Foil stamping

Category overview

We offer a wide range of branded merch in this category:

• gold foil
• silver foil
• holographic foil
• red foil
• blue foil
• paper 250-350 g

Italia e contesto UE

Italian and EU context. Standard VAT rate in Italia is 22% for merch products and gadgets — 10% applies to hospitality and tourism, 5% to packaged food, 4% to books and print. Since 2019 B2B electronic invoicing is mandatory via SdI (Sistema di Interscambio) operated by Agenzia delle Entrate — full integration with client ERP (SAP, Zucchetti, TeamSystem, Aruba, Fatture in Cloud). Italian is the default language on invoices and labels; English standard in international docs. Garante per la Protezione dei Dati Personali requires GDPR (Reg. UE 2016/679) + D.Lgs 196/2003 (Codice Privacy) compliance when collecting employee data for merch programs (names, numbers, size preferences). GOTS, GRS, FSC, OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certificates honoured across the EU — for food-contact products Regulation (EC) 1935/2004 also applies. The gold foil, silver foil, holographic foil categories fall under these regulations and we work in full compliance.

Prezzi e listini

Pricing and financial framework. We quote in EUR with 22% VAT (standard rate). For enterprise clients we offer framework agreements with volume discount tiers — from 5% at EUR 50,000 annually to 15% at EUR 500,000 annually. Payment by proforma invoice 50% deposit + 50% before dispatch for new clients; for recurring B2B clients payment terms 30-60 days. We accept SEPA bank transfers (EUR), payment cards via Stripe, Satispay, instant bank transfer, PagoPA for public sector. Since 2019 all B2B invoices are issued mandatorily via SdI. For gold foil, silver foil, holographic foil categories standard price tiers apply — 10-50 EUR net per piece for basic products, 50-200 EUR net for premium gifts.

Tempi di realizzazione

Lead time. Standard cycle for gold foil, silver foil, holographic foil — 5-8 working days (digital proofing + production + control + delivery). For projects with extensive personalisation (Pantone embroidery, debossing, name-personalised digital print) — 10-15 working days. For Asia imports (production + sea freight + customs clearance at Genova, La Spezia or Trieste) — 8-12 weeks. During the autumn season (September-November) and pre-Christmas period (November-December) timelines extend by 1-2 weeks. For recurring B2B clients we maintain a 10% warehouse buffer — recommend quarterly planning ahead.

Pianificazione stagionale

Seasonal planning. Italia has strong B2B merch seasons — January-February (new year inauguration, annual plans), April-May (Easter, Mother's Day), June (end of school year, summer collection launches), September (back-to-school, trade shows), October-November (conferences, Q4 launches), December (festa di San Nicola, Christmas, Black Friday). Onboarding programs for new employees are most often launched in January and September. For gold foil, silver foil, holographic foil categories the customer campaign calendar should be synchronised 6-8 weeks ahead to avoid production and delivery delays.

Spedizione e logistica

Shipping and logistics. Central warehouse in Milano (Certosa district). Shipping via BRT, DHL Italy, GLS Italy, SDA, Poste Italiane, UPS Italy, FedEx. Delivery time in Italia 24-48 hours, in EU 3-5 days, outside EU 5-10 days. We deliver multi-address (e.g. to company branches in multiple cities) with individual packaging per address. For gold foil, silver foil, holographic foil the standard packaging is cardboard boxes with paper filling for transport protection.

What it is

Technique gold foil is one of the 12 decoration methods offered by Corp-Merch in Italia — each method has its optimal range of materials, runs and quality. gold foil provides durable and aesthetic B2B merch marking — withstands industrial washing, abrasion and UV exposure without colour or shape loss.

For B2B clients in Italia we offer gold foil in variants matched to the brief — Pantone colours, ICC FOGRA39 profiles, AQL 1.0-2.5 control. gold foil requires digital proofing (PDF/X-1a) and a physical pre-production sample before launching the full run.

Italian and European factories in the gold foil technology offer different quality tiers — economy, mid and premium; we match them to client budget. Each project in gold foil passes AQL inspection — a random 5-10% sample of the run is visually and dimensionally checked before packing.

gold foil is the most frequently ordered product in the gold foil category — popular in onboarding, event and loyalty programs across Italia. silver foil in the branded version is a standard element of welcome packs for new employees and enterprise clients in Milano.

holographic foil with the client logo works well in seasonal campaigns and ambassador programs — 5-8 week lead time. red foil is available in Pantone-accurate variants, with certificates and premium gift or eco packaging.

blue foil accompanies Corp-Merch clients from the first brief to delivery, with a dedicated project owner. Selection of paper 250-350 g in the gold foil category is based on client brief specifications, warehouse availability and campaign calendar.

When to order

gold foil — standard production cycle available year-round, 5-8 working days lead time for medium-small batches. gold foil — seasonal peaks October-November and November-December for Christmas campaigns; plan 4-6 weeks ahead.

gold foil — peak season for product launches February-March and September-October; technical brief required 6 weeks before. gold foil — workshop availability limited in August for summer holidays; plan production accordingly.

gold foil — fastest turnaround in April-May and June; less pressure on suppliers. gold foil — for launch campaigns, allow proofing at least 3 weeks before mass production starts.

gold foil — summer collection available from March to August, 8 weeks ahead of first delivery. silver foil — autumn collection launched in August-September, delivery October-November.

holographic foil — limited Christmas edition, brief in October, delivery first half of December. red foil — warehouse rotation quarterly; minimum reasonable execution time 4-6 weeks for gold foil.

blue foil — spring collection launched in January-February with delivery in March-April. Calendar of paper 250-350 g is synchronised with the customer campaign calendar — brief 6-8 weeks before the premiere date.

Specification

Technical specification of gold foil — vector files AI/EPS/SVG, bitmap min. 300 dpi, ICC FOGRA39 profiles. Materials of gold foil — cotton, polyester, mixed, leather, eco-leather, paper, cardboard, vinyl; GOTS/GRS/FSC/OEKO-TEX certifications.

Colours of gold foil — Pantone Coated for glossy paper, Pantone Uncoated for matte, Pantone TPX for textiles; ΔE ≤ 2 mapping. Quality control of gold foil — AQL 1.0-2.5 inspection (5-10% random sample), durability tests (washing, abrasion, UV light).

Setup of gold foil — 120 mesh screen-printing screens, 14-16 inch DTG platens, UV LED 4-8 channel print heads. Packaging of gold foil — shrink-wrap for gadgets, bubble wrap for textiles, single box for premium gifts.

Specification of gold foil — Pantone Coated/Uncoated for brand colours, min. 300 dpi for bitmaps, AI/EPS/SVG files for logo. Materials of silver foil — OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certificates, optionally GOTS for organic cotton or GRS for recycled polyester.

Decoration of holographic foil — Pantone Aqua screen-printing (water-based inks), DTF, computer embroidery with Madeira Polyneon — AQL 1.0-2.5 control. Packaging of red foil — cardboard boxes with paper or EPS filling; multi-language labels IT/EN/DE.

Dimensional tolerances of blue foil — ±2 mm for textiles, ±0.5 mm for gadgets, ±1 mm for premium packaging. Colour standards of paper 250-350 g — Pantone Coated for glossy paper print, Pantone Uncoated for matte paper; ICC FOGRA39 profiles.

Common mistakes

Wrong file resolution — 72 dpi bitmaps look sharp on monitor but pixelate in production; minimum 300 dpi at 1:1. Wrong Pantone colours — Pantone Coated for glossy paper, Pantone Uncoated for matte paper.

Missing bleeds — files without 3-5 mm bleeds cause white edges in production. Too small elements — text below 6 pt is unreadable in screen-printing, lines thinner than 0.3 mm disappear in DTF.

Wrong colour encoding in PDF — RGB instead of CMYK causes colour shifts; conversion requires ICC FOGRA39 profile. Missing 3D mockup before production — client approves the visualisation but the final effect on the product differs.

For gold foil a frequent mistake is underestimating quantities — for seasonal campaigns order +10-15% buffer. For silver foil a trap is choosing the wrong decoration technique — we always proof.

For holographic foil a mistake is missing size specification in the brief — recommend 30% S / 35% M / 25% L / 10% XL split. For red foil an issue is overlooking certificates required by the end client.

For blue foil a risk is missing Plan B for delivery — keep an alternative address. For paper 250-350 g the problem is brief submitted too late — minimum reasonable time is 4-6 weeks.

Execution process

Step 1 — technical brief: client provides the logo in vector (AI/EPS/SVG), material specification, quantities and decoration area. Step 2 — physical sample (pre-production sample): design studio prepares the production file, we produce 1-2 sample pieces in 3-5 working days.

Step 3 — serial production: after sample approval we launch full production (5-15 working days depending on technology and quantity). Step 4 — quality control: AQL 1.0-2.5 inspection (5-10% random sample), visual check, specification measurements.

Step 5 — packaging: product packed per brief guidelines (individual protective packaging for electronics, multi-pack for textiles). Step 6 — delivery and integration: integration with the client's existing warehouse or direct delivery to regional branches.

Brief stage — client indicates gold foil as priority item in gold foil; account manager prepares specification in 1-2 working days. Quote stage — for silver foil the quote includes unit price, decoration technique, packaging and logistics.

Proofing stage — for holographic foil the design studio prepares visualisation + physical sample before launching the run. Production stage — red foil launched in serial production 5-15 working days after sample approval.

Quality control stage — for blue foil AQL 1.0-2.5 inspection, durability tests (washing, abrasion), packaging per brief. Delivery stage — paper 250-350 g shipped from the Milano warehouse via BRT/DHL Italy/GLS/SDA/UPS Italy/FedEx with tracking number; delivery 24-48 hours in Italia.

Compliance and certificates

Inks used in gold foil — Pantone Aqua water-based (eco, OEKO-TEX), Plastisol (durable). REACH compliance — no SVHC above 0.1% w/w.

RoHS compliance for electronics applications. OEKO-TEX Standard 100 for printed textiles — class I or II.

GOTS for organic cotton; GRS for recycled polyester. FSC for certified paper and cardboard.

gold foil meets OEKO-TEX Standard 100 class II (articles in direct skin contact) — certificate on client request. silver foil complies with REACH — no SVHC above 0.1% w/w.

Personalisation of holographic foil uses inks and materials compliant with RoHS and LFGB for food-contact products. 22% VAT invoices for red foil — mandatory via SdI since 2019; full ERP integration.

blue foil carries GOTS certificate for organic cotton or GRS for recycled polyester. GDPR + Italian Codice Privacy (D.Lgs 196/2003) for paper 250-350 g — employee data stored in EU infrastructure with data processing agreement on request.

Lifecycle

Short-term (1-3 months) — event campaigns, product launches, onboarding programs with dedicated decoration personalisation. Medium-term (3-12 months) — merch programs with quarterly catalogue rotation, ambassador programs with name personalisation.

Long-term (1-3 years) — framework agreements with fixed setups, screen-printing screen storage. Continuous improvement — Pantone colour calibration quarterly, replacement of worn screens.

Screen lifecycle management — screen-printing screens have a lifespan of 50,000-100,000 impressions. Sustainable lifecycle — transition from Plastisol to water-based inks, recycling of screens and PET films.

Short-term gold foil is used in event campaigns and product launches — 5-8 week lead time. Medium-term silver foil powers onboarding and ambassador programs — quarterly rotation, 10% warehouse buffering.

Long-term holographic foil is part of loyalty programs — framework agreement with 5-15% volume discounts. red foil in sustainable lifecycle — recycled materials (GRS, GOTS, FSC) and return program for used products.

blue foil — continuous improvement: catalogue updated quarterly, new eco collections every 6 months. paper 250-350 g — after-sales support: claims processed in 3 working days, re-prints in 7-14 working days, returns of defective batches at our cost.

Frequently asked questions