Law enforcement in California arrested a woman who allegedly stole $2,500 of an extremely popular cup made by Stanley.
The 23-year-old from Sacramento was arrested by Roseville police officers after her car was spotted getting on the highway. Police had been contacted shortly after a reported shoplifting incident. Photos of the incident show the trunk of the woman’s car filled with Stanley Quencher Tumblers, which retail for $35 to $50 based on size.
In total, the woman is believed to have taken 65 cups from multiple retailers.
The staff members at the store contacted the authorities after seeing a woman “take a shopping cart full of Stanley water bottles without paying for them” on Jan. 17.
“The suspect refused to stop for staff and stuffed her car with the stolen merchandise,” Roseville police wrote in a message on Facebook. “While Stanley Quenchers are all the rage, we strongly advise against turning to crime to fulfill your hydration habits.”
The suspected shoplifter has been charged with grand theft and driving while under the influence, according to NPR. Her name has not been publicly released.
Stanley has been around for over 110 years. Its founder, William Stanley, invented the vacuum-sealed bottle in 1913, which allows drinks to retain their temperature for an extended period of time. The company largely sold products like thermoses, lunch boxes, and coolers that were designed for durability and largely marketed to working men.
“Today, Stanley’s Built For Life™ promise means … that your grandad’s thermos that supported pilots in World War II could very well get set beside that brand spankin’ new Classic Vacuum Insulated Bottle you picked up for your weekend camping trip,” the company said a statement in September of 2017.
The brand’s Quencher Tumbler was introduced in 2016 and jumped in popularity in part because of a post from the retail blog The Buy Guide in 2017 and a rumor in 2019 that the product was on the brink of being discontinued.
The cup went viral in 2023 on TikTok under the tag #watertok and was a must-have item among many millennial and Gen Z women. Stanley now produces the product in a wide variety of colors and partnered with Starbucks to design Winter Pink cups that customers camped outside of Targets across the country to buy. Customers also rushed to buy “Galentine’s Day” red and pink versions of the cups which were also exclusively sold at Target. Many of the cups are now being resold on eBay at much higher prices.
According to Time Magazine, a spokesperson for Stanley has reported that the year-over-year sales of the Quencher increased by 275% in 2022 and that sales of all the sizes of their tumbler had increased by 751%.
“It’s nearly impossible to scroll through the app now without seeing at least one video of a creator displaying their vast collection of water bottles or trying to sell a customized tumbler,” the outlet noted on Jan. 5.
