Throw on your apron, crank the gas and open a bottle of Marlborough Pinot Noir — here are some business cards that belong in a Michelin restaurant, not in a wallet.

New Zealand King Salmon (NZKS) produce a unique breed of Chinook salmon called Ora King. Chefs love Ora King salmon because they are the best. The best taste, texture, colour and size. NZKS approached Downing to create a new set of business cards that looked so good you could eat them. We collaborated with them to come up with the idea of cards that looked like salmon.

To say these cards are complex would be an understatement — hold your breath because we’re about to get technical…
For the back of the cards, we printed black ink for the scales on Curious Metal stock, then embossed the scales for texture. We then ran a Spot U.V. overprint on the scales to make them glisten. On the front, we letter-pressed the Ora King logo onto Curious Skin stock and with digitally printed details. We then laminated the two stocks together and edge painted the cards with orange ink.

Phew!

This was new territory. The printers claimed that we were ‘pushing the envelope of what was possible for a business card’. Even so, they worked hard to create a set of cards that Ora King could be proud of. It’s great when you have suppliers who know and love their craft.

When stacked, these cards look like a cut piece of King salmon, and if you listen closely you can hear them sizzle.