How the Starbucks tradition became the ultimate holiday motif

It's that time again! On November 7, Starbucks welcomed the holiday season by introducing its newest festive cup designs – four colorful options that fans eagerly await each year.

For many fans, the launch marks the start of a cherished annual tradition that's as much about connection and nostalgia as it is about coffee.

The Starbucks holiday cup journey began in 1997 when graphic designer Sandy Nelson was hired to create the company's first seasonal cup designs. The first design, a charming pattern of holly leaves and coffee beans, was personally selected by Starbucks founder Howard Schultz.

“It reminded him of a wrapped gift, like giving customers a wrapped cup of coffee,” Nelson recalled to Yahoo Entertainment, noting Schultz's enthusiasm for the concept.

That first collection, printed in red, green, purple and blue, was intended to be “a celebration of the season, a special moment on the customer's day,” Nelson explained, adding that in 1999 the mugs became predominantly red. “(Before) That was the premise.”

Today, 27 years later, Starbucks still introduces new holiday cup designs every November that inspire excitement among its most loyal fans. This season also marks Red Cup Day, where customers who order seasonal drinks will receive a free, reusable red cup. The exact date has not yet been announced but could reportedly be as early as next week.

For Nelson, who worked at Starbucks from 1997 to 2011, the evolution of holiday cups into a cultural phenomenon fills her with particular pride.

“I love that people take photos of their hands holding a Starbucks Christmas cup,” she said. “It has become a predictable tradition when so much of the world feels uncertain, (and) a small joy in the midst of our busy lives. It’s exciting to see the tradition live on!”

The magic of the red cup

For Starbucks fans, holiday cups aren't just about coffee — they're symbols of seasonal joy and family tradition.

Bella Boye, known for her impressive collection of Stanley Cups, said her passion for coffee items began in middle school when she and her mother made pilgrimages to Starbucks every year to collect Christmas cups.

“We got up really early to make sure we got there before they sold out,” Boye told Yahoo Entertainment. Every Red Cup day they won a new trophy, which they used throughout the season.

“Knowing it happens every year adds even more excitement,” she said. “It creates anticipation because you know it's coming, but you don't know what it's going to look like. I get butterflies in my stomach every year!”

Boye said the cups “give people permission” to go into vacation mode, which never fails to lift their spirits.

“When Starbucks releases their holiday cups, it's like the official start of the holiday season,” she explained. “People think, 'Okay, now it's time to put up the tree, now it's OK to listen to Christmas music.'”

Meghann Krieman, another Christmas trophy collector who has been part of the tradition for six years, shares the excitement.

“I can't miss it. I have to go every year to get mugs for the whole family,” she told Yahoo Entertainment. “The excitement has remained strong over the years.”

Collecting Starbucks cups has become a family ritual for Krieman. “Most of my family and friends make sure they get theirs too,” she said. “We are going as early as possible because quantities are limited.”

Now she's passing the tradition on to her own children, ages 3 and 6. “Each of them gets their own cup, just like their mother,” she said proudly.

Brewing togetherness

Kyle Duford, author of The brand bookexplained that Starbucks' iconic holiday cups act as a unique “holiday cue” to consumers, a visual cue that Starbucks has adopted.

The concept was particularly innovative in 1997, before the age of social media, when holiday references were limited to things like Christmas music on the radio or Black Friday, Duford told Yahoo Entertainment.

“What Starbucks has done is make a cultural statement,” he said, pointing out that other brands, like Amazon with Prime Day, have emulated its success by “dominating” certain seasons, but Starbucks continues to do so in a unique way connected with the Christmas season.

“You develop an emotional connection to the tradition,” Duford said of the trophies. “The cup brings people together. When you see someone holding the cup, you think, ‘Oh, it must be the holidays already.’ It makes us feel like we did when the first Christmas song came on the radio.”

Over the years, the trophies proved so successful that “the lead time to create the Christmas campaign became longer and longer,” Nelson said. “We often worked on concepts many months or even a year in advance.”

The personal connection people feel to the trophies is no coincidence, Duford explained. Starbucks, a brand rooted in familiarity and togetherness (right down to writing names on cups to “add a personal touch”), has created a new way to unite customers through shared anticipation of the holiday cup unveiling.

In doing so, Duford said, the company has become an integral part of people's lives, aligning its brand values ​​with those of “joy and giving and gratitude and gratefulness” that embody the holiday spirit.

It’s a win-win situation for a brand. “It's part of their community aspect – a physical manifestation of their brand essence,” he explained of the cup tradition, which has since evolved to include holiday items and annual menu items.

“They’re not a coffee brand,” Duford said. “They are a brand that is about community and connection, and that plays a role especially in the way we make coffee.”

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