Paden Ferguson, a 34-year-old CEO in Tulsa, successfully secured the highly sought-after Starbucks Bearsita cup after camping outside the store starting at 1 a.m. The experience, which required extensive preparation and a late-night wait, made him feel like a teenager again.
This essay is based on a conversation with Paden Ferguson, CEO of Padiano’s Kitchen, and has been edited for length and clarity.
In October, I saw online that Starbucks was launching its new holiday drinks and desserts, alongside a small holiday bear cup featuring a green beanie hat and straw. For the next month, my partner and I planned to get the bear cup on its release day, November 6th. We initially assumed it would be easy—just walking into the shop around noon.
However, we soon noticed that the cups were going viral across social media. Everyone was obsessed with this bear.
Realizing the intense competition, we began preparing on the evening of November 5th. We mapped out our five local Starbucks stores to estimate the inventory. After visiting the busiest location, a barista informed us they only had seven cups, and warned that not all stores would carry the item, with some having as few as one or none at all. The urgency was immediate; we knew we had to get them.
Around midnight, we decided there was only one choice: we had to camp out. At 12:30 a.m., we rummaged through our garage for camping chairs, blankets, and anything else we could use for a makeshift setup.
We arrived at the Starbucks at 1 a.m. Since no one else was there, we stayed in the warmth of the car. I watched “Love Island” while keeping watch, and my partner slept.
At 1:45 a.m., another car pulled up. Thinking it was “game time,” I woke my partner, and we quickly set up our chairs and blankets by the door. A little after 2 a.m., another person showed up. Eventually, there were nine of us altogether, all trying to peek through the window to see how many cups were inside.
When the employees arrived a little after 4 a.m. for the 4:30 opening, they looked at us like we were crazy. We watched through the glass as they pulled out the bears—only two of them. We hoped they had more in the back.
Three people left, deciding to try a different store. One person mentioned he had planned to buy all the cups he could find and resell them.
When the barista unlocked the doors, they announced that there were only two cups available for sale.
The remaining people in line were upset, but the woman directly behind us congratulated us, saying we deserved the cups for waiting the longest. My partner and I quickly grabbed both $30 Bearista cups, along with some cake pops and Christmas drinks.
I did feel a bit guilty about getting the only two, but we had waited all night and were the first in line. By 5 a.m., we were home, feeling incredibly successful. It was a spontaneous, silly, and fun experience—something we don’t get to do much anymore as adults. It truly felt like we were teenagers again.
When we woke at 11 a.m., we saw “horror stories” all over TikTok from people who had camped out for hours and gone home empty-handed. We realized just how lucky we had been. Around noon, we stopped by the same Starbucks location; they had sold out of every single Christmas item they carried. While it was definitely intense consumerism, it was fun.
