Ever wonder what happens to luggage that airlines lose and never find? The answer might surprise you: it all ends up at one store in Alabama.
The Unclaimed Baggage store in Scottsboro, Alabama, is the only place in America where lost airline luggage gets sold to the public. The massive 50,000-square-foot shop draws over 1 million visitors every year from all 50 states and more than 40 countries.
The store started in 1970 when Doyle Owens, an insurance salesman, heard from a friend that Trailways buses had too much unclaimed luggage. Owens borrowed a pickup truck, took out a $300 loan, and drove to Washington, D.C., to pick up the suitcases. He sold everything on card tables in a rented house, and people loved it. The items sold out so fast that Owens quit his insurance job to focus on the business full-time. His son Bryan Owens now runs the store. He bought it from his parents in 1995 and has watched it grow into a major attraction, bringing in $22.7 million in annual revenue.
Here’s how it works: When airlines lose your bag, they spend three to four months trying to find you. United Airlines searches for 90 days, while Southwest Airlines looks for 120 days. If they can’t find the owner, they sell the bags to Unclaimed Baggage. By that point, airlines have already paid passengers up to $4,700 for each lost bag, as required by federal law.
The good news? Most bags don’t get lost. Airlines mishandled an average of 6.3 bags per 1,000 passengers in 2024, according to SITA, a company that tracks airline data. That means more than 99.5% of suitcases make it back to their owners. But with millions of people flying, that small percentage adds up. In August 2024 alone, airlines mishandled more than 260,000 bags in the United States.
About 7,000 new items arrive at the Unclaimed Baggage store every day. The store buys each bag without knowing what’s inside. Workers called “openers” sort through everything, deciding what can be sold, donated, or thrown away. Clothes get cleaned, and tech experts wipe personal data from phones and computers before selling them. Jennifer Kritner has worked at the store for 26 years and oversees this process. She explained that her team opens suitcases and mines them for treasures, then determines whether items can be resold, recycled, or donated.
The store has found some wild stuff over the years. Workers have discovered a suit of armor, a NASA camera built for the space shuttle, live snakes in a duffel bag, a funeral casket key, and a puppet from the movie “Labyrinth.” The most expensive item ever sold was a platinum Rolex watch that went for $32,000. Bryan Owens loves the variety, saying, “It’s like Christmas every day – we never know what we’ll find.” He views the process as similar to an archaeological dig.
The items also show what’s popular at any given time. In the 1970s, people left Walkmans and cassette tapes on planes. Now the store gets AirPods, tablets, and Taylor Swift concert merchandise. Last year’s most fascinating finds included Nintendo Switch games, Stanley water bottles, and an Ethiopian musical instrument.
Everything sells for 20% to 80% off regular prices. Sonni Hood, the store’s spokesperson, said they’re not a typical thrift store. The items are things people loved enough to pack for vacation, so they’re usually nicer quality. Regular shoppers say the deals are worth the trip. Sheila Allen has been shopping there for over 20 years. She once bought sandals for $20 that normally cost $120. Another customer, Andolyn Parrish, found a vintage Louis Vuitton bag for $350 that retails for thousands.
The store almost never reunites people with their lost stuff. There’s only been one known case: A man bought ski boots at the store’s annual ski sale, and when he got home, his girlfriend realized they were her lost boots. The airline had already paid her for them. Wade Dubose visits the store several times a day, looking for items to resell, describing each visit as an adventure where you never know what you’ll find.
The store destroys any personal documents, IDs, or prescriptions found in bags. Eyeglasses get donated to the local Lions Club. So next time you fly, make sure to put tags on both the inside and outside of your suitcase with your contact information. Otherwise, your favorite vacation outfit might end up on a shelf in Scottsboro, Alabama, waiting for a new owner to take it home.