I met this young lady via Twitter (a great example of social media at its finest!).  Turns out we had a ton of mutual friends in common, and we both attended the same great university!  I can honestly say this girl makes me laugh and has brought to my life so much fun, joy, and amazing experiences!   So without further adieu, please read up on my girl Dominique Johnson of Uniquely Dynamic Enterprises.

Elle: Where are you based?

Dominique: We are based in Chicago. We have corresponding offices in Miami and are opening another location in Atlanta later this year.

Elle: How long have you been in business?

Dominique: We have been in business since 2005. However, the company became my main focus in 2009, when I left my corporate job.

Elle: How did you get started?

Dominique:  I love telling this story. When I was in college, at the prestigious Florida A & M University, I was interning for a law firm and working for the governor’s office. Long story short, I started doing side events. In order to be in compliance with my law school goals, I knew I needed to establish myself as a business entity. I asked the owner of the law firm if he would assist me, and his exact words were, “You can read can’t you?”.  So I went about the diligent task of incorporating myself. In the long run I received a letter from the IRS and realized that I had set up my business structure wrong. So after spending the time and resources of fixing my mistakes, I began to wonder how many small business owners or potential entrepreneurs had done the same thing or the whole process just discouraged them? So in 2005, I started what was then Uniquely Dynamic Enterprises. We are now The UDE Group.

Elle: What can clients expect from Uniquely Dynamic?

Dominique: My clients can expect that their individual needs will be custom tailored to our services. We understand that people’s dreams or freedom from Corporate America, passions, and interests should not be ignored, nor lumped into one group. So we consult with each of our clients and develop a program for them to establish, reestablish, or just reinvent their company, brand, or ideas.

Elle: Where do you see yourself and your business in 5-10 years?

Dominique: As far as The UDE Group is concerned, we would like to have 6 additional offices, each one responsible for the North, South, East, and West regions, and the other two based over seas. I would like for us to be involved in various industries to sustain residual income. All in all, we just hope to be the launching pad for several companies and to look back and say we had a hand in their development.

Elle: What is next for Uniquely Dynamic?

Dominique: The UDE Group is doing a lot of expanding this year. Last year we changed our name from Uniquely Dynamic Enterprises to The UDE Group. We purchased a promotional company that supplies promotional products in any facet for companies and events and such. In the first quarter of this year we are opening a franchise in Chicago. Due to the exceptional work our client felt we did, they gave us the exclusive rights to the Chicago market. We are very excited about this and all other projects that we are working on this year.  We will have opened 4 locations of the franchise two years apart from each other after this April. We are also apart of a charity foundation called Beyond The Game, www.beyondtgame.com. The sole purpose of the organization is to build a school, care point, and clinic in Swaziland, Africa. We will be going back this April to begin laying the foundation for the school.

Elle: What else would you like to share?

Dominique: I, of course, would like to do some shameless plugs for my most exciting clients of 2011 thus far. Since the beginning of this year, we have signed with Alter Ego Heels, a high end couture shoe line established by DaShawn Baker, also a graduate of FAMU. We are in the process of reestablishing and launching a nationwide campaign for a DC native, Julie Edwards and her company Color and Soul Cosmetics. She makes custom mineral makeup and face care products for women of every color, www.colorandsoul.com. We are launching another DC based company called Self Prescribed Shades, a high end boutique shades line. Back to my heart of the community, we are working with another DC based organization called Bradford Media Group, who is hosting an organized boxing event in August on behalf of their charity foundation.

I am very thankful for you granting this opportunity.

And I am thankful to Dominique for allowing me to feature her on this blog.  If you or someone you know is starting a business, or if they are already a business owner and are looking to expand, I highly suggest you support her.  (Visit the site at www.uniquelydynamic.com.)  As you can see, UDE is expanding, so they will be able to assist you with all of your business needs.  Until next time, I’m just a Southern girl…in the city!

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Today’s Black History Month Fact:

Sarah Breedlove made her fortune by creating hair care products for women of color.  She also established a school to teach hair culturists, opened her own manufacturing company, and is credited with being the first American female millionaire.  You may know her as Madame C.J. Walker.