A future in business, inspired by creative industries

When Nguyen Khanh Vi talks about studying Global Business at RMIT Vietnam, she often starts with music rather than markets.

As one of only seven Vice-Chancellor’s Scholars in RMIT Vietnam's scholarship program this year, Vi has spent much of her high school life leading music, media and creative projects. Through those experiences, she became convinced that Vietnam’s growing cultural industries need not only talent and passion but also stronger business foundations to unlock their full potential.

That conviction grew after a trip to Singapore, where she attended Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour and witnessed first-hand how a major entertainment event could create economic benefits far beyond the concert venue itself.

“I realised that entertainment, when built in an ecosystem, can move a country’s economy,” she said.

The experience reinforced her belief that Vietnam's creative and entertainment industries hold significant untapped potential. What interests her most is how business can help creative organisations grow sustainably and create lasting economic value.

Long before she began thinking about the creative economy, business had already been part of Vi’s life. Growing up in a family of painters, she spent much of her childhood in her mother’s art store. In her scholarship application, she describes helping with customers from an early age and later running a small business venture of her own as a teenager, selling notepads.

At Newton Grammar School, that entrepreneurial instinct found an outlet through creative organisations.

As founder and president of Newton Artist Fam, the school’s first independent music club, Vi helped restructure an existing arts initiative and turn it into a community of more than 60 members spanning dance, vocal and instrumental performance.

Her leadership left a strong impression on teachers at the school. According to Mr Nguyen Van Tuyet, Assistant Principal of Newton Middle School and High School, Vi successfully led the establishment of the club despite initial opposition and uncertainty. He regarded the club’s continued success after her term ended as one of her most notable accomplishments.

Newton Artist Fam’s most ambitious project under Vi's leadership was MOSAIC, an auditorium-scale showcase that elevated the club’s performances from small café venues to a 300-seat theatre setting.

With venue costs significantly exceeding the project's initial budget, Vi and her team had to rethink the traditional approach to financing an event. They launched marketing activities early, opened ticket sales in advance and secured partnership support, ultimately growing the project from a modest VND5 million budget into a production that generated approximately VND30 million in revenue.

Looking back, Vi sees the experience as more than an artistic achievement.

“When I took the initiative to build an arts club, I didn't see it simply as an extracurricular activity. I saw it as a miniature startup,” she said.

Alongside her extracurricular projects, Vi maintained a strong academic record. A literature-specialised student during her high school years, she graduated with a Grade 12 GPA of 9.84, achieved a Digital SAT score of 1510 and earned an IELTS score of 7.5. She also received multiple awards in literature competitions at district and city levels, as well as the Vietnam National University Olympic Competition for High School Students.

At RMIT, Vi hopes to build on her academic success while continuing to explore the intersection between creativity and commerce.

Her aspiration is to establish a research and consulting platform that equips independent, young creative ventures with practical business strategies that they are missing. Ultimately, she hopes the initiative could support hundreds of creative organisations and contribute to a stronger entertainment ecosystem in Vietnam.

“Having learned dance since the sixth grade and performed in many school events, I used to think most about the performance on stage. Now I'm equally interested in what happens behind it and what helps creative organisations keep growing,” Vi said.

Story: Ngoc Hoang