revenue was around

16:16

70 million dollars. In

16:18

2023, it was projected to hit 750 million dollars. What lessons do you

16:25

think other brands can learn

16:27

from Stanley's success? I

16:30

think a big lesson from the

16:32

Stanley success story is that companies

16:35

should really identify who their evangelists

16:37

are going to be, who really

16:40

loves your product, and would

16:42

be willing to tell the rest of the world about

16:44

it. And that may sound sort of obvious, but I

16:46

think that a few years ago, the

16:49

idea of really embracing the bloggers

16:51

and social media influencers who were into,

16:53

who really were the early doctors of

16:55

the Stanley Quencher, you know,

16:57

that was still kind of unconventional to really

17:00

lean into that as a marketing strategy. Ashley

17:05

from the Buy Guide, the patient

17:07

zero of Stanley Cup's virality, says

17:10

she never doubted the Cup's potential. Did

17:13

you ever imagine that the

17:16

Stanley would be this successful?

17:19

I mean, we did. I mean, we really did.

17:21

We really thought, this is why it's so crazy.

17:23

People are like, why did you do what we

17:25

did? Because this is what we thought it could

17:28

and should be. We thought

17:30

this is what every adult woman wants.

17:32

That's going to be part of her life. It's going to

17:34

be a part of her every day. And now it's awesome

17:36

because even these cool girls are counting their

17:38

families. I mean, it really is

17:40

truly amazing to me. Like, how often in the world

17:43

of business do you ever see like a

17:45

passionate customer base, essentially? Just you

17:47

guys were customers of this company

17:50

forcing your way in, essentially, saying, you've

17:52

got something here. You don't even know

17:55

what you've got. We were

17:57

very lucky that the way that all the

17:59

stars are It would

18:01

be almost impossible to replicate. It's

18:04

been a wild ride and it's been really fun

18:06

and it's been really lucky and very educational. And

18:09

we think it's the greatest marketing case

18:11

study ever told and we feel so happy to

18:13

be a part of it. That's

18:25

all for today, Friday, January

18:27

19th. The

18:29

journal is a co-production of Spotify and The Wall

18:31

Street Journal. The show

18:33

is made by Annie

18:36

Baxter, Kylan Burtz, Catherine

18:38

Brewer, Maria Byrne, Victoria

18:40

Dominguez, Pia Gadkari, Rachel

18:42

Humphries, Matt Kwong, Kate

18:44

Linebaugh, Jessica Mendoza, Annie

18:46

Minoff, Laura Morris, Enrique

18:48

Perez de la Rosa,

18:50

Sarah Platt, Alan Rodriguez-Espinoza,

18:52

Heather Rogers, Jonathan Sanders,

18:54

Here's Singy, Jeevika Verma, Lisa Wang,

18:57

Catherine Whalen, Tatiana Zamesh, and

19:00

me, Ryan Knudson. Our

19:02

engineers are Griffin Tanner, Nathan Singapak,

19:04

and Peter Leonard. Our

19:07

theme music is by So Wylie. Additional

19:09

music this week from Catherine Anderson,

19:12

Marcus Bagala, Emma Munger, Peter Leonard,

19:14

Billy Libby, Bobby Lord, So Wylie,

19:16

and Bludot Sessions. Fact-checking

19:19

by Mary Mathis. Thanks

19:27

for listening. See you Monday.