A WOMAN has revealed she earns more than £200,000 a year from a side job she does in the time she used to spend commuting.
Dominique Brown, 28, started her art company DomoInk in 2020.
2
2
She creates both hand-drawn and digital artwork, which you can have printed on various products, such as mugs and T-shirts.
All of Dominique’s items are made to order. This allowed her to set up her own business without needing any money. She only had to buy the materials after the customers had paid.
Dominique also has a job as a marketing manager which earns her £67,000 a year, three times less than her part-time job.
She said she can do both jobs just fine because she used to commute two hours a day, but now that she works from home, she can use her commute to focus on her art.
Read more stories about extra income
“I literally have so much more time and energy“, she said CNBC.
Dominique said she grew up in an area where there were not many black people, so she rarely saw people like her depicted on greeting cards or in art.
That’s why she decided to use her art to give a voice to those who are “always underrepresented”.
She said: “It is very important that growing children can recognise themselves on their wall.”
Dominique said that a woman sent her a photo of her daughter with one of the artist’s paintings. She said that the daughter was so excited about the painting because she thought it looked just like her mother.
“She immediately went and bought it and hung it on her daughter’s wall,” she says.
Dominque’s business really started to grow after she shared a video of herself drawing a picture of Martin Luther King.
Since then, she has collaborated with major brands like Target, Bath & Body Works, and even Disney.
Dominique said her dream is to earn £400,000 a year from her part-time job.
How to start your own business?
Dragon’s Den star Theo Paphitis revealed his tips for budding entrepreneurs:
- One of the biggest barriers that aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners face is a lack of self-confidence. You have to believe in your idea — and more than that, be the one to bore your friends to death with it.
- Never be afraid to make decisions. Once you have an idea, the confidence to make decisions is crucial to starting and maintaining a business.
- If you don’t take calculated risks, you’re standing still. If a decision turns out to be wrong, identify it quickly and act on it if you can. If you can’t, find someone else who can.
- It’s okay not to get it right the first time. My experience of making bad decisions has helped build my confidence and made me who I am today.
- Never underestimate the power of social media and remember that the internet is an equal opportunity for small businesses.
- Don’t forget to dream. A machine can’t do that!
She would like to collaborate more with brands and even create NFTs to generate more revenue streams.
The artist is also considering making 3D prints or doing 3D modeling.
“I would love to turn it into a big home furnishings store,” she said.
“My dream is to sell my artwork at Target 365 days a year.
“I really want to create a big brand that brings color into everyone’s home.”
She added that making art for black people has given her a sense of empowerment and purpose.
Dominique gave advice to anyone considering starting their own side hustle: “You can set up your own business, you can have a seat at the table.
“The secret is to always believe in yourself and avoid negativity.”
Fabulous will pay for your exclusive stories. Simply email fabulousdigital@the-sun.co.uk and put EXCLUSIVE in the subject line.
