Why does nobody talk about the dead space on restaurant takeout bags?

Last month I picked up food from a spot in Portland called Screendoor and noticed the bag had this huge blank panel on one side. The owner told me the printer charges per color and they saved $220 a month by leaving that area empty. Now I look at every takeout bag I get and see wasted space that could be a cheap ad or a map. Has anyone else noticed how much blank real estate gets tossed in the trash every day?

2 comments

2 Comments

mitchell.shane7d ago

@gavinwood that dragon mustache thing is hilarious but youre onto something real here. Its like how gas stations leave all that blank space on their receipt paper where you could actually put a coupon or a fun fact but nah just empty white nothing. Same thing with bus stop ads that are just a plain blue background for months at a time because the company didnt pay for the graphic. The Screendoor owner showing you the math really put it in perspective. So much of our everyday stuff is covered in wasted blank canvas that could be a cheap local ad or a tiny piece of art or even a map to the nearest park. Makes you wonder what else is being quietly left empty just to save a few bucks.

gavinwood7d ago

My friend got a Chinese takeout bag with five inches of empty space and drew a mustache on the dragon logo to pass the time.