Decoding the Uniqlo cloth bag fever "storming" on Tiktok

Uniqlo Round Mini Shoulder is a “hot-hit” topic that appears continuously on TikTok, and at the same time marks the return of nylon cloth bags.

Decoding the Uniqlo cloth bag fever “storming” on Tiktok

Described by the brand as the perfect solution for activewear with convenient pockets and top-notch water resistance, the Uniqlo Round Mini Shoulder is a sought-after bag in many countries and received countless compliments on social networking platforms, typically TikTok. What is the mystery behind this craze?

The Uniqlo Round Mini Shoulder canvas bag recently took the top spot on The Lyst Index’s Q1 2023 rankings, a quarterly report that reviews the trendiest products from popular brands across the industry. So, as expected, this year’s explosive shoulder bag product became a sensation when it beat luxury products from Rick Owens, MSCHF, Bottega Veneta, and Maison Margiela.

Sold for just under $20, this is considered the cheapest product ever featured on The Lyst Index. After creating a fever on TikTok with more than 59 million views, the seemingly simple bag has “smoke” in all color schemes. The appeal of this bag is likened to the effect of the $625 Kriester sunglasses craze from brand Rick Owens when it was worn by twins Clermont and Lotta Volkova.

According to a Business of Apps report, TikTok has been downloaded more than 3 billion times with a total of 1.4 billion monthly active users by 2022 and is expected to reach 1.8 billion by the end of 2023. This huge number shows the influence of this application platform on the map of fast tastes, including the fashion industry. Names like Mandy Lee (@oldloserinbrooklyn; 394.6k followers) and Agustina Panzoni (@thealgorythm; 258.7k followers) are the go-to options for fashionistas hungry for a hit. New in the trend through tips on choosing affordable and quality accessories or #OOTD outfits with countless different styles. With the above attraction, it is understandable that when the videos about the Uniqlo home canvas bag “trend”, automatically broke the fashion chart.

The success of the Uniqlo Round Mini Shoulder is reminiscent of the Re-Nylon Prada Re-Edition 2000 mini-bag that re-emerged in 2020. When sustainable fashion trends flourished, changing shopping behavior over time. Recently, animal skin materials, especially rare animals, are no longer favored. Not to mention the unbelievable price, the difficult maintenance, and the care is a problem for many people. With a simple and easy-to-match everyday bag, nylon, and polyester materials are back in simple shoulder designs, bringing the street style or Y2K back. If fashion is a loop, then the end of these designs has returned to the goal of the original bag: storage when going out.

However, perhaps the biggest difference between the Uniqlo Round Mini Shoulder and the Re-Nylon Prada Re-Edition 2000 mini-bag is probably the price. Although lower than the average price range, the Prada nylon bag still reaches €920 (nearly 24,000,000 VND) for a mini design, many times higher than the Uniqlo Round Mini Shoulder which is less than 300,000 VND. But either way, bags like Uniqlo or Prada will still predict an “IT-Bag” phenomenon in the next fashion era.

Capturing that unexpected success, Uniqlo continuously releases new versions of this utility bag, with the desire to continue to create and continue the love. Most of these collabs follow fast trends and are a bit seamless with the main motifs of the main collection. However, these collections often do not have the same charisma as the first version.

The main reason is probably the simple design with neutral tones. This design is often easier to coordinate and apply. There are also countless tutorials on Instagram and TikTok on how to combine this bag to best suit an elegant, youthful, and higher style than putting it into high-class outfits.

However, we can’t deny the novel appeal of nature-inspired textures and combinations that seem only available in high-end brands. This novelty will be a challenge for the new outfits of fashionistas who like to play with textures this summer.