The Tiffin: An Untapped Market?

A recent trip to World Market tipped me off to one of the most ingenious inventions ever - the tiffin tin. I am hooked. They are so pretty!! And smart! They originated in India, used by wives to pack a fresh lunch for their husbands. They might include things like rice, dal, curry, and/or vegetables, things that are best kept separate. Thus, the stacking containers. Brilliant.


Well, as difficult as it is to resist shiny objects, I'm not sure about buying this one. The problem with the tiffin tin is that it's metal - not microwavable. If I were to use this to bring food to work, a microwave would really be only heating option (as much as I would rather not submit my food to radiation).

Yes, there are plastic options out there - more on the tiered bento side. In fact, I'm kind of digging this babushka one that's shown below. But most of what's available is specifically kid-geared. Thus, the "untapped market." The well-designed, adult-geared, microwaveable tiffin/tiered bento box. I'm thinking there should be a "Threadless" for the tiffin/tiered bento box. Yeah? I feel like this is probably an amazing idea. Not just because it's almost 3 in the morning, because it is.


[found at sugarcharms.com]

Even if this Bento Threadless I dream of never pans out, I would just LOVE to see some of my favorite illustrators tackle the tiffin/tiered bento. Aesthetic Apparatus? Eight Hour Day? Diana Sudyka? Jason Munn? Dirk Fowler? Anyone care to take this on?

No? I may just have to put that on my list of things to do.