Canvas bag boxes were waiting to be shipped in a warehouse located at 8369 Milliken Avenue in Rancho Cucamonga, California. They resembled the ones people wait in line for outside Trader Joe’s stores before dawn in terms of shape, proportions, and overall vibe. However, Trader Joe’s claims that they were completely incorrect. The stitching was not correct. The weight of the fabric was different. It wasn’t exactly the same color. Additionally, they were being sold for more than $50 apiece on eBay from Hong Kong.
That particular detail—a sophisticated enough counterfeit tote bag operation to justify a federal lawsuit and a temporary restraining order—says something intriguing about Trader Joe’s current position in American retail culture. On June 3, the company announced that a new striped mini canvas tote bag would be available on June 17 at a price of $2.99. The bag will come in four soft pastel colors—mint green, pink, light blue, and tan—that the company hasn’t yet officially named. The bags have a front pocket, are 11 inches tall and 13 inches long, and are composed of a cotton-polyester blend. Simple things. However, nothing about this product has been simple in a long time.
It’s the tiny canvas tote that goes viral, not the insulated one, the big version, or the little $3 bag. When it first hits the shelves, it sells out in a matter of hours, sometimes even sooner. On the resale market, people in Japan and the Philippines have been purchasing it for hundreds of dollars, sometimes even more than a thousand. That kind of frenzy is obviously real, but whether or not it makes sense is a different matter. Therefore, a U.S. district court judge granted a temporary restraining order on June 8 after Trader Joe’s filed a lawsuit in late May against two California-based logistics companies, 4PX Express USA and Cainiao Supply Chain US, for allegedly facilitating the distribution of counterfeit bags. Both businesses are prohibited by the order from distributing, marketing, or selling anything bearing the Trader Joe’s name or logo.
It’s possible that most consumers don’t give the legal framework surrounding a canvas grocery bag much thought when they’re waiting in line on a Tuesday morning for a new tote drop. The way a low-cost, limited-edition product can gather enough social significance to draw counterfeiters, resellers, court orders, and breathless news coverage all at once, however, seems to capture something genuine about how consumer culture has changed. Birkin bag, Stanley Cup. Tote from Trader Joe’s. Although the reasoning isn’t the same for each of those items, there is a common theme.
In discussing all of this, Trader Joe’s has been fairly consistent. Reporters were informed by spokesperson Nakia Rohde that the lawsuit is intended to prevent consumers from being duped and that the company only sells its goods in-store; neither an official website nor independent retailers are involved. Purchasing a Trader Joe’s tote on eBay is obviously risky. The company followed the supply chain back to that Rancho Cucamonga warehouse after tracing the purportedly fake bags to two eBay accounts in Hong Kong that claimed to sell authentic versions. Investigators examined the dimensions, color, weight, and stitching of the fabric. The bags failed.
A preliminary injunction hearing is scheduled for June 26, and the defendants have until June 12 to contest the filing. The court may grant a longer-term injunction if the company doesn’t reply or show up. June 17 is still scheduled, though. First-come, first-served, limited supply of the striped mini totes is on the horizon, and lines are likely to form early. It’s really unclear if the lawsuit will have any impact on how people obtain or desire these bags. The genuine ones may feel a little more valuable as a result.
