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Making big impacts on a small budget: MAM's 10k Triumph
Asian Creator House
January 04, 2024
Mixing Online with Offline
Shifting from digital landscapes to orchestrating lively in-person community events is a formidable task for any creator. Yet, for Alex Chester-Iwata, the maven behind the online publication Mixed Asian Media (MAM), the challenge took a defining turn when she conjured an event for nearly 300 attendees on a modest 10k budget.
Mixed Asian Day boasted over 30 sponsors, including names like Gold House, The Asian American Foundation, Anise Health, Sanzo, IW Group, and Sabobatage, among others.
On September 16, 2023, MAM hosted its inaugural Mixed Asian Day, an extension of their annual event series, the Mixed Asian Media Festival. Programming included an AAPI marketplace, a mental health workshop, a film screening, an afterparty, and a stand-up comedy set.
Alex Chester-Iwata of Mixed Asian Media. PC: Lauren Nakao Winn
“An event like this means a lot of outreach to smaller businesses and community-led organizations, ensuring clear communication on our asks and the sponsor’s expectations. It also means I do a lot of work – social media posts, outreach to sponsors, potential panelists, or talent for the event. Making sure my team knows when and where they will have to be,” Chester-Iwata said. Her approach is with a win-win mindset, emphasizing the solidarity of community.
“Monetary funding ranged from $500 - $2500. I also try to make our sponsorship accessible to smaller businesses.” Chester-Iwata said. For some community and startup partners who believe in MAM’s vision, that could come in the form of swag bag donations or other contributions besides just financial ones.
Community Over Competition
In conversations with sponsors, she emphasizes the rapid growth of the mixed Asian demographic. “Many of our sponsors, while not mixed themselves, have children, nieces, nephews, or other family and friends who are mixed, and they are excited to support our cause,” she says.
Sponsorship within the AAPI community has its challenges. Chester-Iwata notes that companies and businesses can often see AAPI organizations as a monolith. If they already contributed financial support for one, they are less inclined to bolster a different one.
However, MAM’s niche sets them apart among potential partners for sponsorship. MAM, born in 2017 when Chester-Iwata and a dynamic group of mixed Asian actors in New York birthed Hapa Mag, later becoming the groundbreaking MAM, responded to the scarcity of platforms representing the rich tapestry of mixed Asian experiences.
“Every quarter we came out with 12 to 16 articles, ranging from lifestyle to entertainment. Then in 2020, we were recognized by the Nielsen consumer report on Asian Americans and listed as one of three online magazines. Then we started having conversations about what we wanted to be,” she says.
For Chester-Iwata, MAM is about community first. They make money from their events by selling tickets, raffles, or accepting financial contributions, but the goal is always to make the events accessible. “I don’t believe in gatekeeping, and if you cannot afford a ticket but want to attend, I am not going to bar your entry. Community first and community over competition.”
Chester-Iwata’s future goals for MAM is to eventually create a production company that will house events, films, documentaries.
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