The most wanted bag in the market nowadays isn’t a top-five designer brand, and not even a designer brand in the first place. Currently, Trader Joe’s canvas mini tote bags are dominating the marketplace with social media attention that has been drawing from all over the nation. The unexpected viral phenomenon spiraled out of control, and the bags are being sold for nearly 200 times their retail price. With the average retail cost of $500, the $2.99 tote bag’s value spiked over the past few days.
The tote bags’ differing qualities make them stand out from the other options in the market. For instance, Trader Joe’s mini tote bags come in a variety of available colors such as blue, green, red, and yellow. Each bag measures six inches wide, 11 inches long, and 13 inches high. While the tote bags aren’t enough to hold all the necessary materials for grocery shopping, many social media influencers are planning to make use of the sensational tote bags as lunch bags.
As the popularity of the new craze rivals last year’s Stanley Cup craze, it is unclear to people why the tote bags are a sudden fad. The only difference between the mini tote bags and the larger Trader Joe’s tote bags is the color variety. “The composition is the exact same heavy-duty, 65% cotton, and 35% polyester blend,” clarified the Trader Joe’s website. While some believe the popularity is only from the social media platforms and advertising, others believe that there may be something else special about the tote bags. The sudden growth of demand also astonished the grocer, adding another layer to the mystery of the mini tote bags’ success. Trader Joe’s, equally confused by the publicity that the mini tote bags brought to the company, publicly stated that it neither aided in the resale of the tote bags nor approve of them in any way.
“The bags sold more quickly than we anticipated,” Nakia Rohde, the store spokesperson, revealed in an interview with USA Today. “Before we had the opportunity to promote them in any way, customers across the country found them at their neighborhood Trader Joe’s.”
Social media users displayed how Trader Joe’s fanatics have been determined to purchase the totes. In some stores, due to the unmanageable popularity of the product, managers announced that there was a limit of five bags per customer as consumers lined up to obtain the coveted bags. Resale values are on eBay for astronomical markups, one listing having the bag sold for $1000, according to NBC News. Trader Joe’s doesn’t approve of the soaring prices of the resales, and voiced its less-than-enthusiastic opinion on the matter. While the company gained significant revenue from the tote bags, its lukewarm reaction left social media influencers to reflect on how the tote bags became popular in the first place. It is unknown to people when the tote bags started to be sold, but it was during February when the tote bags first started to pop up on social media.
In some locations, social media influencers have announced that the Trader Joe’s tote bags are entirely sold out. This is a disappointment for all shoppers as the mini tote bags are currently in limited edition status and are not planning on returning until late summer. As the popularity for Trader Joe’s mini tote bags continue to soar, many individuals reflect on the influence of social media as well as the effects it has on consumers.
