diff --git a/compcards.php b/compcards.php
index 68d5e5d..211f545 100644
--- a/compcards.php
+++ b/compcards.php
@@ -19,7 +19,15 @@ $conn = db_connect();
 // ─────────────────────────────────────────────
 $searchTerm = isset($_GET['search']) ? trim((string)$_GET['search']) : '';
 $searchLen = function_exists('mb_strlen') ? mb_strlen($searchTerm, 'UTF-8') : strlen($searchTerm);
-if ($searchTerm !== '' && $searchLen >= 2) {
+if ($searchTerm !== '') {
+    if ($searchLen < 2) {
+        ?><section class="product-section">
+            <h2>Suchergebnisse für „<?= htmlspecialchars($searchTerm) ?>“</h2>
+            <p class="search-empty">Bitte geben Sie mindestens 2 Zeichen ein.</p>
+        </section><?php
+        return;
+    }
+
     $like = addcslashes($searchTerm, "%_\\");
     $like = '%' . $like . '%';