This Starbucks Holiday Cup Is Being Resold For Hundreds More Than It's Worth

Folks were already excited about sampling beverages from Starbucks' festive 2025 holiday menu, but the Green Mermaid had more surprises up its sleeve. The coffee giant recently began hyping adorable Bearista cups meant to contain your favorite of the many handcrafted and made-to-order Starbucks drinks. These 20-ounce glass cups included a straw and showcased a character eerily similar to a clover honey bear wearing a green beanie. The whole thing kind of filled you with warm fuzzies, but some folks reselling the cups online were even giddier about the new promotion.

Before they almost instantly sold out, Starbucks' Bearista cups weren't all that expensive, only costing $29.95 in-store. Yet, a few savvy individuals took to selling them on eBay and making a tidy profit in doing so. The holiday beverage containers commanded prices between $200 and $300 on average, with one even being sold to the tune of $325. Have we entered the season of giving, or the season of greed?

Now, one can put pretty much any price they like on an item they are reselling online, but that doesn't mean anyone will bite. Still, after searching for the costly cups on eBay, every listing I saw indicated the cup had already sold –- and there weren't any more available, even for the exorbitant price tag. The question remains: why are people buying them at such an inflated expense when they originally cost $29.95 at their local Starbucks?

Starbucks proudly promoted its Bearista cups on social media, and that's where I discovered that these holiday-themed beverage containers were rarer than one might think. On the Green Mermaid's Instagram page, plenty of folks revealed that they lined up at their local Starbucks to get their hands on the festive drink holders, only to find out there weren't any available. Apparently, each store was sent only one or two to sell.

Some people pointed their fingers at baristas buying the cups before paying customers ever had a chance. "Barista put out two cups and then, right as the clock struck 4:30 [a.m.] before opening the doors, went and purchased both of them before and acted like they didn't get any at the store," one Instagram comment read. Other Starbucks patrons called out the company for deliberately creating a bunch of hype with no intention of following through with the promotion. "Basically advertising a non-existent product," wrote one upset Starbucks customer, with another chiming in, "I think I have a better chance at winning the lottery than I do obtaining this cute bear cup."

One disappointed patron hit the nail on the head, posting, "I know my opinion won't change much, but this campaign has done nothing but fuel resale at absurd prices, feeding a market that shouldn't even exist." Starbucks may not have intended to spark Bearista-flation, but what did the corporate actors think would happen? In the meantime, any members of Starbucks' secret leaf rakers society or other Green Mermaid superfans may just have to pony up close to $300 (perhaps more, given how fast these are selling) if they want to get their hands on the new holiday cups.