For McDonald’s, opening in a new market for the first time in 15 years was momentous. Vietnam saw the opening as a symbol of economic growth.

The insight that Rice discovered was that the forthcoming restaurants would be landmarks in the neighborhoods where they would open. The restaurants could also act as part of the community, where individuals from that area would seek jobs, meet, and spend time. The work centered around the community rather than a monolithic foreign brand roll-out. Rice created the 'community identity' for McDonald’s Vietnam. Unique names and logos were created for each new restaurant. The restaurants would be named after the neighborhoods that they would situate in. The visual approach was based upon a colloquial wall stamp aesthetic common in Vietnam, This was also the approach to introduce fresh interpretations of McDonald’s iconic menu items for a new audience.

The second insight was the opening would be seen in Vietnam as a milestone in economic progress. Rice acknowledged the historical nature of the opening, and developed a 'commemorative identity' for McDonald’s Vietnam, complete with a unique logo. The logo became a pin, worn by stakeholders and the entire operations team. The 'commemorative identity' worked into limited-edition merchandise. Similar to an Olympics identity, this one was to celebrate a time and place and would be considered collectable memorabilia.