Better than a mattress: Sales of safes increase

Afraid cash isn't secure even behind the thick walls of banks, more people are turning to something that has protected money since the days of Jesse James and Bonnie and Clyde: safes.

The metal vaults are so popular in some parts of the country that shoppers are depleting store supplies as worries about the nation's economy spread.

"What people are putting in them, I have no idea," said Lowe's Cos. spokeswoman Karen Cobb. "But in a downturned economy, people are seeing increased interest in protecting something."

During the three months ending June 30, the latest period for which data are available, domestic bank deposits slipped by nearly $40 billion, according to federal data. And so far this year, market declines have erased $8.7 trillion in wealth. That's a figure so staggering some are cashing out assets and shifting other investments in an effort to stanch the bleeding.

At SentrySafe, the nation's top safe manufacturer, sales are up as much as 50 percent in the past three weeks.

Lowe's wouldn't provide specific sales figures but said safe supplies at some stores in major cities had to be restocked because of high demand. Cobb said the Mooresville, N.C.-based chain noticed significant growth in sales about six weeks ago.