Caribou Coffee employee shares company’s ‘problematic’ cup decorations: ‘Sometimes it makes me laugh’

A Caribou Coffee employee is going viral after sharing the reason he has to remove approximately 25 percent of his customers’ coffee sleeves.

The worker, posting on TikTok under the username msr828, explained the company’s issue in a short, behind-the-scenes video. In his clip, the employee tells his followers that each coffee sleeve contains one of four “outdoorsy,” nature-themed phrases.

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Other sleeves in the shop’s storage appear to say things like “The scenic route is the only route” and “The world needs explorers.” However, one message contains a phrase that has only recently become an issue.

“I have to go in and I have to take out every fourth one,” the worker states. “Because they printed them with the words, ‘Fight the urge to remain indoors.'”

The unnamed employee does not specify in his video that he works at Caribou Coffee, but that fact became clear after other social media users began sharing the clip and comparing the chain’s imagery. One of those posts, shared by Washington Post reporter Dave Jorgenson, went viral on Twitter, where it’s now been viewed more than 210,000 times.

“Tough break for Caribou Coffee’s marketing team,” Jorgenson wrote.

The accidentally troublesome message, which, according to a Caribou statement to Fox News, was printed long before the global health crisis.

Now, with several states still requiring their residents to stay home and shelter in place, the chain said it has begun asking employees to “sort out materials that were produced before the pandemic and aren’t exactly on point with the heroic efforts that are being made to contain [it].”

The explanation didn’t stop social media users from poking fun at the chain, which has locations in 19 different states.

“Thoughts and prayers for the copywriter who went through 12 rounds with the client to get that line approved,” one user wrote.

“A relative snagged one for me, I have it posted near my home workspace. Sometimes it makes me laugh, it depends on the day,” another admitted.

It only took them most of a month,” another wrote, sharing a an image of a cup featuring the slogan in April.

Other comments were simply uplifting, praising the decision to remove the sleeves from circulation.

“Appreciation for whoever realized that keeping those would be problematic And for this guy for removing them,” another user added.

If you liked this story, check out In The Know’s article on this Starbucks employee’s absurd drive-thru prank.

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