Fanny-Pack Crocs are selling out, Starbucks color-changing cups are a lesson in Instagrammability, no one wants the financial advice Chase tweeted (and deleted) this week, and more stories shaking up the web this week…
1. Fanny Pack Crocs Are A Smart Marketing Move
Fanny-Pack Crocs are here, and they’re making the brand even cooler. According to People, the clog-abomination was created in collaboration with Japanese retailer Beams, and people are clamoring to buy them. The brand’s tweet, “Crocs + storage = the most hole-some creation.. so that’s gonna be a YES!” has responses like “Omg not a want a NEED” and “where can I BUY THESE.” Quartzy reports that this is just one of Crocs’ recent team-ups, which are less valuable for the revenue they generate (though they consistently sell out) than the free marketing and “brand heat” they bring. And in case you haven’t heard, thanks to this savvy marketing strategy and an era dominated by an ugly aesthetic, Crocs has become a cult favorite among young shoppers.
2. Starbucks Is Selling Out Of Instagrammable Color-Changing Cups
Starbucks started selling color-changing reusable tumblers just last week, and Business Insider reports that many locations have already sold out. Now, people are scrambling to find the cups—or to buy them at a heavy markup from savvy online re-sellers. Many have posted to social media trying to find any stores with the coveted dishware still in stock. And Starbucks is making sure everyone gets to spend their money, tweeting back to fans that they’ll be restocked next week. Starbucks actually struck Instagrammable gold twice this week, with the introduction of the Mango Dragonfruit Refresher—coveted for its bright pink color, per Refinery29.
3. Chase’s Attempt To Speak Meme Backfires
In an attempt to connect with young consumers Chase tweeted and then deleted a message that didn’t go over well. Recreating a popular meme, the message jokingly chided people who wonder why their bank account is low, but spend on other things. The Washington Post reports that politicians and everyday people were quick to call out all the underlying reasons for financial security—and the irony that the advice is coming from a flush financial institution. @SenWarren sums it up in a response tweet with over 94k likes: “.@Chase: why aren’t customers saving money? / Taxpayers: we lost our jobs/homes/savings but gave you a $25b bailout / Workers: employers don’t pay living wages / Economists: rising costs + stagnant wages = 0 savings / Chase: guess we’ll never know / Everyone: seriously?”
4. This Professor’s “Gen Z Dictionary” Is Lit
A sociology teacher put together an Excel spreadsheet to keep up with, his young students’ slang, and the internet loves it. The tweet of the glossary sent out by @mewtailv2 already has over 575,000 likes and 166,000 retweets this week, applauding funny but often accurate translations like “slaps” meaning “of high quality” and “snack” being defined as “a person who looks good.” The teacher in question, Mr. Callahan, explained to BuzzFeed, “”I love learning the words that their generation comes up with — both the unique ones as well as the ones where they take an existing word and give it a completely different meaning,”
5. Links to Pass:
The new Woodstock music festival could be New York’s Fyre Fest, Sports Illustrated is being applauded for featuring a model wearing a burkini, Nike is facing backlash—then backlash to the backlash—for showing female underarm hair, and the internet was so critical of Sonic’s live-action trailer that the character is getting a redesign.
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