From 2023 through 2024, I continued as one of the lead creative for the Empire State Development (ESD) “I LOVE NEW YORK” Tour, evolving the program from its 2022 foundation into a more agile and scalable format. While the tour still traveled across all ten vacation regions of New York State, our team reimagined the design and experience architecture to ensure ease of travel, quicker setup, and flexibility to accommodate both large-scale festivals and more intimate community events.

The modular design system allowed for consistent brand storytelling while maintaining adaptability across various environments—ensuring maximum impact with minimal logistical friction. The 2023 tour was so well received by ESD and the public that we carried the same creative framework into the 2024 tour with only minimal design and interactive updates.

I also led the strategy, design, and implementation of the tour’s digital experience roadmap, overseeing interactive tech such as the RFID engagement and VR adventure pods. From user journey mapping to integration, I ensured the technology enhanced storytelling—allowing visitors to track their personalized journey through the tour and experience immersive content showcasing New York State’s diverse regions. The RFID and VR touchpoints were central to deepening engagement and making the tour more memorable and measurable.

Additionally, we designed a compact “Suitcase Tour”—a mobile, pop-up version of the experience that could be deployed at smaller-scale events and activations throughout the state. This mini-format retained the core storytelling and educational touchpoints of the larger tour while providing even more flexibility for ESD to show up in meaningful ways across communities of all sizes.