A new shopping experience is coming to Cork for the first time this month – the “Lost Packages” pop-up store will operate at Douglas Court Shopping Centre from 24 February to 1 March.
French start-up firm King Colis is planning to sell 10 tonnes of lost packages with mystery contents to shoppers in Cork over the week.
Packages are sold by weight and shoppers will have 10 minutes to select all the packages they want – but they are not allowed to open them before purchase.
The packages are then weighed to find out the total price and then shoppers can unbox the surprises.
King Colis said the Cork event follows a succesful event in Dublin.
Millions of online orders get lost for various reasons every year, most often due to incorrect delivery information.
After customers receive a refund, such undelivered packages were previously destroyed.
But since 2023, King Colis has been purchasing these lost packages and giving them a second life. They are sold on the company’s website or in pop-up stores in shopping centres across Europe.
King Colis said that this way, customers can help reduce waste and leave a positive environmental footprint.
The CEO and co-founder of King Colis, Killian Denis, said the event is always exciting because people never know what they will get.
“Sometimes there are real treasures hidden inside the boxes. For example, in France one customer discovered a small collectible gold bar, while in Italy someone found an ultra-rare Pokémon Card valued at €3,000,” he said.
“Of course, luck plays a big role in what you find in your packages, but one thing is certain, the experience is unforgettable,” he added.