咖啡店为什么开始卖包？

Recently in the US, there is a supermarket called Trader Joe's, and a kind of small bag it sells has made many people want it very much.

This kind of bag is very small, about only as big as an iPad, and the price is $2.99.

On September 30, this supermarket launched a Halloween special edition of the small bag.

As a result, long lines formed at the doors of many stores in the US.

Some stores had no choice but to set a rule that each person could buy only a few at most.

Strangely, this bag is so small it can hardly hold anything, but people still scramble to get it.

People who could not buy one went to second-hand websites to look for it.

There, for this bag with an original price of $2.99, some listed it at $20, and some even listed it at $50,000.

These are the prices sellers listed; the report did not say which prices actually sold.

You might wonder, why is such a small bag so desirable?

The store name on the bag also carries the buyer's fondness for this store.

This kind of bag, we call it 'peripheral products', or simply 'merch'.

The word 'merch' is now more and more common.

It refers to small things made by a company or brand, such as clothes, hats, cups, bags and so on, printed with their name or logo.

According to an estimate by a research company, the world spends about $338 billion a year on merch.

This number is very large.

However, this company's definition is very broad, including licensed goods, clothes, branded goods, and print-on-demand items.

Moreover, it is not only supermarkets that sell merch.

Bakeries, bookstores, home brands, hardware stores, and even tech companies are all selling their own merch.

For example, there is a tech company called Palantir, and in July this year it started selling white tennis outfits printed with the company's logo.

There is also OpenAI, the company that makes the chatbot, which recently also launched its own clothing line.

Someone joked online: 'This is the easiest way to be bullied in public.'

It means wearing clothes like this might get you laughed at.

But no matter what, merch is already everywhere.

But today, more and more ordinary businesses are also starting to sell merch, treating it as a marketing tool.

Why?

Because making merch is cheap and easy.

For a canvas bag, if produced in bulk, the cost might be less than $1.

But this bag will be seen by many people.

For example, if you walk down the street holding a bookstore's bag, maybe thousands of people will see it.

The bags of Daunt Books and Shakespeare and Company are very popular with readers, and the store names travel to more places along with these bags.

So merch is a very cost-effective advertisement.

Moreover, merch can also make a company seem fun and full of personality.

Many companies use humor to show their personality.

For example, in June this year, the supermarket Lidl, to tie in with the World Cup, launched a 'Three Lidl Shirts'.

This is a funny product imitating the England football team jersey, made of liquid-repellent and odor-resistant material, so it can withstand the beer poured by other excited fans.

As a result, this jersey sold out within 55 seconds.

For consumers, buying a brand's merch is also a way to support a local shop they like.

This trend became more obvious after the pandemic.

New York University's Jared Watson says the merch trend also marks a change in the way young people 'send signals' through clothes and accessories.

He says growing up in the digital age has changed their consumer psychology.

Clothing brands may all look about the same.

Now, young people want more to show their uniqueness through experiences they have had, or places they have been.

Brand consulting firm's Connor Archibald says the meaning of status has changed; before it relied on name brands and watches, now it relies more on taste and a sense of belonging.

Interestingly, wearing merch is to stand out, but at the same time it is also a way to fit into a group.

In the West, almost half of people do not belong to any group, whether a religious group, a sports club, or another civic organization.

Against the background of an increasingly fragmented society, wearing a piece of merch, especially a more niche one, is, as Watson says, 'being a small fish in a big pond, able to find other small fish'.

For some people, the ultimate goal is just a knowing nod of recognition from a stranger.

The next trend is more personal merch.

Companies like Etsy let consumers make customized things, such as cups, matches, and short-sleeved tops, as gifts for birthday parties, bachelor parties, or weddings.

This year, Architectural Digest wrote an article about people giving gifts to overnight guests, and the article asked: 'Should your home have its own merch?'

The more people value experiences, the more valuable souvenirs become.

Everyone has understood this point.

Think about it: if you had to use a bag to tell others what you like, which store's bag would you choose?