From the highly anticipated annual pumpkin items to the must-haves from the frozen aisle (I'm looking at you, hash browns), Trader Joe's is the master in drawing hype around their products. But we're not here to talk about the latest food item, because the internet seems to be going wild for something else entirely: the new mini tote bags.
The totes, which come in four colors and sell for $2.99 each, have quickly taken over the internet. In a video from @athenaspud, swarms of customers can be seen waiting for their chance to grab a bag as employees try to control the crowd. One lucky customer manages to walk away with several in each hand.
The mini tote hype is so strong that people have been comparing it to the Stanley craze with one TikTok user commenting, "The totes version of the Stanley cup lol" on yet another viral video of customers snatching up as many bags as they could.
And let me tell ya, people are very obsessed. Many are suggesting that it's the perfect size to hold your lunch.
Customers are even taking to social media to show off their cute customizations.
So I got my sisters and nieces matching Trader Joe’s small tote bags. Also so my nieces can match their Tio when I take them out. Brought out my rusty embroidery skills 🥰 pic.twitter.com/PalZSgLDfj
Unfortunately, not everyone has been able to get their hands on these coveted bags as stores across the country have been quickly selling out. In a thread posted to the r/traderjoes subreddit, user u/picklesandrainbows explains that "phones were off the hook with people calling about the totes" at their local Trader Joe's and that they "sold 900 in two days."
One TikTok user mentioned that despite working at Trader Joe's, they couldn't even get their hands on one.
Other Trader Joe's employees have also been documenting their experiences with the sudden hype. Someone commented that there was a line outside their store an hour before it even opened.
Some are even running into issues with over-eager customers who are upset about the bag-per-person limit.
The obsession with these tiny bags has even led resellers to mark them up on sites like eBay, Mercari, and Poshmark where the $3 tote is going for as much as $15 apiece.
It's tricky to tell if this in-store chaos is regional. I happened to be at my local New York City Trader Joe's this past Sunday and noticed the totes were fully in stock, and no one seemed to be in a rush to grab 'em. Others have shared my experience, with one TikTok user mentioning that their store was "soooo chill."
Needless to say, some folks aren't too happy that we as a society have managed to create yet another hype product, pointing out the overconsumption of it all. "This is just the latest new thing everyone wants, and if everyone wants it, even more people will want it," Reddit user u/d_ofu wrote.
"I want one but it's like not that deep," someone else commented on TikTok.
But if you were looking to snag one, you might be out of luck. Word on the street (read: the r/traderjoes subreddit) is that the bags might not return until 2025. The Trader Joe's website also has them listed as "not available."
What do you think of the Trader Joe's mini tote bag hype? Better yet, did you manage to grab one?! Let us know in the comments!
![tiktok comment reads: "The amount of times a customer argued with me for not selling them MORE [than] we were allowed to"](https://img.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeed-static/static/2024-03/6/6/asset/8586ad66cc43/sub-buzz-3006-1709705376-1.jpg)
