We were lucky to catch up with Dominique Dunn recently and have shared our conversation below.

Dominique, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

How did I come up with the idea of More II Lyfe Clothing…Well I’ve always been into fashion. I enjoy collecting shoes and hats and matching up outfits to go with them. Aside from that, there was a time when one of my best friends and I were working together on a brand. This was her baby and I had ideas but I didn’t want to overstep or do too much since she presented the idea to me. Eventually, my ideas started to overwhelm me so I started brainstorming on starting my own clothing brand. At this time I was working at a Capital One call center in collections, getting cursed out and yelled at on a daily basis. I’m a sensitive person so I had to grow tough skin for this job. It started off as fun but eventually I was over it. On one particular day, after getting off of a call with an irate customer, I said out loud to myself, there’s “more to life” than this. I deserve better and I can do better. From there, “more to life” just stuck with me. I couldn’t get it out of my head. Later that week, I was sitting at my desk doodling and I drew my logo idea on the back of a Walmart receipt. I was super hype and quickly started asking around on social media for help with digitizing the design. I found someone to bring my idea to life and that’s when I started planning my first item I wanted to release. I decided to release a hat first instead of a t-shirt, just to be different. I was extremely nervous because I was worried that people would think it’s corny and I wouldn’t get any support. When I introduced my brand to the world, it was so much love from everyone, even from people I didn’t know. They really loved the message behind my brand and could most definitely relate. Rewinding time a little, here is what I said in my introduction post to the world on March 30, 2016: Cheers to motivation and inspiration because I know I get sick of the same daily routine so I wanted to throw sumn new into mine. There’s truly more to life than doin jus the basics and settling. Do more, live a lil, but mostly, DO WHAT YOU WANT! Reminiscing on that moment makes my heart smile still to this day.

Dominique, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Dominique Dunn and I’m a country girl, born and raised in a small town in southern Virginia, only a few minutes from the North Carolina state line. I relocated to Baltimore in June of 2022 and I love it here. I am the owner of More II Lyfe Clothing which is a brand that is dedicated to reminding you that there’s more to life than settling for the basics. Life should be spent having fun, experiencing new things, making memories, writing history, and elevating yourself to higher levels from whatever aspects you see fit.
More II Lyfe Clothing provides a variety of clothing garments such as hats, t-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, jogging suits, mesh shorts, and some children’s clothing. We are in the process of expanding to more products in the upcoming year. We also fulfill custom orders using personalized logos and designs and sometimes creating designs for clients on garments of their choice.
When it comes to the More II Lyfe Clothing, I am most proud of how the message of this brand has motivated and transformed lives, even my own. It has been a personal inspirational factor when I have lost focus or have no idea which way to go. My goal has always been for people to wear the apparel, not only to look good but to also feel and embrace the intended message that comes with it.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

To be honest, there was no initial capital to start my business. I didn’t have a business account nor had I even thought about one. I was just excited about the idea so I just simply used my own money earned from my 9-5 job to order a denim hat from Amazon and took it to a local embroidery business. I told her what I wanted and she showed me some font designs I could choose from. I made the choice, came back a few days later and there it was, my baby, my first hat which didn’t cost any more than about $15 total. After that, I took a picture in the hat and made my post introducing my brand to the world and started taking orders. I did it as a preorder so that I could get a feel for things financially. I didn’t want to already have premade hats and sell them that way because at the time, I didn’t have the funds for that and also, unfortunately I didn’t have the confidence in this new venture to think that they would sell like hotcakes so I took the safe route which worked in my favor. I would say my business really started with a dollar and a dream.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I’ve always loved working with children. When I graduated college, despite having a Sport Management degree and wanting to coach basketball, I became a substitute teacher at a local school in my hometown. It was easy to get the job because everyone knew me from excelling academically and athletically when I went to school in the area. This position led to me being offered a contracted permanent position with that school which I took. It was cool starting off, fresh out of college with a good job. I was also working at the local YMCA’s after school program. Eventually, it got tiring having two jobs so after being recommended by a friend, I left my passion of working with children to go work at a call center. I was excited, the pay was double of what I was making at the YMCA and the school put together. I never saw myself having a job at a call center especially since I have never been the type to sit at a desk. I have always been active, but hey, the money was loud. Although I grew to dislike that job very much, it was actually a fun and different experience(that I’ll never do again lol). I don’t regret anything about it because it inspired my vision and the birth of my brand, More II Lyfe Clothing. Oh and currently, I’m back to my passion of working with children. I started my career as a Health and Physical Education teacher about 5 years ago and I absolutely love it!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.moreiilyfe.com
• Instagram: @moreiilyfeclothing
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/moreiilyfeclothing