Are you really a Trader Joe’s stan if you didn’t get your hands on one of the mini canvas totes that hit store shelves this week? Okay, okay, after seeing the lines of people waiting to claim one for themselves that literally stretched 9,718 blocks we’ll give you a pass and allow you to keep the title of TJ’s stan even if you didn’t snag one for yourself.
But not all hope is lost–you can still acquire the highly coveted mini canvas tote, that’s if you’re willing to shell out nearly $2K!
The California-based grocery chain recently dropped a line of the bags in a cute new colorway: pastels. The bags were available in pastel shades of baby blue, pink, lavender, and mint green and, marked at $2.99, were quite the steal. The mini bags were first released back in March 2024 and immediately went so viral employees were often forced to limit how many customers could purchase.
Needless to say, customers waiting in lengthy lines to get their hands on one is nothing new. Trader Joe’s representative Nakia Rohde had told USA TODAY back in March 2024 “The mini canvas tote bags certainly sold more quickly than we anticipated. Before we had the opportunity to promote them in any way, customers across the country found them at their neighborhood Trader Joe’s.”
And this time around wasn’t any different. Trader Joe’s wrote on their website:
When it comes to our reusable bags, our customers have made themselves abundantly clear: the smaller the tote, the bigger the sensation. Last year, when we introduced our Mini Canvas Totes, we were so pleasantly surprised by their rapturous reception that we’re bringing in even more Mini Totes.
Due to the overwhelming hype surrounding the totes, people have now begun reselling them for upwards of $1,000. A current eBay listing has the tote priced at a whopping $1,600–quite the jump from the tote’s original price tag of $2.99. Someone is even selling a “rare” tote with the Trader Joe’s logo misprinted upside down for a staggering $1,999. And even the more affordable listings are still wildly overpriced–an eBay listing has a set of four of the totes priced at $50.
To be clear, Trader Joe’s representatives told USA Today that they are aware of the resellers, however they are done without [their] approval or authorization and outside the controls of [their] quality-minded supply chain.”
What would you pay for 13″ x 11″ x 6″ worth of a 65% cotton/35% polyester blend?!
Representatives did mention how the Mini Pastel Canvas Tote Bags are “ideal for smaller shopping trips–the kind where you’re just picking up something for lunch, or grabbing those items you forgot the first time around.” Sounds to us like they’re the perfect bag to grab when heading over to TJ’s new grab-and-go concept, Trader Joe’s Pronto!