Introduction:Starbucks and Stayreal, the trendy lifestyle brand co-founded by Mayday frontman Ashin, launched a limited-edition collaboration with exclusive merchandise. Even before the products went on sale, store employees were found privately selling them, with reports even emerging of bundled sales tied to Starbucks’ limited-edition ice cream zongzi. Fans criticized the brand for poor management that undermined consumer rights. This article details the incident, the methods used by the involved employees, and the subsequent measures taken by the brand, helping readers understand how to avoid hidden rules in collaboration events.
Recently, Starbucks announced a collaboration with Taiwan’s well-known fashion brand Stayreal to release limited-edition merchandise. Fans of this brand, co-founded by Mayday’s lead vocalist Ashin and artist Ikko Tanaka, were already highly anticipating this cross-industry partnership. However, even before the official launch, social media was flooded with reports of unlisted collaboration glass cups being sold privately by store employees, sparking widespread dissatisfaction among consumers.
It is understood that Starbucks had originally planned to allow Gold and Diamond members to exclusively preorder these limited items through the official app next Monday. However, a netizen publicly shared on social media that they managed to buy one of the unreleased themed glass cups in advance through an acquaintance who worked at a store, reportedly the very last one in stock at that branch. Although the post was quickly deleted, it had already drawn strong backlash from fans, who questioned the fairness of the event.
One netizen commented: “I begged everyone I know for a Gold membership, but it still wasn’t as good as having connections.” This remark quickly resonated online, with many consumers who had planned to join the preorder feeling disappointed, believing that the brand failed to effectively control store behavior, depriving rule-abiding fans of their rightful benefits.
Even more surprising, when some fans inquired about the event at stores, they were told that the limited merchandise would be bundled with poorly selling ice cream zongzi. One comment read: “They all said it has to be bundled with the zongzi,” while another stated: “They explicitly said no cup without buying the zongzi.” Such practices led many consumers to believe that employees, in pursuit of sales targets, were willing to sacrifice the customer experience, further eroding trust in the brand.
In response to the online backlash, some Starbucks employees in related discussion threads responded by saying they had received internal notices emphasizing that the Stayreal collaboration merchandise is “strictly prohibited from being hoarded or bundled.” Insiders also revealed that the store involved had voluntarily retrieved the pre-sold limited edition themed glass cups in an attempt to appease public dissatisfaction.
Industry insiders pointed out that similar collaboration events often see high demand for limited items, prompting some employees or scalpers to seek “alternative channels” for profit. This not only disrupts market order but also ruins the shopping experience for regular consumers. It is advised that participants in such events stick to official and legitimate purchasing channels, avoiding unofficial methods to minimize the risk of compromised rights.
This incident also serves as a reminder to brands that, in launching highly anticipated collaboration products, in addition to pre-launch promotions, it is crucial to establish robust internal control mechanisms, strictly regulate store behavior, and ensure all consumers can participate in a fair and transparent environment—only then can long-term support from the market and fans truly be earned.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
