People sell the strangest things online, and one Redditor was very confused when they discovered that used luxury designer gift bags were being sold for a hefty price.
Some Redditors had ideas about why folks might want to buy these used gift bags.
The original poster shared a screenshot of three Tiffany & Co. bags being sold for 60 Canadian dollars in the r/Anticonsumption subreddit.
"Selling paper bags??" they wrote.
According to Love to Know, selling Tiffany bags and boxes is common and can be lucrative. A Tiffany & Co. box can be worth between $50 and $75, depending on its condition and what's included.
While some people buy Tiffany boxes as collectors, others are influencers who use them in photo shoots to portray a particular lifestyle.
According to Inverse, a young woman who started a side hustle selling beauty products and designer goods had many creators buying empty boxes and bags that she found were used in photo shoots for social media.
Sheffield Hallam University student Kathryn Murphy, who studies "influencers' self-branding and authenticity," said: "Aesthetics are everything in the visual social media attention economy, and this seems very much a case of 'fake it 'til you make it,' with influencers trying to present as having a level of economic and symbolic capital – or value."
Influencers are also one cause of overconsumption. According to Pittsburgh Earth Day, creators receive more products from PR agencies than they can use and end up throwing many of them away. Influencers promote these items on their social media channels, and their followers feel like they need to buy them, even if they are unnecessary.
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Saves money 💰 Showcasing empty designer gift bags is another way to promote overconsumption. While some influencers fake their status, people may feel the need to follow suit and go into debt to achieve it.
Like influencers' excess products, many of the average person's unneeded items get thrown away. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 146.1 million tons of waste went into landfills in 2018.
Reusing gift bags is a good alternative to throwing them away, but you could donate old ones instead of selling them. Donating items is how thrifters find great deals on luxury items. One thrifter found Tiffany & Co. crystal glasses for 89 cents each. Why not give them a second life if you are done with them?
In the comments, Redditors shared their feelings about selling Tiffany bags for such high prices.
One user said, "It further fuels meaningless consumption."
Another commented, "At least they're being reused and not going in the bin."
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