A 65-year-old story, told for a thumb-first world.
After COVID, the Kansas City Greek Festival was facing its lowest attendance and smallest profit margins in recent history. I led a complete rebrand and built its marketing strategy from the ground up, turning a longstanding community tradition into a modern, social-first brand.
The festival had decades of history, incredible food, and a rich cultural identity. But with attendance down and profit margins at historic lows, tradition alone wasn't enough to bring people through the gates. The opportunity was bigger than promoting a weekend event. It was to rethink how the festival presented itself, reach beyond its existing audience, and give a new generation of Kansas Citians a reason to show up.
I led a complete rebrand, changing the name from Annunciation Greek Food Festival to Kansas City Greek Festival. The new identity gave the event a broader, more accessible presence while keeping its Greek heritage and community at the heart of the experience. From there, I developed the brand's social voice and content pillars, creating a cohesive creative strategy that brought the festival's food, culture, people, and atmosphere to life. For the first time, organic social, paid advertising, influencer partnerships, and media outreach worked together as part of one integrated marketing approach.
What I actually did.
A brand built for a broader audience
Led the transition from Annunciation Greek Food Festival to Kansas City Greek Festival, establishing a refreshed identity and a social brand voice.
One strategy, multiple ways in
Developed content pillars that shaped the festival's marketing across organic and paid social, influencer partnerships, and media outreach. Each channel offered a different way to connect with potential festivalgoers, building awareness and giving audiences more reasons to attend.
From concept to content
Took the creative from idea to execution, creating campaign assets, acting as both a graphic designer and lead copywriter. Developed media pitches to extend the story beyond the festival's own channels.
In the first year of the new marketing strategy, festival sales increased by $90,000. Since then, the festival has maintained consistent profit margins, building on a stronger brand identity and a marketing foundation designed to support continued growth. The result was more than a successful campaign. It was a new way for a 65-year-old community tradition to show up, reach audiences, and grow.
