A brightly colored vending machine dispensing collectibles unexpectedly appeared inside the nerve center of the US military one day just before Christmas.
And then, just a few weeks later, it was gone.
The machine, which offers sealed, brightly patterned mystery boxes that could contain Pokémon card packs, sports cards, or signed athletic jerseys in exchange for a minimum of $80, wasn’t in a casino or shopping mall, places where it is more commonly found; rather, it was sitting in the heart of military decision-making, the Pentagon, as Task & Purpose first reported.
An employee of Lucky Box Vending, the company behind the collectibles machine, said it was installed through legitimate channels. The employee, who spoke to Business Insider on condition of anonymity due to privacy and security concerns, shared that a location scout worked through the Pentagon concessions channels overseeing vendors such as coffee shops, restaurants, and convenience stores, to get approval. The employee declined to specify who exactly served as the conduit for entry.
The Pentagon isn’t all military offices and personnel. There are gift shops, financial services, laundry and postal services, known companies like CVS and Popeyes, and vending machines all over the place, though most distribute things like water bottles and snacks rather than collectibles in a colorful mystery box.
The cards and jerseys in each box are collectibles that can be resold, the Lucky Box employee said. However, the resale value is not guaranteed, a point that has led to some critics online characterizing the machines as a scam. The employee disputed those criticisms, calling the machines fun.
Concerns about the machines overlap with concerns about vulnerabilities among American service members, especially junior ranks. A government watchdog report released last year found that troops may be more vulnerable to gambling problems than the general population, citing factors such as young age and a higher risk tolerance.
The Government Accountability Office report highlighted the operation of recreational gaming machines, including slot machines, on some US military bases, noting that they often lack the consistent oversight to raise awareness of and prevent gambling addiction.
The Lucky Box employee said that their company hopes to put similar vending machines to the one that appeared in the Pentagon on other military installations in the future. The Pentagon machine is in storage on the premises awaiting a review, according to the employee.
Pentagon spokesperson Sue Gough confirmed the Pentagon’s concessions personnel have temporarily moved the Lucky Box amid an “internal review on whether or not the Lucky Box retail vending machine is a good fit for the Pentagon.”
Before it was removed and set aside, the Lucky Box machine was drawing steady business, the employee said; the company did not provide revenue figures. Part of the appeal, said the employee, is the proliferation of “unboxing” videos online, which showcase consumers who stream videos of themselves as they open gifts or other surprises for viewers.
Chance-based purchasing has drawn scrutiny beyond physical machines. Some British lawmakers, for instance, have argued that virtual “loot boxes” popular in video games should be treated as a form of gambling. Those virtual boxes have also previously drawn scrutiny from the US Federal Trade Commission.
The Lucky Box employee dismissed the idea that Lucky Box vending machines involve gambling, since users are guaranteed something and can resell the physical items within the collectibles sphere. However, the employee acknowledged, buyers are not guaranteed to receive an item of equal or greater value to the price they pay.
“We’re a memorabilia sports card manufacturer,” the employee said. “We don’t typically get into the values of things because it’s always changing. It’s too hard to say something is worth this much today and that much tomorrow.”
