Walmart is taking one of its most recognizable grocery staples out of the deli section and into the accessories game. According to Walmart’s August 31 announcement, the retailer will release a purse inspired by its rotisserie chicken on September 1, giving shoppers a chance to carry a version of the popular meal instead of bringing one home for dinner. The Walmart Chicken Purse costs just $5.97, matching the everyday price Walmart lists for its hot Traditional Rotisserie Whole Chicken.
According to Walmart, the limited edition purse arrives in two versions inspired by its Traditional and Lemon Pepper chickens. The company said both styles will be priced at $5.97 and will become available beginning at 8 a.m. ET on Sept. 1 through SparkShop.com. Walmart also plans to sell the collection in person at the Spark Shop inside the Walmart Welcome Center in Bentonville, Arkansas, while supplies last.
The $5.97 price may be the biggest part of the joke. Instead of turning the Walmart Chicken Purse into an expensive novelty collectible, the retailer is pricing the accessory like the actual meal that inspired it. Spark Shop’s current collection page lists both the Traditional Chicken Purse and Lemon Pepper Chicken Purse at $5.97, placing the bags among Walmart-branded apparel and accessories rather than inside its regular grocery storefront.
The purse is also getting its own accessory lineup. According to Walmart’s product announcement, shoppers can pair the bag with miniature Traditional and Lemon Pepper Rotisserie Chicken Purse charms for $5.97 each. Great Value Louisiana Hot Sauce and Great Value Lemon Pepper Seasoning charms will cost $4 each. Spark Shop describes the miniature chicken purse charms as lightweight accessories made from printed synthetic material with metal hardware and an enameled Spark logo.
Walmart says there is already an audience for the concept. The company reports that roughly one in every 12 Walmart customers buys at least one rotisserie chicken each year and says the product generated more than 15,000 social media mentions during the last year. Kim Tunick, Walmart’s group director of brand experiences and partnerships, connected that attention directly to the decision to create the Walmart Chicken Purse.
“With more than 15K social mentions in the last year, Walmart’s rotisserie chicken has officially reached a whole new level of fan-favorite status. We wanted to celebrate this fandom by giving the rotisserie chicken its own moment. The Chicken Purse turns that love into something customers can carry with them,” Tunick said in Walmart’s announcement.
The release also lands during a broader moment when food brands are turning familiar packaging and products into wearable collectibles. According to General Mills, Betty Crocker launched its Betty Ate Collection on August 25 with three cake slice handbags based on Yellow Cake, Triple Chocolate Fudge Cake, and Strawberry Cake. Each bag was priced at $89 and made with vegan leather. Betty Crocker’s shop now says the first batch sold out, with another release scheduled for September 10 at 9 a.m. ET.
Movie merchandise has been playing in the same space. Cinemark’s online store offered a bright red handbag-shaped popcorn bucket connected to “The Devil Wears Prada 2” for $39.95. The theater chain currently lists the 85-ounce collectible as sold out, another sign that bags and bag-shaped products are becoming an easy way for brands to turn familiar pop culture and food references into limited collectibles.
What separates the Walmart Chicken Purse from those higher-priced releases is accessibility. According to Walmart, the bag costs exactly what its Traditional hot rotisserie chicken costs, while the matching charms stay at $5.97 or below. The retailer is essentially betting that shoppers who already recognize the purple and Lemon Pepper chicken packaging will spend dinner money on a conversation piece they can carry long after the food is gone.
