Why a $10 Jar From TJ Maxx Resells for $100
Collectors bought up these ceramic jars as fast as they were stocked.
Key Points
- Rae Dunn pieces sell inexpensively, but are underproduced and not available online, thus creating a sizable aftermarket.
- Collectors seek out unique designs as highlights of their collections.
- The $9 jars sold out very fast and rocketed to nearly $100 before the holidays, cooling off afterwards.
Maybe you love it, maybe you don't, but the "all-white-with-big-letters-spelling-out-EAT-or-LOVE-or-SMILE" style has become one of the most popular and iconic motifs of recent interior design. Chief among these are the designs of potter Rae Dunn, whose collection includes flour and sugar jars helpfully labeled as "FLOUR" and "SUGAR" in her signature lettering, or coffee mugs that remind you to "DRINK." Rae Dunn branded designs have accrued a cult following, with dedicated collectors filling their homes with more pottery than a sweatshop makes in a day. A standout piece of this series is a smaller version of the standard canister marked with "SNOW DAY", topped by a red beanie for a lid.
Who is buying these?
Mostly middle-aged women. Rae Dunn branded designs are minimalist, and can fit in well with most kitchen and household designs. They are also quite inexpensive, typically ranging for $5-$15, and frequently reference pop-culture and memes, endearing them to some people. Once they become popular, Rae Dunn collectors starting buying up supply, and it seems the manufacturers seem to prefer to keep things scarce.
Rae Dunn branded designs are only sold through TJ Maxx, Marshall's and Home Goods, and critically, they are not available online. This, combined with their fanbase has created quite a significant aftermarket for the various mugs and plates. Yes, collectors are selling their dirty dishes at a markup to buy more.
The "Snow Day" Baby Canister stands out mainly because of the unique design of its lid, modeled after a red beanie. These were released in October of 2020, a time where pretty much everyone was losing their mind, and immediately started selling out. That was more or less expected of anything Rae Dunn related. However, the prices they would resell for would be exceptional.
So who is buying these (at resale)?
Retailing at $9, the jars would go on to resell for around $40 for the first month after their release. However, by late November, prices had risen to $80 in anticipation of the holiday season. In the weeks running up to Christmas, a single jar could go for more than $100. Following the holidays, demand fell off and the price for a jar hovered around the $50 mark.
Since then, prices have mainly stayed there, occasionally bouncing higher near the end of the year, but never the same peak as 2020.
For resellers, these jars were (and still are) a great opportunity to profit. If you could stock up before others, they were exceedingly easy to sell in person or online, and required little effort to move.
Otherwise, they're a great way to store some candies or chocolate. Or cocaine. C'mon, "Snow Day", really? At least a few of these have had the "other" white powder in them at some point, for the laughs.
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