HOUSTON – Have you ever wondered what happens to all of those suitcases that are lost or forgotten at the airport?
It’s something we’ve been mulling over too.
One might think that the lost bags might find themselves in the trash. However, it turns out that’s far from the case.
Every single day, millions of people fly across the U.S.
Tagging along right behind them is their luggage.
It’s no surprise that some of those bags might not make it to their final destination or even be lost altogether.
“Actually, on my flight going to Chile, both [of my] suitcases were lost,” said Sarah Traipe of Houston. “But they got back to us. Delta [Airlines] got it back to us in like two days.”
That’s not always the case.
When bags are lost, they go through a standard 90-day process where airlines or their contractors attempt to find their owners.
“The airline industry standard is a bag must be lost for a minimum of 90 days before it’s officially deemed as unclaimed,” said Sonni Hood of Unclaimed Baggage. “Over 99.5% of the time, they have an excellent success rate in reuniting luggage.”
When they don’t, a company with a fitting name, Unclaimed Baggage, buys them.
“Unclaimed Baggage steps in as a salvage partner to the airlines,” Hood said. “Our team purchases those suitcases sight unseen. We never know what we’re going to receive. Then they’re brought back to our facilities in Alabama, where our team will begin going through the contents of the suitcase to determine how we’re going to give a second life, and how to do the most good with all of the items that we receive.”
Located in the small town of Scottsboro, Alabama, Unclaimed Baggage runs a warehouse that spans tens of thousands of square feet and sifts through thousands of bags.
Sonni Hood explains that employees, known as “bag openers,” who spend their work week opening these bags and going through looking for anything of value.
“Around a third of those items will be sold, around a third will be recycled, and then around a third will be donated,” she said.
Believe it or not, they often stumble upon valuable items, like a Rolex watch worth tens of thousands of dollars, an authentic 2008 Olympic Opening Ceremony jacket and even some interesting taxidermy animals.
“We like to say that every bag and its items tells a story, and we truly never know what you’re going to find,” Hood said.
What they can sell hits their showroom floor in Alabama while the others end up on their online retail store.
What about the rest?
Unclaimed Baggage donates what it can, recycles that it can’t and only truly throwing trash in the garbage.
“We have donated well over 1.5 million pairs of prescription eyeglasses,” Hood explains of their relationship with the Lions Club. “Our own in-house charity is called Love Luggage. We read an article about ten years ago or so from the New York Times that explained how so many children in the foster care system have to transport their items in black trash bags. What our “Love Luggage program does is we host painting events, and hard-sided suitcases are hand-painted with bright images or uplifting messages, and in those suitcases are donated to foster children all around the nation to replace those garbage bags.”
Unclaimed Baggage won’t say what airlines they work with, but did say they partner with all major U.S. airlines.
We’ll put it this way: it’s enough to stock their showroom floor with thousands of new items every day while also stocking thousands of different items online.
Every year, more than a million people visit their showroom in the quaint Alabama town to get a bargain.
“I don’t know if I would just cause, like a thrift store, people usually go themselves and donate the clothes,” said Sarah Traipe.
“I don’t know if my integrity would do it. It’s not worth it for me,” added Mealie Kaplan.
Nosy or not, you never know if that person you pass by at the airport could be carrying your future treasure.