It was just one of those things. Some guy in a suit on one continent decides that a cut price tie in with a coffee chain or something is a good way to shift product. Three years later, on another continent, a spotty kid in unfashionable clothes looks at a record rack and sees something on offer for a price he can afford. Meanwhile, everyone else in his peer group does the same thing.
The other 90s discount phenomenon that I remember was the bizarre Frank Zappa comp Cheap Thrills, which I recall being everywhere. Twenty years before, I think that Virgin Records' Faust Tapes was the big one (before my time). Flood the discount bins and see what you get!