Limerick customers hunt for a bargain at lost parcel pop-up shop

After recent success in Dublin and Cork, another pop-up shop has opened in Limerick

Stacey Collopy just about the open her parcel at the King Colis at the Parkway Shopping Centre. Picture: Brendan Gleeson

Hundreds of people queued on Tuesday in the hopes of finding a bargain at a mystery package shop in Limerick.

The pop-up store Lost Packages officially opened at the Parkway Shopping Centre, where French firm King Colis will be selling over 10 tonnes of mystery items.

After recent success in their Dublin and Cork pop-ups, King Colis opened another shop where customers can buy undelivered packages. The project prevents the items from being destroyed by logistic companies.

The items can range from designer clothes, household items, cosmetics, household appliances, technology and more. Packages are sold by weight and customers have 10 minutes to choose from the packages available, but are not allowed to open them before purchase. 

The items are then weighed to discover the final cost.

One of the organisers, Quentin Aisse, said there are two types of packages — standard or premium.

“The premium ones are from big marketplaces. You would find all the things that people can buy legally on the internet. 

"Shoes, clothes, electronics, toys for kids, toys for adults sometimes too, toolboxes, everything. Customers have 10 minutes inside to grab something,” Mr Aisse told the Irish Examiner.

Stacey and Caroline Collopy at King Colis at the Parkway Shopping Centre. Picture: Brendan Gleeson

After queuing on Tuesday afternoon, Stacey Collopy opened one of the mystery parcels to find a pair of ski goggles.

She said she heard of the initiative through TikTok.

“I’m surprised, I spent €35 on four packages. We queued for about 10 minutes, we told all our friends,” she said.

Chief executive and co-founder of King Colis, Killian Denis, said: “It is such an exciting week because you really never know what you might find in the packages. Hopefully you are one of the lucky ones that finds a real treasure, but there’s no guarantee and that’s all the fun.”

The Limerick pop-up will be open until Sunday, April 26.

Every year, millions of online orders get lost for various reasons, most often due to incorrect delivery information. 

Rafath Shaik, Mohammad Irehard, Kishore Pappalou and Niketh Neevathi at the King Colis at the Parkway Shopping Centre. Picture: Brendan Gleeson

After customers receive a refund, such undelivered packages were previously destroyed. 

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 located in well-known shopping centres across Europe.