"Starve": More parody merch pokes fun at Galen Weston Jr. and Loblaw
If you’re really trying to show your disdain towards Loblaw-owned grocery stores, a new tote bag has hit the market, poking fun at the company and its infamous president, Galen Weston Jr.
The bag is being sold by Cut Outs Canada, a small custom apparel and decal business based in Victoria, BC, and features a screen-printed image of Galen Weston Jr., accompanied by the word “Starve” in large letters.
The tote is meant to be a parody of the popular Barack Obama “Hope” poster and makes quite a statement about the company’s high grocery prices and the Weston family’s wealth.
“Introducing the STARVE Tote Bag,” reads Cut Outs Canada’s description of the product on its website.
Cut Outs Canada/Screenshot
“This is a novelty product and is not meant to replace your regular reusable grocery bags. Please Enjoy Responsibly.”
Loblaw and Weston Jr. have come under a constant stream of criticism over the past few years for several reasons, including ending price freezes on NoName products, being accused of price gouging, and seeing profits soar as Canadians continue to face a cost of living crisis.
It looks like the bag is resonating with some Canadians who have already purchased their tote.
“Shout out to Cutouts Canada, a small business on the West Coast, that dropped another 100 of these sweetly subversive totes for sale yesterday,” wrote one Reddit user on Thursday, adding that they bought two.
The tote bags have been ordered!
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Others commented on the post with mixed reactions.
“I love it. Maybe social pressure will do more than anything the government can,” said one Redditor.
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“You gotta draw on devil’s horns and a goatee…To finally complete that look!” joked another.
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Others felt that the bag itself was overpriced.
“[Thirty dollars] for a $2 bag and people think this is a flex on someone charging $10 for $2 of produce?” said a commenter.
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Another person argued that buying “tote bags will not make prices go down.”
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The tote bag isn’t the first piece of snarky Loblaw merch to be sold.
Earlier this month, Toronto-based artist Christofer Lam’s shirts that read “Roblaw$ Live Life Hungry” made headlines after Loblaw went after him, claiming his reworked logo was too close to its own.
Cristofer Lam/InstantDistractions
While buying Loblaw-parody apparel is one way shoppers are trying to make a statement, others have resorted to boycotting the company’s grocery stores altogether and choosing to shop at local grocers instead.
What do you think of the Starve tote bag? Let us know in the comments.
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