‘Tis that season once again, and Christmas is right around the corner. With that comes a special addition to the Mount Michael Bookstore, Sprite Cranberry. Sprite Cranberry is a staple of the Christmas season here at Mount Michael, but not everyone seems to think Sprite Cranberry deserves a spot on the shelves. For example Ethan Bell ‘25 said that Sprite Cranberry is “an abomination of a drink.”
He is not the only one who shares these strong opinions in opposition to Sprite Cranberry. Owen Stricklett ‘24 said “It is overrated, doesn’t taste good.” Of course, people are going to disagree on something like this, but the support for Sprite Cranberry is still there.
It is still a holiday favorite at the bookstore and still remains the only seasonal item at the bookstore. The drink’s limited-time status helps to boost its sales at the bookstore
This tactic is not uncommon in the food industry; big corporations like McDonald’s have used this gimmick for items such as the McRib and the Shamrock Shake. But at the end of the day it’s the content of the drink that matters.
Some students even oppose the idea of soda in general and think it is bad for you. “Soda is bad for you, don’t drink it.” Brady Quinlivan ‘26 says. The facts do back him up on this, soda can lead to higher chances of obesity and diabetes if drank out of moderation. Other people who have abstained from drinking sprite cranberry is Freshman Nolan Joslin ‘27 who says “I’ve never had it.” This is partly because the freshmen have not been around during Christmas time yet.
However, to truly understand the Mount Michael Sprite Cranberry craze you have to talk to the distributor. The manager of the Mount Michael bookstore Mrs. Shelley Rodgers. “Sprite Cran is so popular that I think it brings more customers to the store who do not normally come in, but they do once they hear it has arrived” Rodgers said. The amount of Sprite Cranberry purchased is a lot more than other drinks as well. Since Sprite Cranberry hit the shelves in October, 169 bottles have been sold already out of the 264 in stock as of December 6th. Rodgers said she usually only buys 1-2 cases every two weeks, with a case containing 24 bottles. However, when Sprite Cranberry comes to the bookstore Mrs. Rodgers says she buys 11 cases. For reference to show the amount and how fast Sprite Cranberry is sold at the bookstore in 17 weeks of sales, 235 bottles of Dr. Pepper were sold, that is 13 bottles a week. On the other hand in just 6 weeks for Sprite Cranberry it is averaging a little more than 28 bottles a week thus far this year. That is more than double the amount of Dr. Pepper. Part of the reason the sales are so high is because of students buying in bulk. The largest purchase of Sprite Cranberry at one time was 24 bottles by Caleb Courtney. Despite some mixed opinions, Sprite Cranberry is still the hottest drink at Mount Michael. It is safe to say as long as Sprite Cranberry is at the bookstore there will be buyers.
