In 2011, Van Tran needed a big-girl job. Fresh out of college with a degree in painting and drawing, Van felt lost in terms of where her future career might be. Working part-time at a dog feed store decorating dog cakes and barely making minimum wage, Van knew she needed something different. That was when she found a Craigslist posting for a front desk position at an “MMA gym” called Easton Training Center (yes, we’ve changed a lot over the years!), and she jumped at the opportunity.
Van was already introduced to the sport of MMA and found the world both exciting and new. A casual fan, Van had some idea what she was going into watching fighters and their training camps. She submitted her resume and, after a very intimidating interview with no other than the ex UFC fighter, Eliot Marshall, she got hired almost immediately.
That was almost 14 years ago. Today, Van balances two major roles at Easton: Academy Operations Director (AOD) at Denver and Creative Director for all of Easton. She spends three to four hours daily on management tasks, focused on smooth operations at the academy and the success of her staff. The rest of her time, particularly on weekends, is dedicated to design work. She handles everything from 2D graphics to apparel and merchandise, blending her creative talents with administrative leadership.
Though she’d been exposed to the world of martial arts through watching local fights and the UFC, Van’s own training started lightly. Coming from a childhood where limited funds meant sparse experience in traditional team sports, Van’s initial fitness journey had revolved primarily around running and lightly lifting when she got into college. She had taken a few martial arts classes here and there, but getting on the mats at Easton was a whole new experience.
She dabbled in striking, but took a little while to fully commit to a training regimen. Eventually, the mats became less intimidating, and over the next couple of years, Van began training more consistently — both in Muay Thai and Strength and Conditioning. By 2017, alongside managing the front desk at Easton Denver, Van began coaching Kickboxing. Today, along with Kickboxing, Van also coaches a Strength and Conditioning class at Denver.
Coaching and management
While management and coaching require a similar form of patience and structured thinking, her creative work taps into a completely different mindset. Working with others means responding in real time to their needs and challenges, but when Van steps into her creative zone, she’s not managing anybody, and she’s often at home, working by herself.
With coaching and management, however, it comes down to understanding what people need and creatively thinking through solutions that best address these needs in real time. When she first started coaching, Van found that she had certain expectations, or wanted things done in a particular way, and could get frustrated when that didn’t happen.
“I’d get frustrated that I wasn’t seeing the results I wanted,” Van says, “because I couldn’t let go of the little things. In return, I would over correct.”
Quickly, however, she realized two things: not everybody is the same when it comes to learning curves, and not everyone absorbs information the same way. Not every student will understand things as quickly as the next, but most importantly – it’s not always actually about letting things go; it’s about finding the right way to communicate.
“If you see a mistake,” says Van, “you still need to point out the mistake, but it’s more about communicating it efficiently to where they’re able to understand where the mistake happened, and how to avoid doing it again. The end goal is to teach and give my peers tools to succeed.”
As the Academy Operations Director at Easton Denver, Van’s priorities lie in keeping a pulse on each department, from admin to each division of martial arts, and ensuring that nobody feels forgotten. Between the front desk, Muay Thai, Jiu Jitsu, Kids Martial Arts, there are a lot of moving parts and along with keeping up with all of them, Van needs to make sure that people feel comfortable approaching her with whatever they need.
Sometimes, she finds, people may not know if their concern is something they can approach her with, and they might be hesitant to come to her. To stay ahead of this, Van makes sure to check in on people and remind them she’s available. She tries to catch things before they become larger situations and make sure she responds quickly if not at the academy so that staff and students feel supported and heard.
“I don’t want them to fail,” says Van of Denver’s staff. “Their success is my success, and to help them prosper, I have to be available.”
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The art of switching hats
One of Van’s biggest daily challenges includes shifting between administrative management and creative design. Management demands constant communication, checking others’ work, problem-solving, and ensuring operations run efficiently.
This means responding to situations in real time and making herself available as a resource to anyone who needs her. Her daily routine involves auditing schedules, checking staff work, and handling daily tasks before transitioning into design mode (not before walking her corgi, Morty, of course!).
Unlike the structured world of administration, design requires an entirely different mental space – often messy but rewarding. Once on the creative side, Van must tap into artistic inspiration, anticipate fashion trends, and meet tight production deadlines.
“It’s a lot of moving pieces,” says Van. “What color is in this season? What apparel do we want to release? What’s the deadline for getting this into production? I wish it were just an idea and then BAM the product is in our hands, but products take months to refine.”
She tells us that one design can take between 1 to 15 hours of work. Van starts with an idea and rough sketches it into her computer. Then she refines it through her art program and gets it “print ready,” which is the most tedious part.
“The hardest part is letting go of something that isn’t working,” says Van, “even after pouring hours into the design. I have dozens of rejected ideas that just weren’t making me happy, but it’s hard to accept that when you’ve invested so much time into it.”
Since a single design can take a while, focused design time can make it difficult to balance with other responsibilities and burnout is often inevitable. However, Van is grateful Easton gives her avenues to unplug and take breaks.
“If I’m overwhelmed,” she says, “I can take a step back and take Morty to the dog park or go for a run. I’ve never had that option, not even in college.”
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Finding meaning and fulfillment
Despite the challenges, Van finds immense fulfillment in her role at Easton. After over 13 years with the company and growing from a front desk employee into a leadership role, she’s witnessed and contributed to the academy’s transformation.
From the 50,000-foot view and over a decade of honing and refining our core values, it’s rewarding to see the progress. As an eight-school academy, it’s important to constantly course correct – notice when you’re veering off path and readjust rather than ignore the warning signs.
“Easton does a good job identifying problems and solving them,” says Van, “and it’s really cool I get to be a part of that. Seeing how much the academy has grown, and really, how much I have grown! It’s humbling.”
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Van tells us it has been a rewarding and surreal experience. Not only does she get to work with some of the most talented people in the martial arts world, but she gets the best support system through the community they foster.
“I never thought I would get a career in the creative arts,” Van says. “I accepted that it was probably just going to be a hobby. But Easton gave me a purpose. Easton gave me my canvas, and it’s truly a dream come true.”
On the creative side, getting to see her designs out in the wild has become one of the most rewarding things — including seeing MMA artist and world champion Alistair Overeem wearing one of her designs on TV. While her aesthetic has evolved over the years, Van appreciates playing such a big part in Easton’s visual history.
Whether it’s managing operations, coaching athletes or designing apparel, Van has made an indelible mark on Easton. Her journey from front desk employee to Creative Director and AOD is a testament to her dedication, adaptability and passion for both the sports and the community – and a reminder of how we can all find our unique place within a structured landscape.
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