The Starbucks holiday cup controversy refers to a controversy that arose in 2015 over the design of Starbucks' holiday cups. In previous years, Starbucks had featured designs on their holiday cups that included snowflakes, reindeer, and other symbols of the holiday season. However, in 2015, Starbucks released a holiday cup design that featured a simple two-tone red design, with no holiday symbols or messages.
This design sparked controversy among some customers and conservative groups, who criticized Starbucks for removing the holiday symbols from their cups and accused the company of waging a "war on Christmas." Some customers even boycotted Starbucks over the issue, and the controversy generated significant media attention.
Despite the controversy, Starbucks continued to use the two-tone red holiday cup design in subsequent years, with each year featuring a slightly different variation on the design. The company has also continued to release holiday-themed drinks and merchandise during the holiday season.
While the Starbucks holiday cup controversy was a relatively minor issue in the grand scheme of things, it highlighted the ways in which even seemingly small decisions by large corporations can spark controversy and generate significant media attention in today's highly connected world.