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Starbucks is counting on your laziness, America: The chestnut latte-hawking coffee giant "anticipates a record number of gift cards to be bought on Christmas Eve as people race to get their holiday shopping done," says the Chicago Tribune. Last year Starbucks sold over two million cards on December 24, which is equal to "about 1,500 Starbucks cards per minute in their U.S. and Canadian stores." This year, they expect to sell even more.
A Starbucks rep tells the Tribune that "one in every eight American adults received a Starbucks Card last holiday season," making the signature green mermaid basically as essential to Christmas as Rudolph and the Grinch.
There's no denying America's fervor for Starbucks gift cards the other 364 days of the year, either: In 2013 the chain released 1,000 rose gold metal cards which were snapped up by overcaffeinated fanatics in just seconds, even at the hefty price of $450. This year they're hawking a sterling silver keychain version priced at $200; shockingly enough, they're still in stock on the Starbucks website.
