PJ’s rides Starbucks’ buzz, minus the controversy
Every year, a coffee chain unveils a limited-time holiday cup, to considerably more fanfare than a temporary container change might merit. This year, pint-sized PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans decided that it’d be that operation, Starbucks be damned.
The 84-unit chain scheduled the rollout of a holiday cup exactly one week before Starbucks pulled off its big reveal—close enough to capitalize on the hoopla over Starbucks’ much-anticipated and routinely leaked introduction, yet far enough in advance to have some solo crowing time.
Starbucks’ 2018 holiday cups proved controversial, a tradition as rock-solid as singing Christmas carols. PJ’s avoided any charges of excessive political correctness by featuring scenes of its native New Orleans on the containers.