Trader Joe's mini canvas tote bags are the new viral product
Move over, Stanley cups. Trader Joe's mini tote bags are the latest product to go viral and end up on the resale market for hugely marked-up prices.
The big picture: Trader Joe's confirmed to Axios on Wednesday that the $2.99 mini canvas bags "sold more quickly than we anticipated" and before the retailer promoted them.
Driving the news: The small bags, which came in four colors, have been selling on eBay and other third-party marketplaces for inflated prices.
- Social media posts show the frenzy the bags caused with crowds of shoppers waiting at stores for the bags.
- Prices on eBay were dramatic with a single bag listed for between $18 and $500 and "buy it now" listings for a full set of the bags for $128.99 with free shipping.
Yes, but: Trader Joe's spokesperson Nakia Rohde told Axios the company does "not endorse the re-sale of any of our products, anywhere."
- "Our customers, in our stores, are our focus," Rohde said.
What they're saying: The bags were the topic of Trader Joe's new podcast episode Wednesday.
- "We thought we bought enough of these mini canvas totes to last for several weeks, maybe a whole month," podcast host Matt Sloan said. "We had no inkling that they would be this exciting, this quickly, for so many customers."
- "We had actually hundreds of thousands of bags come in and go out within a week," Sloan said.
What's next: More mini tote bags are coming and expected in late summer or September, Sloan said on the episode.
- "They are coming back, and it was kind of a one-off in that we thought they'd be limited, and we don't want to totally limit this," Sloan said, noting they're working on having them in the same colors.
Zoom in: Exclusive and hard-to-find items sell big on online marketplaces, whether it's McDonald's Happy Meal toys, Girl Scout cookies, Stanley cups or just about anything with limited supplies.
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