04 / 06 · Print Design

Print that holds up.
In hand, on shelf, on the wall.

We design things you can pick up.

Book a callHow we work
Timeline
4–10 weeks
Team
2–4 people
Starts at
$12k
Alcove RestaurantMuse of PowellMattison YoderAtlas CosSplash LaundryCome Sit and StayMeyers LandscapeOlentangy PediatricsTurf BarbersRedi-ViewAlcove RestaurantMuse of PowellMattison YoderAtlas CosSplash LaundryCome Sit and StayMeyers LandscapeOlentangy PediatricsTurf BarbersRedi-View
The material library
We spec stock, weight, and finish for every piece, and press-check the run so what ships matches what you approved.
  • Uncoated 120# cover

    Tactile, editorial, takes letterpress beautifully. Our default for brand collateral.

    Business cards · lookbooks
  • Soft-touch laminate

    Velvet hand-feel over silk stock. Fingerprint-resistant, premium retail standard.

    Packaging · covers
  • Foil + deboss

    Metallic foil over a debossed hit. Used sparingly, it reads as jewelry.

    Invitations · certificates
  • Recycled kraft

    Honest, fibrous, sustainable story built in. Prints best with 1–2 ink colors.

    Tags · shippers · menus
  • Silk 100# text

    Smooth, low-glare workhorse for image-heavy spreads and catalogs.

    Catalogs · one-pagers
  • Vinyl & substrate

    Outdoor-rated large format, windows, vehicles, site signage, color-managed to the brand.

    Signage · wraps
On the shelf

Things people pick up.

A small slice of recent print, designed for ink, paper, and finish, not just RGB.
EditorialLookbook spread12pt Munken Pure, Pantone duotone, perfect-bound.
PackagingFolding cartonSoft-touch laminate, foil-stamped accent, FSC stock.
PostersLaunch posterB2 size, riso-printed in two passes. Limited run of 250.
How we work

Five steps from brief to launch.

Predictable on the outside, lots of judgment on the inside.
  1. 01
    Week 1

    Brief & references

    We get into the room with you and your stakeholders, talk about the work, and pull a small library of references, both inspirational and cautionary. The brief is signed off before we open Figma or InDesign.

    • Stakeholder workshop
    • Reference library
    • Stock and finish shortlist
    • One-page creative brief
  2. 02
    Weeks 2–4

    Concept & direction

    Two or three distinct creative directions on a representative piece. We pick a lane together, then extend the system across the full deliverable list. No 'we'll figure that out later.'

    • Two creative directions
    • Selected direction extended
    • Type & color system
    • Grid + master pages
  3. 03
    Weeks 4–8

    Production design

    Every page, every panel, every die. Typesetting at full resolution, asset retouching, copy fitting. We share a working PDF every week so you're never surprised by what shows up.

    • Working PDFs each week
    • Final art for every deliverable
    • Image retouching
    • Print-ready files (PDF/X-1a)
  4. 04
    Weeks 6–9

    Pre-press & proofing

    We pull printer quotes, recommend one, and shepherd the job through pre-press. Hard proofs reviewed in person on important pieces. We don't rely on screen color for anything that matters.

    • Printer quotes (3 vendors)
    • Pre-press review
    • Hard proofs reviewed
    • On-press attendance if scoped
  5. 05
    Week 10

    Production & delivery

    We attend the first run on flagship jobs. Verify the run, sign off, coordinate kitting and fulfillment if you need it. Files archived, system documented, you keep everything.

    • Press check on flagship runs
    • Production sign-off
    • Kitting / fulfillment coordination
    • Archive + handoff docs
Step 01Week 1

Brief & references

We get into the room with you and your stakeholders, talk about the work, and pull a small library of references, both inspirational and cautionary. The brief is signed off before we open Figma or InDesign.

  • Stakeholder workshop
  • Reference library
  • Stock and finish shortlist
  • One-page creative brief
Field notes

Field notes on ink and paper.

Why print still closes deals, and what separates a piece that gets kept from one that gets binned.

Why print still works in a digital market

Print survives because it's scarce. Your customer sees a few hundred ads a day and keeps none of them; a well-made menu, lookbook, or leave-behind sits on a desk for weeks. For local businesses, restaurants, medical practices, contractors, retail, print is often the only marketing a customer can hold, and the production quality gets read, fairly or not, as a proxy for the quality of the business itself.

That's the standard we design to: not "looks good in a PDF proof" but "feels right in a customer's hand."

02Where digital-only designers go wrong on press
  • RGB colors that shift muddy in CMYK, the brand green that prints olive.
  • Type at sizes that render on a retina screen but fill in on uncoated stock.
  • No bleed, wrong margins, hairlines that vanish, files a press operator has to repair.
  • Specifying premium finishes with no idea what they cost at the actual run size.

We design in production color from day one, spec the stock before the layout starts, and press-check runs that matter. It's unglamorous knowledge, which is exactly why it's rare.

03The pieces that earn their cost

Not everything deserves premium print. The pieces that repay investment are the ones that do sales work when you're not in the room: the proposal cover that frames a five-figure decision, the menu that sets a price expectation before the entrées do, packaging that makes an unboxing worth posting, and signage that recruits customers around the clock. A flyer for a weekend event can be quick and cheap, and we'll tell you when it should be.

04Timelines, budgets, and how a project runs

Projects start at $12k and run four to ten weeks depending on scope, a collateral system takes longer than a single piece because we're building templates your team can reuse, not one-off art. The flow: concept and stock selection first, design in production color, a physical proof you approve (never a screen-only sign-off for a run that matters), then print oversight through delivery.

One system, not one piece
The multiplier on print spend is a system: shared grids, color, and type across every piece, so the tenth item costs a fraction of the first and everything looks unmistakably yours.

Frequently asked.

Everything teams ask before kicking off a Print Design engagement.

Still have a question?

Email a partner directly, no SDRs, no chatbots, no marketing list. Just a straight answer from someone who does the work.

  • First reply within one business day
  • A partner answers, never an SDR
  • Happy to sign an NDA before we talk
Talk to a partner[email protected]
Do you handle the actual printing?
We don't own a press, but we run the printer relationship end-to-end, quoting, pre-press, proofs, on-press attendance, sign-off. We have a network of vetted shops in major US regions and partners in the EU and APAC.
Can you work with our existing brand?
Yes, and we'll often surface gaps in your system that only show up in print, color builds that don't translate, type that breaks at small sizes, marks that fall apart in one-color. We'll patch those as part of the work.
What about sustainability and material choices?
We default to recycled, FSC-certified, or otherwise sustainable stock unless there's a strong reason not to. On packaging engagements we'll surface the LCA trade-offs explicitly.
How do you handle quantity and fulfillment?
On the Core and Custom tiers we coordinate the full run, kitting, and shipping. Starter, you'll typically take it from print-ready files.
How fast can you turn around a one-off?
If the brand system already exists, two to three weeks for collateral, four to six for packaging including production. We'll be honest if your timeline isn't realistic.
What about packaging compliance?
We handle US FDA labeling, CA Prop 65, EU CE, and the standard category-specific marks. We're not a regulatory firm, but we know the rules well enough to keep you out of trouble and bring in a specialist when warranted.
Will you teach our team to maintain the system?
Always. Every Core engagement ends with a training session and a written set of standards your team can run with.
Service areas

Print Design across Central Ohio.

Based in Powell, serving businesses across the Columbus metro and beyond. Find print design in your city.
Ground control to Houston:

Let's build
something out of
this world.

[email protected]
Other practices

Five more ways we help.

No handoffs between practices. One studio.