Richard Tran Portfolio

Vietnamese Association of Charlotte

Celebrating culture, building community

BRAND IDENTITY

EVENT MARKETING

SPONSOR RELATIONS

COMMUNITY BUILDING

Background

The Vietnamese Association of Charlotte is a nonprofit dedicated to preserving and celebrating Southeast Asian culture in the Charlotte community. I came on as a volunteer to create digital assets for their events. Over time that grew into something closer to full ownership over creative direction, brand strategy, and sponsor relationships.

The stakes were real in a specific way. For a nonprofit, every dollar earned funds the next event. The Mid Autumn Festival in the fall directly enables Tết in the winter. That link made attendance, vendor participation, and community turnout genuinely consequential and it made the creative work matter beyond aesthetics.

The Work

My responsibilities spanned the full creative scope across both annual events: digital promotional assets, event branding, signage, and visual materials designed to draw people in and keep the experience cohesive once they arrived. As the role expanded, I took on a new responsibility: managing a high-value sponsor relationship with Harrah's Cherokee Casino Resort, new to our sponsor list and contributing at a level that raised the stakes considerably.

This wasn't just a design problem. It required professional communication, legal awareness around brand usage, and a clear strategy for how two very different organizations could show up together authentically. My position from the start: the goal was to make guests feel the partnership meant something.

Harrah's Cherokee

I pitched a suite of integrated touchpoints: branded lì xì, a sponsored video, a decorated booth, and giveaways – each designed to weave their brand into the experience rather than decorate the edges of it.

The video was the hardest sell. Casino brands carry strict content guidelines, and filming on their campus gave them pause. I pushed back because the case was clear: Harrah's Cherokee already has a strong Vietnamese presence within their resort, and Tết is one of the most culturally significant celebrations of the Vietnamese year. The overlap wasn't coincidental, it was an opportunity to build something that genuinely served both communities.

They agreed. The production grew beyond the original pitch, and the final video exceeded what either side had anticipated. The video performed very well and the Vietnamese community strengthened between our organization, as well as with Harrah's Cherokee Casino Resort.