On December 26, major fast food chains in Japan initiated the sale of “lucky grab bags” in their stores, yet shortly after their release, numerous listings surfaced on flea market apps and online auction sites for reselling the contents, potentially violating the platforms’ terms and conditions.
“Lucky grab bags” are a traditional year-end and New Year’s custom in Japan, typically containing an assortment of merchandise from a specific store. Some bags may contain high-value items, hence the “lucky” aspect of their name.
Mister Donut, known as “misdo” with over 1,000 stores nationwide, introduced three types of grab bags priced between 2,400 yen to 5,900 yen (approximately $17 to $41) at most outlets. These bags included donut vouchers and merchandise such as Pokemon towels and calendars, quickly gaining popularity with the trending hashtag “misdo’s grab bag.”
However, soon after their release, goods and vouchers began appearing on flea market apps, with many vouchers sold at discounted rates. While Mister Donut expressed gratitude to customers for their patronage, they made no comment on the resales.
Other fast food chains such as Lotteria, Curry House CoCo Ichibanya, and Subway also joined in, offering grab bags containing meal tickets and character goods. Despite the initial excitement, flea market apps and auction sites were soon inundated with listings for these items.
Some of these resales were deemed to violate terms and conditions. For instance, McDonald’s sold grab bags through a lottery system, with winners notified on December 25. However, notifications of winning tickets were subsequently resold online, despite the actual bags not being in the sellers’ possession.
While platforms like Mercari and Yahoo Auctions prohibit the sale of items not in the seller’s physical possession, some auctions and sales have already been completed, highlighting challenges in enforcing these guidelines.