Tent Event Memorial Day Weekend

By Marla Ballard

Reporter

SCOTTSBORO  –  Over the Memorial Day weekend two jumbo tents will be raised in the parking lot at the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro. The tents will add an additional 2,400 square feet of outdoor merchandise space to the existing 50,000 square feet of indoor store space. The “tent event” will take place May 26, 27, and 29.

“Customers generally see up to 7,000 new items on a daily basis at our store, but now they will see tens of thousands of new items over this holiday weekend,” said Public Relations Manager, Sonni Hood. “The travel season has been unusually busy lately and we just don’t have the indoor space to display all of the new stock.”

Hood said that they have had smaller pop-up tent sales in the past, but nothing comparable to the size of this sale. “It will be the biggest rollout of fresh product ever,” said Hood. “If it is a big success, who knows, this may become an annual event.”

Parking will be limited, so an overflow area will be in use and a shuttle will be available to those who find it difficult to walk the extra distance. Another service being offered to shoppers is free lemonade and popcorn. Currently, weather conditions look favorable for this three-day outdoor

event.

Visitors are encouraged to go inside and see the new museum that opened last month. The museum showcases the unique treasures that have been discovered in unclaimed baggage since the store opened in 1970. Two of these rare finds are: a Spalding basketball signed by Michael Jordan and an antique flirting fan. (In the 1700 and 1800s, flirting had to be done discreetly, to avoid becoming known as a coquette. Ladies used a fan to convey messages to their admirer. A fan placed near the heart was intended to let the suiter know they had won the ladies heart. A fan half-opened and pressed to the lips was an invitation for a kiss).

According to the Air Travel Consumer Report issued by the U.S. Department of  Transportation, “Flyers face less than a one-percent chance of having their luggage misplaced. The airline industry takes 90 days to identify owners of lost items and generally reunite 99.5 percent of what is lost with its owner.”

Unretrieved items include: apparel, footwear, accessory apparel, electronics, backpacks, reading material, jewelry, and more. Unclaimed Baggage is the nation’s only retailer of lost luggage that partners with all major airlines to resell, donate, or recycle.

Located at 509 Willow St., Scottsboro. While store hours are Monday – Friday 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. and Saturday 8:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m., the tent sale will close each day at 5:00 p.m.