I was denied an empty cardboard box at Guitar Center

I went into a Guitar Center (Natick, MA) to ask them if they had any rectangular cardboard boxes that they might be throwing out (that I could use for shipping a guitar). The guy looked at me and said "no" as if I had just asked if they were giving out free Les Pauls. Then I asked what they do with all with all their boxes. He said "we recycle them in a dumpster". So then when I asked why I couldn't just take something that they're going to throw out anyway (i.e. TRASH), he pivoted and said "well...we save them and reuse them for shipping out guitars". I walked away annoyed and he said "sorry, thanks for coming in". I then drove out behind the store, saw a dumpster, looked inside and discovered a treasure trove of guitar boxes that were waiting to be hauled away. Of course I helped myself to a couple and threw them in my car, but I still couldn't figure out if this guy was just a complete douchebag or if this GC location actually has a policy against giving out empty boxes, even if they're sitting in a dumpster out back.