Skip to content

title: Stationery (business cards, letterhead, envelopes) applies_to: [print, stationery, business-card, brand] version: 1.0.0 last_updated: 2026-05 stability: stable

Stationery

Business cards, letterhead, envelopes — the most-touched physical brand surface. Read print-fundamentals.md first for CMYK / bleed / paper.

Business cards

The smallest, most-touched, most-defining piece of brand stationery. People judge a brand from a card in 5 seconds.

Sizes

Region Size (mm) Notes
Korean 명함 90 × 50 Standard. Slightly larger than international.
International 85 × 55 Most Western markets
US 88.9 × 50.8 (3.5" × 2") Slight variant
Japan 91 × 55 Slightly different again
Square 65 × 65 Boutique / creative
Mini 70 × 28 Designer / unconventional

If your brand is Korean primary: use 90 × 50mm. Western cards in Korean wallets stick out (literal physical inconvenience).

Anatomy

┌──────────────────────────────────┐
│                                  │
│   [Logo]                         │
│                                  │
│   Name 이름 (large)               │
│   Title 직책 (medium)             │
│                                  │
│   Company 회사 (small)            │
│   ───────────                    │
│   Phone 전화                      │
│   Email 이메일                    │
│   Address 주소                    │
│                                  │
└──────────────────────────────────┘

Front: identity (logo, name, title). Back: contact info OR pure brand (just the logo big).

Information hierarchy

Critical: name + title + one contact method. Everything else is secondary.

A card with too much info is a card people don't read: - ✗ Phone, mobile, fax, email, web, two addresses, social handles, QR code - ✓ Name, title, mobile, email

For Korean B2B: company name + position + mobile + email is the minimum. 회사 주소 if office-based.

Bilingual cards (Korean + English)

Korean B2B cards are often bilingual:

Front (Korean):              Back (English):
─────────────                 ─────────────
김철수                         Cheolsu Kim
대표 / 디자이너                CEO / Designer

회사명                         Company name
010-1234-5678                010-1234-5678
chulsu@company.com           chulsu@company.com
서울 강남구 ...                Seoul, Gangnam-gu, ...

Or both languages on the same side (compact):

김철수 / Cheolsu Kim
대표 / CEO

010-1234-5678 | chulsu@company.com

For Korean → international audiences: bilingual is expected. For Korean-only domestic: Korean only is fine, more space for hierarchy. For international primary: English only OK.

Typography on business cards

  • Name: 10-14pt (small enough to fit, large enough to read).
  • Title: 8-10pt.
  • Contact: 7-9pt.

Don't go below 6pt. Don't go above 16pt for name (looks shouty).

For Korean: Pretendard, Spoqa Han Sans Neo, AppleSDGothicNeo, NanumSquare are common. Pretendard is the default modern choice.

For mixed Korean + English: pick a font that has both (Pretendard, Noto Sans CJK KR work well).

Paper

Korean business card defaults: - 250-300gsm matte coated — most common, mid-tier quality. - 300-350gsm uncoated — environmental / artisanal feel. - 350-400gsm + soft-touch lamination — premium, soft tactile. - 350gsm + foil stamp logo — luxury, brand-critical.

Avoid: - Thin 200gsm or below — feels cheap, bends in wallet. - Glossy / shiny finish for B2B — reads as low-end mass-market.

Finishes (premium)

Finish Effect Cost premium
Spot UV on logo (matte stock + glossy logo only) Tactile contrast +15-30%
Foil stamp (gold / silver / copper / holographic) Metallic shine +30-100%
Letterpress / 활판 Antique-feel impression +50-100%
Emboss / 양각 (raised) 3D logo +30-60%
Edge color (painted edges) Slim color line on edge +20-40%
Die-cut shape (rounded corners, custom shape) Differentiated silhouette +20-50%
Soft-touch lamination Velvety feel +20-40%

Korean premium business cards often use 1-2 of these. Going above 2 reads as overdone.

Common card mistakes

  • Type too small to read at arm's length.
  • Margins too tight — text bleeds to the edge, looks cramped.
  • Trim cut crops critical info — content not in safe area.
  • QR codes too small to scan reliably (minimum 1cm × 1cm).
  • CMYK conversion too late — bright RGB color → dull on press.
  • Contrast too low — pale gray text on white doesn't read.
  • Two-sided design ignoring orientation — front portrait, back landscape, doesn't flip naturally.

Letterhead

The branded letter format. Less common in 2024+ (most letters are PDF / email), but still required for: - Legal correspondence. - Formal business letters. - Invoices on company letterhead. - Certificates / awards.

Anatomy

┌─────────────────────────────────┐
│  [Logo top-left]   [Date right] │   ← header
│                                  │
│  Recipient name                  │
│  Recipient address               │
│                                  │
│  Re: Subject                     │
│                                  │
│  Dear ___,                       │
│                                  │
│  [Letter body — 1.5 line spacing]│
│  ...                             │
│                                  │
│  Sincerely,                      │
│  [Signature space]               │
│  Sender name                     │
│                                  │
│  ─────────────────────────       │   ← footer
│  Company name | Address          │
│  Phone | Email | Website         │
└─────────────────────────────────┘

Margins

Margin Top Bottom Left Right
Korean 25-30mm 25-30mm 25-30mm 25-30mm
Western 1" / 25mm 1" 1.25" 1"

Equal margins look balanced. The recipient address is usually 2-3 lines below the header.

Typography

  • Body: 11-12pt, 1.5 line spacing.
  • Korean: Pretendard / Spoqa Han Sans Neo at 11pt is comfortable.
  • English: Garamond, Times, Georgia, Inter at 11pt.

Single column. Margins control line length (45-75 char per line ideal).

Color

  • Letterhead is usually 1-color or 2-color (black + brand color).
  • 4-color CMYK letterhead is unusual — most letters print on personal printers (color = expensive).
  • Logo can be brand color; body text always black (best printer compatibility).

Envelopes

Korean envelope Size (mm) Use
DL 220 × 110 Business letters, fits A4 folded in thirds
C5 229 × 162 Half A4
C4 324 × 229 Full A4 unfolded (legal documents)
A6 / 카드 봉투 110 × 155 Greeting cards, invitations

Layout

┌────────────────────────────────────┐
│  [Logo]                            │   ← top-left, small
│                                    │
│                                    │
│           Recipient name           │   ← center or right
│           Address line 1           │
│           Address line 2           │
│           City, Postcode           │
│                                    │
│  Sender info ─────                 │   ← bottom-left, small
│  Sender name                       │
│  Address                           │
└────────────────────────────────────┘

For Korean post: postcode (우편번호) goes in a designated box; the format depends on KEPCO standards.

For modern envelopes: window envelopes (with cut-out window showing address from the inserted letter) are more efficient — the same letter address shows through. Match the window position to the letter's address block.

Stationery as a system

Stationery should feel like a coordinated set: - Same logo across all pieces. - Same brand colors (CMYK + Pantone matching). - Same paper (or coordinated paper system: 350gsm card + 100gsm letterhead in same color). - Same typography. - Same hierarchy (logo always top-left, address always bottom).

Don't have a fancy gold-foil business card and a Word-template letterhead. Inconsistent = unprofessional.

Production tips

  • Order business cards in 100s minimum — single-card price is high.
  • Order letterhead in 250-500 minimum — printers' minimum.
  • Order envelopes in 500 minimum — usually MOQ.
  • Reorder triggers: business cards every 6-12 months (text changes), letterhead every 12-24 months.
  • Test before bulk run: order 1-10 sample cards first ($20-50), proof color + finish, then scale.

Don't

  • Don't put 5 contact methods on a business card. Pick 1-2 critical.
  • Don't use multiple fonts in stationery — pick 1-2 max.
  • Don't print Korean cards in international 85×55 size — odd in wallets.
  • Don't ship cards with low contrast. Card readers (people in dim restaurants) need legible text.
  • Don't change the layout halfway through a stationery order ("just change my card; letterhead stays old").
  • Don't print stationery before brand identity is locked. Reprints = full cost.

Cross-reference