If you’ve ever wondered where your lost airline baggage in the US ended up, there’s a good chance it’s Alabama. More precisely, the Unclaimed Baggage Center, a retail store filled with treasures from unfortunate travelers’ misplaced bags. For decades the operation has been quietly buying up the unclaimed checked bags and carry-on items that airlines find themselves holding for more than 90 days, after which they legally become airline property. The sprawling store in the small town of Scottsboro, Alabama—spanning the length of a city block, with a retail floor measuring 4000 m2—stocks some 6000 items daily, 85% of which come from lost luggage. The remainder comes from the unclaimed cargo the company also buys up.

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