Trader Joe’s $2.99 tote bags sell for a jaw-dropping $500 on eBay and Facebook Marketplace
- Spurred on by social media, customers are flocking to the supermarket chain to buy the viral ‘mini bins’
- Several locations have placed limits on the amount each customer can purchase
- The buying frenzy is reminiscent of the TikTok-fueled Stanley Cup trend
A Trader Joe’s tote bag, which retails for less than $3, is being resold online for hundreds of dollars as frenzied shoppers rush to get their hands on the item amid a viral craze.
The small canvas bags are available in red, blue, yellow and green and have become the subject of the latest trend sweeping the internet.
Videos of customers – mainly young women – flocking to the supermarket to fill their trolleys with containers have been viewed more than 11 million times on TikTok.
Hundreds of listings have been posted on e-commerce platforms such as eBay and Facebook Marketplace.
As of Sunday evening, hundreds of mini bins were listed on eBay, ranging in price from $5 to nearly $500.
A Trader Joe’s tote bag that sells for less than $3 is resold online for up to $500 on e-commerce platforms
The most expensive listing on eBay was $499.99 on Sunday evening. One set of four bags had already been sold
New deals on the trendy bags are popping up every day, as several Trader Joe’s locations have placed limits on how many each customer can purchase
Customers seem willing to spend any amount for the trendy bags, and new deals are popping up every day.
One seller offering four bags for $47.90 had already sold 51 of the sets by Sunday evening.
Another copy priced at $499 sold once, with two more remaining.
It’s unclear if these bags were actually sold at the listing price, as eBay users can bid below that.
Customers took to TikTok to complain that local stores had already placed a limit on the number of bags one person could buy.
‘There was one store near me where the limit was 8, PER CUSTOMER!’ one commenter noted.
“There’s a sign in our Trader Joe’s saying it’s sold out until 2025,” another user wrote, punctuated by a series of crying emojis.
When asked what practical purpose the small bag might serve, one user suggested it could be used “if you only want to carry a few things, like a handbag.”
The bags retail for less than $3, and sets of three or four bags sell for hundreds online
Videos have surfaced of users customizing the bags with embroidery. The craze is reminiscent of the Stanley Cup trend, which was also fueled by social media
Customers took to TikTok to complain that some stores were sold out until 2025
Videos have surfaced of users customizing the bags, such as one woman embroidering small flowers and hearts onto the canvas fabric.
An employee at a location in New Jersey shared it CNN that the buying frenzy started about two weeks ago.
‘Customers love it. They buy a lot,” she said. “Easter is coming and they make great baskets for kids.”
Among adult customers, the craze is reminiscent of the Stanley Cup trend, which was also fueled by social media.
Target launched a limited-edition Valentine’s Day collection of the popular cups ahead of the holiday season in December 2023, prompting customers to line up outside stores in anticipation.
The brand has since come under fire for failing to properly disclose the presence of lead in the cups.
Different consumers out California And Nevada have submitted Classic complaints against Seattle-based parent company Pacific Market International, LLC, which is seeking tens of millions of dollars in damages.