Meet Dominique Dunning of Designz By Domo and Compton Magic in Inland Empire

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dominique Dunning.

Dominique, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My journey began with a basketball. When I was in high school, I played for Compton Magic. CM is regarded as the best amateur sports organization in the country. We used to travel to various locations across the map to play in basketball tournaments, with the hope that we would be offered a scholarship to play college basketball. Fortunately, I had multiple options to do so. Out of High School, I chose to play at the University of New Mexico. Going to UNM was strictly a basketball decision. My objective was simple: Get there, get buckets, then go to the NBA (Every young hopeful basketball players dream)!! But once I got there, things did not work out how I had hoped. My freshman year did not turn out as expected and before I knew it, I was transferring to a new school.

This time around, I knew that my decision could not be strictly about basketball. Even though I thought I could still go to The League, I knew I had to prepare for plan B. Because of this thinking, I chose the University of California-Irvine. UCI had a basketball program that was on the rise. A place that I could play at right away. It’s also a great academic school. A place where I could maximize my degree for life after basketball. And it was also a place where I could grow socially. I joined a Kappa Sigma, a fraternity where I met some of my best friends. I also took the chance to participate in a lot of other things on campus. Through all of these interactions, I discovered my love for branding and logos. I used to draw stuff freehand and would show them to my friends. They would tell me that my ideas were good, but my execution was not great. Closer to the end of my time at UCI, one of friends showed me Adobe Illustrator. AI is an Adobe program that people use to make graphic art. From the first time I used it, I knew it was right up my alley. Once I played my last College Basketball game, I had a ton of time on my hands. Between my last game and graduation, I taught myself how to use Adobe Illustrator. This newly learned skill would come in handy later.

UC Irvine was close to home. And that meant that I was close to my old club team Compton Magic. The director and founder, Etop Udo-Ema had become a mentor to me in high school. I lived down the street from him and whenever I got a chance I was with him. Early in my time at UCI, I got in a car accident. I needed money to fix my car so I asked Etop if I could work his big Memorial Day tournament. He allowed me to work and I did a great job. From that point on, I was trying to be in the mix with whatever we did. Luckily when I was graduating college, CM was on the rise publicly. Through social media our team was becoming a brand, and Etop needed help making the brand look a certain way. He had a vision and he needed someone to help him execute that. So I bought A Mac Book and started doing graphics for my Club. I was doing graphics for tournaments of ours, highlights within the program, and logos. My most notable CM project is the logo that we currently use. Not long after, I began to get inquiries from other people in the youth basketball space. Soon after, I began to brand my Graphic Design work as “Designz By Domo”.

Along with graphic design, I began to build my profile in the basketball event game. We at Compton Magic run the best basketball events on the West Coast. Along with that, I was able to break into Team Sales for Adidas. These ventures all can be done remotely, and go hand-in-hand with our everyday operations at Compton Magic. Etop and Compton Magic gave me everything I have today. Without this program, I do not know where I would be. So in turn, I give the program everything that I can

Can you share with us the challenges you had to overcome?
The road has been anything but smooth. When I first started out I had to drive for Lyft just to make ends meet. I also worked at a high school that was in West LA for two years. I drove there every day from Irvine, CA my first year working there. I also have had the struggle of being young in the game. A lot of people I interact with saw me grow up. They either coached against me when I was playing or coached me themselves. So they have this “kid” image of you that is hard to shake. I try to combat it by being professional and mature.

I have also have had struggles with self-promotion. I do not like talking about myself at all. But in the world of being self-employed, you must push your product the hardest. If you don’t do it, who will? Out of all of these, my biggest struggle until this day is time management. Being self-employed can be a gift and a curse. You make your own schedule, and you get to do everything on your own time. But with that comes great responsibility. And unfortunately, some times I find myself having too much idle time. You have to fight for this lifestyle in every way. Some times that means fighting yourself and human nature.

Please tell us about Designz By Domo and Compton Magic. What do you specialize in? What sets you apart from competition?
Designz By Domo is a company of one (Myself). I specialize in logos, flyers, and edits for things that have to do with sports. I also do services for basketball events and team sales as well. I am known for my logos and my cartoon edits. The reason I am so proud of this company of mine is because it is my own. Something that I started from scratch with no formal instruction. It just came from sheer passion. Graphic design was something that I wanted to learn for fun. It ended up turning into so much more than I ever could have imagined. The thing that sets me apart is my knowledge of the space I occupy. Most of my clients are basketball programs. This is a space that I live in everyday, so I can easily understand how they are trying to look from a branding standpoint.

Compton Magic is Non-Profit 501c3 organization. We are a community organization that specializes in giving back to the community in more ways than one. We help high school boys get athletic scholarships to play basketball in college. We give back to the community of Compton through various programs that we have created over the years. Through this, we have revolutionized the amateur basketball space. What I am most proud of about our organization is the fact that we are always there for our kids no matter what. Whether they make it pro, graduate and get a regular job, or if they want to pursue a career in basketball, we are here way after the stops bouncing. I am proud to say that I am a prime example of what this program does for young men.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
My business is very unique. Graphic design and Team sales can be done remotely from everywhere. I am able to promote that on social media without even leaving my house. Basketball events are a lot different in that regard. But the Los Angeles area has endless possibilities in that arena. So if someone was trying to break into the basketball industry, I would recommend them to start somewhere here.

I personally love living in the Inland Empire. I am close enough to LA that if I have to be there, I can be. But I do not take on all the expenses of living in LA like high cost of living. And from what I see, there are a lot of awesome things coming from the IE.

Contact Info:

• Website: comptonmagic.net
• Phone: 9092635843
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/niquedunning/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/niquedunning

Image Credit:
Cassy Athena Photo, @CLCPR

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