猫爪杯是什么梗？

Feline Lovers Bare Claws in Clamor for Starbucks Cat Cups

Coffee giant Starbucks seems to have only scratched the surface in China with a newly released form of glass mug whose liquid takes the shape of a cat’s paw when filled.

The limited pink-tinted cat-paw glasses were creating a mania around China following their release as part of Starbucks’ spring-limited cherry blossom products for the local market, playing to a growing interest in felines among Chinese millennials.

But some stores didn’t stock enough of the glasses, leading some online cat lovers to criticize the company for “hunger marketing” – a tactic that intentionally reduces supply to trigger consumer curiosity and create buzz.

The shortage even led to some cat fights in and around Starbucks stores, according to some users who uploaded video to Weibo, China’s equivalent of Twitter, reportedly showing customers fighting for the rare cups over the past two days. 

The shortage also led to profiteering as people lucky enough to get paws cups were offering them online for as much as 1,800 yuan ($270), versus an official price of 199 yuan. The noise got so loud that Starbucks came out and denied the “hunger marketing” accusations, saying the cups are just like any other seasonal products it typically releases, including the numbers produced, according to Beijing News. 

The company said it would re-stock the cups and take purchase orders on its e-commerce platforms. A staff member at a Starbucks store in Sanlitun, near Caixin’s office, said no cat-paw cups will be available for purchase in physical stores until it hears otherwise from the company.