Success Spotlight: Quentin Davis - Donte Dinero
When you think of an entrepreneur, the first picture that comes to your mind may or may not be an African American male, especially a college student.
This is where I swoop in and introduce you to a different perspective.
Many people know the brand, but not the man behind it all.
Quentin Davis, the owner of clothing brand Donte Dinero, has made his brand a household name in his at-home community of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Along with his school community which is the illustrious Hampton University where he is currently a junior pursuing a degree in Business Management.
Though he had various people in his family that attended Hampton, he initially didn't want to go to college which can be surprising considering that usually when a child has a parent or family member that is legacy, they will go to the school where the legacy is. His parents wanted him to be in a better environment to be able to grow and use his knowledge so that is where things began prior to starting his business.
The Birth of Donte Dinero
One day, Quentin was asked by a friend of his why he wouldn't turn his likes into profit considering his larger social media following from incorporating fashion into his feed and people always questioning what he was wearing. Though the concept had never crossed his mind before, he needed a way to make some money so he was open to the concept. What helped to seal the deal was when he was asked to hang out with another friend, he had to decline the offer because of him not having money.
He decided soon after to write down everything and make it plain while at a track meet for a family member within a 2-hour time span. Every detail and specification came to him at this time which made things easier to plan. The only part that was left was the actual execution.
The name was what took longer than the actual coordination of the business. It originates from Quentin's middle name being Donte. The word Donte in Spanish means "endure". Since he also initially wanted the name of his business to have something to do with money, he decided to use the word "Dinero" which means wealth in Spanish. As a result, the name of the brand itself means to Endure Wealth.
Running a business can be stressful, but Quentin is sure to balance both his academic life and business life. He also has learned to manifest more of the things that come into his life and write about the things that stress him out which in-turn has produced growth in different areas of his life.
The brand specializes in streetwear clothing for both men and women such as t-shirts, shorts, accessories, and more!
" Individuality is most important. " - Quentin Davis, Donte Dinero
When asked who were his fashion influences, he said that he didn't specifically have any. However, he did mention that he admired business owners Milano DeRouge & Gsuwoo because of the way both
brands operate and cater to the concept of being both luxury and streetwear.
Being a business owner hasn't always been great. Though rewarding over time, it can be challenging sometimes having to do everything yourself when others aren't available to help you. An example of this was when Quentin talked more in-depth about his experience one summer trying to get his business off the ground. He described this particular summer as the "worst summer ever". This was because he decided to do a photoshoot for his business in New York. Upon arrival, things did not go as planned... at all. From wasting time and money to being kicked out of the hotel he was staying at with friends, everything was out of alignment. While he still may have gotten nice shots to use for his business, they weren't 100% what he wanted but he had to take it for what it was for the sake of his business because it was too late at that point.
This taught him to pace himself because the ideas he had were so elaborate, but when starting off sometimes things can't always start in that way. Giving yourself room to mess up and grow is essential when having a business because as the years go along, you do not want to hold regret or not live enough in the present to actually experience your different milestones because you'd be always going for the next thing.
After contemplating to keep his business or let it go, he decided to post the shots anyway which had better views than what he had anticipated.
What I personally learned in my experience with speaking to Quentin is that in many situations, it truly is me vs. me. YOU are the only one that stands in between you and what you truly want for yourself. Yes, there will be naysayers but people will talk about you whether you are doing good or bad so it's vital in your journey of success to have laser-focus on what you want for yourself.
Quentin's advice to anyone looking to pursue a business venture or even just generally thinking about doing something potentially out of their comfort zone or something new is:
#1) Pace Yourself - Passion can make you want to rush through things, but do NOT rush your process. Don't overwhelm yourself, especially if you are in school.
#2) Always Promote Yourself - You never know where a like, retweet, or share can take your business so make sure that people are doing these things for you (they are FREE!)
#3) Stay Consistent - Everybody struggles with this, but it will get your brand to touch places you've never been.
When asked what to expect next from himself and his brand, Quentin's response was one of joy and much anticipation. He spoke briefly about more collaborations with people in the industry and the true expansion of his business. He also has a Fall/Winter 2020 Collection dropping soon, but for now, he is having a 50% off sale on the remaining items he has in stock before the launch which you can participate in by going to the link to his website listed below.
You can keep up with Quentin & Donte Dinero through these links:
https://www.instagram.com/1xque/?hl=en
https://www.instagram.com/donte.dinero/?hl=en
https://dontedinero.com/
Always a pleasure sharing with you, thank you.
