TAKU IMAGAWA
2734 Ellsworth Street  Berkeley, CA 94705
timagawa08@gmail.com  510-508-5946
http://www.timagawa.com
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
Repeated success guiding challenging marketing and design products for name brands. Seasoned
graphic designer with extensive experience in understanding the client’s needs, developing suitable
concepts, and estimating the amount of time needed to complete projects. Exceptional time
management, interpersonal, communication, and creativity skills.
HIGHLIGHTS OF EXPERTISE





Adobe Creative Suite
HTML/CSS/PHP
Customer Service
Time Management
Communication





Japanese-English Translation
Troubleshooting
Critical Thinking
Interpersonal Skills
Team Building
CAREER SUMMARY
TOKYO DESIGN CENTER, INC., San Francisco, California
GRAPHIC DESIGNER, ART DIRECTOR (2000 to Present)

Create product designs from concept to execution for various marketing channels, such as
packaging, food labels, brochures, catalogs, pops, advertisements, posters, web sites, and
mobile sites.

Guided several projects, including obtaining estimates, communicating with various
vendors and clients, writing Japanese copy, translating from Japanese to English and vice
versa, and contacting vendors for outsourcing the translation material.

Spearheaded a design concept for Sweet Soy Sauce for Rice, Kikkoman Sales USA, Inc.,
including photo shooting, photo editing, and managing the product information, such as
creating a barcode and preparing the output file for submission.

Accomplished the successful completion of project designs, such as Dynasty Gluten Free
Tempura Batter Mix and Dynasty Gluten Free Panko Japanese Bread Crumbs for JFC
International, Inc., which are now marketed at many stores.

Led the way for Japanese, Chinese, and Korean print and TV media ads and TV CM
campaigns for Japanese rice products, managing budgets ranging from $7,000 to $33,000.
NDD CREATIVE, San Francisco, California
FREELANCE GRAPHIC DESIGNER, ENGLISH-JAPANESE TRANSLATOR, AND COPY
WRITER (September 2004－Present)

Supported the design and production in various media for designers, such as signage,
catalogs, and newsletters to include editing (color correcting and cripping paths images) and
building rough drafts.

Translated Japanese copy to English.
continued…
TAKU IMAGAWA
Page 2
SOMA MAGAZINE, San Francisco, California
DESIGN INTERN (February 2000 －September 2000)

Supported the complete design process through designing restaurant/bar/club review
pages, acquiring publicity photos, assisting an Art Director in design and production, and
designing ads.
BUNKASHA PUBLISHING COMPANY, Tokyo, Japan
CLERICAL ASSISTANT (Summer 1998)

Corresponded with magazine subscribers and filed their information in the data system.
EDUCATION & CREDENTIALS
ENGLISH-JAPANESE TRANSLATION / JAPANESE-ENGLISH TRANSLATION COURSES
AISEI JAPANESE LANGUAGE SERVICES, 2002-2003
EXTENSION IN GRAPHIC DESIGN PROGRAM
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY, SEPTEMBER 1998-AUGUST 2000
CERTIFICATE WITH DISTINCTION, GRAPHIC DESIGN PROGRAM
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY, OCTOBER 2000
INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES IN SOCIAL SCIENCES
SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY GRADUATE PROGRAM, AUGUST 1997-MAY 1998
INTERNATIONAL STUDIES PROGRAM, WITH AN EMPHASIS ON AMERICAN STUDIES,
J.F. OBERLIN UNIVERSITY, APRIL 1993-MARCH 1997
LANGUAGES

Japanese (native)