Printed takeout bags for Hermosa Beach, where lunch gets carried down to the sand.

The old guard already owns the name game

Hermosa has places that never left. Mickey's Italian Delicatessen has sat at 101 Hermosa Avenue since 1953, slinging meatball subs and selling its own jarred pasta sauce. Rosa's has cooked family recipe Mexican food at 322 Pacific Coast Highway since 1973. The Spot on 2nd Street went vegetarian in 1977, and The Lighthouse Cafe on Pier Avenue has been pouring since 1940.

Those names are known by every local. If you opened in the last five years, you are up against 50 to 70 years of habit. You can't buy that. But you can make sure every order you send out has your name on it in big letters, so the people who try you once know exactly where to go back. Sandwich shops can see our deli and corner market bag page for ideas that work on a counter.

A beach order has a long walk

Most takeout rides in a car. Here it rides in a hand. Somebody grabs two subs, chips and drinks on Pier Avenue, then walks a few blocks to the water. That bag is out in the open the whole way, past hundreds of people.

So it has to be tough. Ours is 110 GSM kraft and carries up to 22 lb. The bottom is a flat 12″ by 7″, so two drinks and a box sit level and nothing tips on the walk.

Year one license money you get to keep

A Hermosa Beach business license is good for one year, then you renew. Here is the nice part: the city waives the first year license tax for most new businesses. The catch is bars and restaurants that serve alcohol and stay open past midnight don't get the waiver. Everyone pays a $4 state fee on each application and renewal.

If you get the waiver, put a slice of it to work. One box of 120 printed bags is $94, about 78.3¢ a bag, and the logo setup is $0. Other printers charge $150+ just to set up. Subscribe and it drops to 56.7¢ a bag.

Fiesta weekend and the design that reads on the sand

Fiesta Hermosa has run for more than 50 years. In 2024 it took over downtown from Pacific Coast Highway to the beach on Memorial Day weekend, May 25 to 27, with a free carnival, beach concerts and over 250 makers selling their stuff. That is three days of foot traffic on your doorstep.

When people stand around all day, they read whatever is in front of them. Go big and simple. One bold color on brown kraft, or a dark blue or black logo on white, can be read from across a crowded street. The full 12 × 14 in front is yours. Want a neighbor's take on it? Look at our Redondo Beach printed bag page, or start at our home page for printed takeout bags for LA restaurants.