[WHY] The mystery behind all those Trader Joe's bags in Korea

Why are there so many of those plain canvas Trader Joe's bags all over Seoul lately? Why takes a closer look at what's behind the practical yet surprisingly fashionable phenomenon.

Trader Joe's canvas tote bags hang on the wall at Trader Joe's store in Los Angeles. [CHO YONG-JUN]

A Trader Joe's canvas bag is not the same as a branded luxury handbag, far from it. The somewhat plain cream-and-navy tote bags sell for just $3.99 at the well-known grocery store chain in the United States. But these days, they're gaining popularity as both a trendy item and resale market darling in Korea. People have been selling the signature canvas bags for 15,000 won ($10.83) a piece, and sometimes for even more on secondhand trading platforms like Karrot and Bunjang. Naver Shopping, which lists the bag at 20,500 won, has sold more than 700 of them.

It is a sight that has become all too familiar in Seoul and other cities: old and young Koreans alike, all shouldering or swinging the same Trader Joe's canvas tote bag as they move around the city.

"Is there, by chance, a Trader Joe's pop-up store in Korea? The reason for my question is that over the past few months, I’ve seen this bag on people’s shoulders 10-20 times a day," an anonymous contributor on Facebook’s Every Expat in Korea community wrote on Sept. 14. Trader Joe's, however, has no stores in Seoul, nor anywhere else in Korea. Or even Asia.

The California-born grocery chain boasts 608 stores, all within the United States — including many within California — and famously does not even operate an online store. This means that the only place to buy a Trader Joe's-branded canvas bag firsthand is at an actual brick-and-mortar Trader Joe's store in the United States.

So, how come the canvas bag is so widespread in Korea? Did everyone in Korea just travel to the United States? Well, that may be partially true, as 1.15 million Koreans did visit the U.S. in 2024, according to immigration data compiled by the Ministry of Justice.

Some speculate that the popularity of the Trader Joe’s bag is due to Korea's longstanding adoration of the United States while others note the simple design or functionality as key factors. The bags have also been spotted in London and Tokyo, in fact.

But whatever the reason, in Korea the bags have caught on as a trendy souvenir and present to give out to friends and colleagues.

Back when going abroad was a privilege

To understand why and how this simple American canvas bag increasingly became such a common sight here, one must look more closely at what Koreans in the past have brought back from the West and Japan when they went abroad.

The so-called Japanese tradition of omiyage is commonly referred to as the culture of giving small souvenirs and gifts like food and local specialties to work colleagues, friends and family after a trip to other cities and countries, regardless of if the trip was for leisure or business purposes. While there are no specific words to describe this phenomenon in Korean, the culture of bringing back little presents does also exist in Korea, as it does in many other countries around the world.

Prior to 1989, Koreans simply could not leave the country, unless under very rare circumstances. Anyone wishing to go overseas had to not only receive government approval, but also conform to specific age restrictions and demonstrate proof of financial stability. They also had to attend mandatory anti-communism classes before going abroad, no matter what the purpose of the trip was. This, on top of Korea's lower economic status at the time, when Korea's GDP level was at the level of other developing countries, meant that anything foreign was seen as luxurious and worthy of a gift.

Once travel limits were lifted in 1989, more than one million Koreans went abroad that same year, often returning with foreign goods. According to a survey done by the Korea Tourism Organization in 1991, which allowed multiple responses, over 50 percent of Koreans said they bought liquor and cosmetic products when they traveled abroad, followed by 45.9 percent who bought electronics and 26.3 percent who bought clothing.

“It was a time when Korean-made products were not of good quality,” Hanyang University tourism Prof. Shin Hak-seung told the Korea JoongAng Daily. “This meant that Koreans bought electronics from Japan, cigarettes from America and beauty products from all over.”

It was jokingly said that most common sight in Gimpo International Airport was Koreans returning from Japan with three Zojirushi rice cookers — one carried in each hand and the third one getting kicked along the floor as they walked, according to the JoongAng Ilbo.

A customer at The Hyundai department store in Yeouido, Yeongdeungpo District, western Seoul. [CHO YONG-JUN]

Trader Joe's is special

But as the quality of Korean products rapidly improved in the 1990s and beyond, becoming comparable to or even surpassing Japanese and American-made products, the benefits of buying electronics or foreign-branded items and bringing them to Korea quickly diminished. Korean-made rice cookers were on par with Japanese "elephant" cookers and many American brands like Ralph Lauren and Mac cosmetics were sold in the country; unless they were much cheaper to buy abroad, like in duty-free stores, most foreign-made products were available in Korea.

On top of that, even when products are not officially sold in Korea, many have turned to online shopping, directly purchasing a wide range of items — from books and electronics to powdered milk — from non-Korean shopping sites.

This, in turn, has Koreans seeking "special" souvenirs, according to Shin.

"A souvenir is all about its scarcity, including the fact that you can’t easily acquire it in your home country,” he said. “But with online shopping so prevalent, the items that you can only buy in offline stores have risen in value.”

Surprisingly, what seems to be a normal, everyday canvas shopping bag sold by a grocery store fits perfectly into that category: At $3.99, it is basically the cheapest product you can buy from the United States, it is only sold at physical Trader Joe’s stores and it is actually practical to use in day-to-day life. While it is technically possible to buy the bag in Korea, through unofficial resellers, doing so requires spending a minimum of 15,000 won or more in the secondhand marketplace.

Trader Joe's canvas tote bag listed on the secondhand marketplace Bunjang [SCREEN CAPTURE]

"I asked my son to buy me a Trader Joe's canvas bag when he travelled to the United States," a stay-at-home parent named Ji told the Korea JoongAng Daily, adding that she had also bought a Whole Foods canvas bag when she visited the United States previously.

"I wanted the bags because those grocery stores don't operate in Korea."

The professor, saying he himself had also purchased the same bag when he was in the United States testified that the bag is "surprisingly sturdy and practical."

"The bags are quite cheap, and they also don’t take up that much luggage space or weight, making them perfect to give as souvenirs to multiple people," he said.

"My mom told me I was crazy and that gifting a grocery bag was not a good gift," said Katy Jones, who brought Trader Joe's bags to Korea to gift to her partner's family.

"They loved them and use them all the time."

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]