READ THIS NEXT: Shoppers Are Now Demanding Home Depot Stop Selling This. Social media has helped change the way we discover many things, from which new shows to binge-watch to which new restaurants or menu items should be part of your next meal. But it’s also helped create viral moments surrounding the things we buy, including some quirky and unexpected products. Earlier this summer, Home Depot managed to dominate social media conversations after it put a six-foot wide, 89-pound “Colossal Crustacean Grand Scale Giant King Crab Statue” up for sale on its website. According to the product’s description, the bright red decoration was “hand-painted with powerfully convincing color and texture to be as faithful as possible to the form of its ancient species” and could help transform any location “into something truly magnificent” for the price of $1,539. Instead of languishing on the shelves in obscurity, the over-the-top item immediately became a source of amusement for shoppers who took to the comments section to have fun. “If you need a good designated driver, a reliable companion/wingman, or a therapist, this right claw man always has your back,” one joked. But giant crab isn’t the only oversized item to find fame online. On July 8, Home Depot announced the imminent return of its wildly popular 12-foot skeleton lawn ornament. The gigantic Halloween decoration helped the home improvement retailer hit record-high sales numbers in 2020 after it went viral on TikTok and has sold out before October for the past two years. And now, another seasonal item is taking the internet by storm. Many usually celebrate the return of spooky season by ordering pumpkin spice coffees and lining up scary movies to watch through the fall. But now, social media is showing that there may be a new iconic Halloween item joining their ranks as a decorative rug covered in ghosts has made its triumphant return to T.J. Maxx and Marshalls, Apartment Therapy reports.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb The relatively simple black and white mat made major waves last fall after it went viral on TikTok and became the hard-to-find-yet-must-have item of the season. Now, customers are reporting that the $30 rug has been spotted on the retailers’ shelves in the lead-up to Halloween.
RELATED: For more up-to-date information, sign up for our daily newsletter. Like last year’s response, customers have taken to social media to share their excitement for the adorably spooky 20-inch by 60-inch runner. Videos posted to TikTok using the hashtag #ghostrug have 15.1 million views as of Aug. 30. “I can’t believe I finally got it! I went to T.J. Maxx like 20 times last year looking for this!” one user excitedly posted. “Went to T.J. Maxx for the ghost rug, and they only had two left,” another user said in their video. “I had to get it.” “Things I didn’t need but bought anyways, Marshalls Halloween Edition: I found the ghost rug!” one user enthusiastically reports. However, for as many of the success stories that customers have posted in their quests for a coveted ghost rug, there are also signs that demand may exceed supply. A search for the ghostly decor online shows that the product is sold out across T.J. Maxx’s, Marshalls’, and sister company HomeGoods’ websites—while some entrepreneurial shoppers have put their spare finds up for sale on resale websites such as Mercari at a nearly 100 percent markup. Even Jocelyn Sipowicz, the artist who designed the spooky rug, is having trouble locating the product. A series of her posts have detailed trips to multiple locations that show despite finding several other autumn-themed pieces she made, she keeps getting her “hopes up around every corner…Only to be ghosted again!” Still, shoppers aren’t giving up hope amid signs that there are still rugs to be found—while others are pointing out that they don’t quite get the hype. “Why does everyone want this? The ghosts look like that one old worm fish thingy from Spongebob!” one user joked in a reply.
