Stanley hype and Samba cringe: Why products fall in and out of style

Everyone’s talking about the Stanley cup. Not the hockey trophy — the brand of $50 water bottles that went from $70M sales to $750M in the past few years after becoming a TikTok sensation. I don’t really get the Stanley hype. But it might be too late for me, as the brand has gotten so popular so fast as to be declared ‘over’ in 2024:

The cups are “on their way out. This is peak Stanley. There’s no up from here.”
- Casey Lewis, Business Insider

The Adidas Samba shoe is another product that achieved viral popularity over the past few years. The sneaker became a favorite of models like Bella Hadid and Hailey Bieber, resulting in a situation where the shoes were both everywhere and unable to be bought as they sold out as soon as they came back in stock.
Sambas spotted on and Hailey Bieber, Kendall Jenner, Gigi Hadid. Image sources: Getty, Author
Despite the Samba’s popularity, last weekend one of my more stylish friends referred to wearing Sambas as cringe:

“Every girl in New York is wearing [Sambas]… it just doesn’t feel cool anymore.”

I couldn’t help but agree.
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