The “message card” on a Hong Kong flower stand is usually a pair of vertical ribbons or banners (上款 and 下款) with a central blessing (賀詞). Some stands also have a small handwritten card tucked among the flowers. Everyone passing the shop reads the ribbons, so the wording, spelling and order of names matter.

1. The Standard Layout

Chinese text on a flower stand reads vertically, from right to left:

Position	Name	Content	Example
Right	上款	Recipient (the business) and the occasion	賀 ABC有限公司開幕誌喜
Centre	賀詞	The main blessing, in the largest characters	鴻圖大展
Left	下款	Sender’s name and a closing phrase	陳大文敬賀

Some stands use a simpler two-line format: the blessing and recipient on the right, the sender on the left. Both are acceptable. Ask your florist which layout they use.

2. Writing the Right Side (上款): The Recipient

Pattern: [Prefix] + Business name + Occasion

Prefixes (optional):

賀: simple and common
恭賀: respectful and slightly more formal
敬賀 / 謹賀: very formal, for senior recipients

Occasion phrases:

開幕誌喜 / 開幕誌慶: celebrating the opening
開張誌喜 / 開張大吉: opening, especially for shops
開業誌喜 / 開業大吉: opening, especially for practices and firms
新張誌喜: a new establishment
隆重開幕: grand opening
喬遷誌喜: for relocation, not a first opening

Examples:

賀美味軒餐廳開幕誌喜
恭賀陳醫生診所開業大吉
賀星晨設計有限公司隆重開幕

Key rule: Use the business’s official registered name, including 有限公司 or 集團 only if the business uses it. Copy it from the owner’s invitation, signage or business card, and never retype it from memory.

3. Choosing the Centre Blessing (賀詞)

Four-character phrases are the norm. Pick one that fits the business and keep it to a single phrase.

General (suits any business):

Phrase	Meaning
開張大吉	great fortune on opening
生意興隆	thriving business
財源廣進	wealth flowing in
鴻圖大展 / 大展宏圖	grand plans realised
日進斗金	income pouring in daily
馬到成功	instant success
前程錦繡	a bright future
蒸蒸日上	rising day by day
萬事如意	all goes as wished

By business type:

Business	Suggested phrases
Restaurant, café, bar	高朋滿座, 賓客如雲, 食客盈門, 味道滿座
Retail shop	門庭若市, 顧客盈門, 貨如輪轉
Clinic, medical, wellness	妙手回春, 懸壺濟世, 仁心仁術
Education, tutoring	桃李芬芳, 桃李滿門, 作育英才
Beauty, salon, spa	美麗無限, 青春常駐, 魅力四射
Law, accounting, consulting	業務蒸蒸日上, 專業卓越, 駿業宏開
Tech, startup, design	創意無限, 鵬程萬里, 一鳴驚人
Trading, import-export	財源廣進, 四海通達 (see the note on 四 in section 6), 貨暢其流

Avoid stacking several blessings on one ribbon, because it looks crowded and hard to read.

4. Writing the Left Side (下款): The Sender

Pattern: Sender’s name + closing phrase

Closing phrases:

敬賀: most common, respectful
敬贈: respectfully presented
謹賀: formal, for senior recipients
賀: casual and short, for friends

Sender formats:

Situation	Format	Example
Individual	Name + closing	陳大文敬賀
Couple or family	Names or surname + family	李氏夫婦敬賀
Friends	Names listed	阿明、阿欣賀
Company	Company name + closing	星河貿易有限公司敬賀
Company with a representative	Company + title + name	星河貿易有限公司董事總經理黃志明敬賀
Group or team	Team or department	營運部全體同事敬賀
Organisation	Full name	香港XX商會敬賀

Tips:

Use the sender’s name exactly as the recipient knows it. Use your business name for business relationships and your personal name for personal ones.
If you add a title, place it between the company and the name.
For multiple senders, put the most senior or most important name first (to the right).
Keep the left side shorter than or equal in length to the right. A long sender line on a small ribbon can look cramped.

5. Complete Examples

Restaurant, from a supplier:

Right: 賀港味茶餐廳開張誌喜
Centre: 高朋滿座
Left: 鮮達食品有限公司敬賀

Clinic, from a friend:

Right: 恭賀林醫生診所開業大吉
Centre: 妙手回春
Left: 陳大文、王小美敬賀

Retail shop, from a landlord:

Right: 賀悅美時裝店隆重開幕
Centre: 財源廣進
Left: 恒信地產有限公司謹賀

Tutoring centre, from colleagues:

Right: 賀啟明教育中心開業誌喜
Centre: 桃李芬芳
Left: 前同事張美玲、李家豪敬賀

Two-line simplified format:

Right: 開張大吉賀星晨設計工作室
Left: 黃志明敬賀

6. Wording to Avoid

Simplified Chinese: Use Traditional Chinese for Hong Kong.
Wrong characters or typos in the business name. This is the most embarrassing mistake, so double check.
Words suggesting ending or decline: 結束, 完, 終, 散, 倒, 敗, 落. For example, don’t use 「完美」 style phrases as a lead-in, and avoid 「永別」 or 「告別」 in any context.
Illness-related phrases for clinics. Don’t mention 病 or 痛. Use 妙手回春 or 懸壺濟世 instead.
The number 四 (sounds like 死) in counts or lists, for example “four blessings”. The phrase 四海通達 uses 四 as a fixed idiom and is generally acceptable, but if the owner is superstitious, choose another phrase.
Casual slang or jokes on a business ribbon. Keep it respectful.
Mixing languages awkwardly. If you want English, see section 8.
Funeral-style wording or formats, such as 奠, 哀悼, or white ribbon with black text.

7. Colours and Appearance

Confirm these with the florist:

Ribbon background: red is the safest. Gold, orange and bright yellow also work.
Text colour: gold or yellow on red, or black on a gold background.
Never use white, black or blue ribbons.
Text size: the centre blessing should be the largest, with the right and left lines clearly smaller.
Font: a formal, readable style. Regular script (楷書) is classic and legible.

8. Adding English or a Bilingual Message

Many Hong Kong shops operate in both languages. If the business name is bilingual, you can include both.

Keep the Chinese as the main text. English is a supplement.
Examples:
- 「Congratulations on Your Grand Opening」 in a small line beneath the blessing
- Sender: 「With best wishes from ABC Trading Co. Ltd.」
Don’t translate the four-character blessings literally in a long sentence. Keep the English short.
Check that the business’s English name matches its official signage, including capitalisation.

9. The Small Handwritten Card

If you add a small card in addition to the ribbons, keep it short and warm, in Traditional Chinese or English.

Samples:

恭喜開業,祝生意興隆!— 小美
開張大吉,財源廣進!期待下次聚會。— 阿明
Congratulations on the opening! Wishing you every success. — Sarah and Tom