People are losing their minds over Trader Joe’s mini tote bags

Twin Cities collectors of TikTok-popular items are out of luck when it comes to the miniature version of the beloved canvas Trader Joe’s reusable tote bags that have been flying off shelves around the country: they’re already long gone from metro locations of the grocery chain.

The mini bags, available with blue, red, green or yellow straps, became instantly popular online, leading to lines and interest rivaling last year’s Stanley cup craze. At just $2.99, the bags were an affordable entry point into the viral accessories that have been popular in recent months.

Then they became inaccessible again. They started popping up on resale sites at alarmingly inflated prices. An eBay listing showed a lot of four ready-to-ship totes available for nearly $1,000.

One TikTok video showed a crowd of customers surrounding store employees pushing out a display of the bags. Another video showed a long line outside a store, which put a limit of 5 bags per person.

At Trader Joe’s locations across the Twin Cities metro, the bags sold out in a handful of days and won’t be back anytime soon, an employee said. A Trader Joes spokesperson told People magazine that customers will have another chance to grab a mini tote bag in late summer.