What is "sandwich board"

n. A person-sized, wearable billboard or advertisement consisting of two printed boards strung together so that they hang over the shoulders, thereby sandwiching the wearer. vb. to advertise or campaign using a sandwich board; to wear a sandwich board.

n. signboard consisting of two hinged boards that hang front and back from the shoulders of a walker and are used to display advertisements

A sandwich board is a type of advertisement composed of two boards (holding a message or graphic) and being either:

• Carried by a person, with one board in front and one behind, creating a " sandwich" effect; or
• Set up (for example next to a store advertising its goods) in a triangle shape, hinged along the top.

The carried version is usually attached to straps acting as suspenders, allowing the person wearing the boards to carry the weight on his or her shoulders and keeping the boards balanced on the wearer. Sandwich boards are most typically deployed in busy pedestrian areas and advertise businesses within easy walking distance. The wearer might also pass out flyers or shout advertising slogans. Sandwich boards were most popular in the 19th century, and have largely been supplanted by billboards, which are more effective in advertising to passers-by who are now likely to be in automobiles, rather than traveling by foot.

However, they are still frequently to be seen on major shopping streets such as Oxford Street, London; Champs Élysées, Paris, and 42nd Street, New York City, where they are used to advertise offers from particular stores most often in adjacent side-streets.