Abstract: A method of and apparatus for creating and vending printed card products such as greeting cards is disclosed, whereby a customer can select a card product for a desired application and customize or personalize certain portions of the selected card product. A terminal area or kiosk is provided at which the customer selects from a monitor screen display one of a number of different selection criterion for which he/she wants to obtain a card product. There may be multiple levels of selection criteria. Upon entry of the selection via, e.g., a transparent touch-sensitive plate on the monitor screen, one or more pre-stored groups of card product design formats pertaining to the selected selection criterion are determined, and the customer is prompted to select a particular card format to customize. The card product designs may include separate graphics, text and spaces for insertion of customized user messages, and these elements may be stored in a compressed format.