Old shopping bags from British retailers are seeing a resurgence in popularity, with enthusiasts snapping them up on platforms such as eBay, Vinted, and Depop for as much as £10 a piece. These formerly mundane items, once given away for free, have turned into sought-after collectors’ treasures. Vinted has noted a 35% increase in searches for these bags in 2026 compared to last year.
A Nostalgic Obsession
The trend of collecting vintage carrier bags ties into a broader societal longing for tangible and nostalgic items. Jeremy Leslie, who founded the magazine store MagCulture in London, believes people are drawn to objects that remind them of past eras. These bags transport individuals back to their childhood, providing comfort and rekindling long-standing memories.
This growing fascination is mirrored in the activities of enthusiasts like Tim Sumner, who established the Paper Bag Archive in 2020. Sumner’s collection includes over 3,500 bags which he sees as representations of social history, capturing cultural shifts across different decades. He emphasizes celebrating these often overlooked objects for the memories they encapsulate.
The Rise of St Michael
One of the must-have items for collectors is the vintage M&S St Michael carrier, a familiar sight on British high streets during the 1980s and 1990s. This historic label, active from 1928 to 2000, remains nostalgic for older generations while also intriguing younger ones with no direct memory of it. This allure is evident in its central role in M&S’s recent collaboration with the London streetwear brand Aries, which features a £90 leather tote mimicking the old St Michael design.
Lisa Illis, head of womenswear design at M&S, views the transformation of a simple carrier bag into a fashionable leather piece as an illustration of the cultural significance of the St Michael brand. The Aries collection capitalises on this nostalgia, as designer Sofia Prantera draws inspiration from her early M&S experiences during childhood. According to Illis, for many, St Michael is a symbol of reliability and fashion heritage.
Changing Fashion and Functionality
The shift away from single-use plastics, including the 2015 UK government mandate imposing a charge, has drastically cut down on plastic bag sales by 98% by 2023. This has led to a market for the more durable canvas alternatives from stores like Trader Joe’s and brands such as APC and Alo, which are selling for over £10 secondhand and even touted as trend-setting accessories by publications like Vogue.
Regardless of the reasons behind the intrigue, old carrier bags now possess a charm that modern counterparts lack. Leslie suggests the straightforwardness and ad-hoc nature of older bag designs may contribute to their appeal, representing a time when design decisions were less calculated. These relics of everyday life, once binned without a thought, now hold sentimental and historical value amid collectors and the fashion elite alike.
Reporting based on coverage first published by theguardian.com.