For Pooja Gandhi, it started with the chicken soup dumplings. Before long, she and her brother were making yearly road trips across the border to Trader Joe’s in Buffalo — for dumplings, yes, but also Everything But The Bagel Seasoning, dark chocolate peanut butter cups, and the Holy Grail of TJ’s products: a canvas Trader Joe’s tote bag.
“It became this thing. When I went to the states, I had to get my hands on it,†said Gandhi. The stylish 20-year-old University of ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ student purchased the larger version of the tote and uses it for everything — to cart her laptop and supplies to class, as a carry-on when travelling, you name it.
Many Canadians had the same idea this summer. Trader Joe’s totes were spotted on streets everywhere, in classic blue and red, this spring’s four sold-out pastel shades, and even DIY-decorated with charms and buttons.
Stay safe and stay vigilant on the streets this evening. Do not make direct eye contact with them.
One tongue-in-cheek post by TikToker Veronica Skaia saw so many of them around town that she called the TJ’s ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ takeover an “epidemic.â€
Canvas totes have been It bags for a while now. From ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ Public Library totes to Kotn bags to New Yorker carryalls, they’re a lightweight, roomy, personality-filled way to carry all of life’s belongings when we want to look semi-cute schlepping on and off public transit.
“It’s an affordable item that makes the regular person feel like they’re in tune with trends but on a budget,†said Gandhi, who, as a criminology and political science student heading into her fourth year, is watching her pennies. “That’s a really big thing: when you want to follow a trend, but when you see a celebrity do it, it feels unattainable.â€
U of T student Pooja Gandhi carries her daily essentials around in her Trader Joe’s tote.
Nick Lachance/ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ StarConsider the current state of the economy, a job market in the toilet, sky-high rents, soaring lifestyle costs, and record personal debts. (What a time to be alive!) “We’re seeing the lipstick effect play out in real life,†said Shakaila Forbes-Bell, London-based fashion psychologist and founder of Fashion is Psychology. “As clothes become more expensive, people turn to small luxuries like accessories to fulfil their desires for self-expression and connectivity.â€Â
A tote bag “is an easy, digestible spend,†said ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ creative strategist Tamara Szames. “This is the flip side of quiet luxury: it’s loud frugality.â€
Carrying a Trader Joe’s tote says maybe you’re not working with an Erewhon budget, but you’re still in the know about good food. It says: Have you even lived if you haven’t tried the Cauliflower Gnocchi?
“It’s a status symbol of health culture, being price conscious, being proud of that,” said Szames. “And it’s also a status symbol of belonging to a type of community.†Like our other daily fashion decisions, wearing a TJ’s tote becomes “an extension of your personal brand.†(And all for the low, low price of $4 USD.)
That hype is something the California-based company, which has 600 stores across the U.S., has smartly taken advantage of. It’s taken to releasing limited-edition versions of its totes that people line up for hours to get in markets like New York, and inventory sells out faster than a Rhode drop.
When The Star asked Trader Joe’s for comment, a spokesperson said, “Today totes are popular with our customers; however, we’ve had canvas totes in our stores since 1977.â€
Who wants a Trader Joe’s tote bage?
The second-hand market for Trader Joe’s totes is also lucrative — well, as lucrative as canvas bags can be. After noticing the hype building last summer, a ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ marketer called Ashton (who asked that his last name not be used), bought a handful of the bags and made a TikTok about it. He ended up selling some to his followers. “They are actually pretty durable. They’ve got multiple pockets. The canvas designs are an ‘in thing’ at the moment,†he said. “I’m not the biggest fashion person; I was just seeing the trend going around.â€
Right now, though, carrying a Trader’s Joe tote bag feels as much a political statement as it is a fashion one. Canadians have always loved a cross-border haul (Walden Galleria, anyone?), but our current relationship status with the United States is “it’s complicated.†Tariffs have dominated headlines for months, including last week’s executive order from Donald Trump for 35 per cent tariffs on goods outside of Canada’s current trade agreement with the U.S. and Mexico.
The Canadian appetite for these very American totes hasn’t seemed to soften despite the countless “shop Canada†campaigns, boycotts on American products and hesitation on travelling to the States. Perhaps it’s a sign our elbows, once very much “up,†may be dropping.Â
“I got my bag way before the tariff war started, but there is guilt attached to it,†said Gandhi. “I have tried to limit the amount of shopping that I do when I am in the United States. When I’m in Canada, I prioritize buying local.â€
The Trader Joe’s tote says “you haven’t lived until you’ve tried the Cauliflower Gnocchi.”
Nick Lachance/ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ StarSzames pointed out that it’s “buying local†that’s key in the current economic environment. Tariffs apply to where products are manufactured or made. (Fun fact: are actually made in Canada.) “You could have a brand that operates in Canada, has full distribution in Canada, its marketing product design is all Canadian, but the manufacturing isn’t,†said Szames. “‘Buy local’ is more important than ‘buy Canada.’ With buy local, we start to see neighbourhoods forming.â€
So if you’re committed to your roomy, trendy Trader Joe’s bag, maybe consider using it to tote around Canadian-made groceries, school supplies or day-to-day essentials. Everything bagels included.
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