DBD ORIGIN STORY
FROM WEB DESIGN TO BRAND STRATEGY
HOW IT ALL STARTED
While in college, Donellia launched “Shop The Impact,” a clothing brand with a mission—but like many entrepreneurs, she needed a strong brand presence to make it work. To solve this, she taught herself web design, branding, and marketing.
What started as a way to support her own business quickly turned into something bigger. Other entrepreneurs began asking for help with their brands, and Designs By Donellia was born.
PIVOTING FROM DESIGN TO STRATEGY
After graduating early in 2019 with a degree in Textile Apparel Management (Marketing & Merchandising), Donellia had every intention of scaling Shop The Impact. But when the pandemic hit in 2020, the business
had to temporarily close. Still determined, she worked on relaunching Shop The Impact while simultaneously seeking funding for three years. During this time, she wrote an extensive 60-page business plan, detailing every aspect of the brand’s strategy.
When she connected with Small Business Administration (SBA) advisors in Chicago, they were impressed—stating that they had never worked with a client whose plan was so thorough, strategic, and well-executed. While the SBA provided some guidance, the strategies Donellia developed were already highly refined and deeply researched.While navigating the challenges of securing funding, Donellia continued taking on freelance projects to fund her vision. This hands-on experience deepened her expertise in brand development, marketing, and business planning.
Her knowledge and execution skills were so strong that she later earned a Career & Technical Educators (CTE) License, allowing her to teach entrepreneurship, marketing, graphic design, and web design in Chicago Public Schools and across the state of Illinois.
THE TURNING POINT - GOING ALL IN
While Donellia had the credentials to teach, she never pursued it full-time. Instead, she focused on growing her marketing experience—freelancing, managing social media, and working in digital roles before becoming the Branding Director at a real estate company. That’s where she began coaching realtors on how to build personal brands, laying the foundation for the work she does today.
But something felt off. The deeper she worked with professionals and entrepreneurs, the more she realized branding wasn’t just about having a logo or a website—most entrepreneurs and businesses lacked strategy, marketing plans, and execution systems.
That’s when it clicked. She was giving away powerful branding knowledge, yet so many people weren’t taking it seriously. It wasn’t just real estate agents—entrepreneurs everywhere needed these resources daily.
For years, Donellia had been quietly mastering branding, marketing, and business strategy, but she never positioned herself as an expert. She wasn’t interested in being an influencer—she just wanted to build businesses. But this moment gave her the push to go all in. She realized DBD was never just about design—it was about empowering entrepreneurs with real tools, resources, and education to build sustainable brands with confidence.
DBD TODAY: PREMIUM BRANDING HUB
With that realization, DBD expanded beyond design to become what it is today:
A premium branding hub that helps entrepreneurs move beyond guesswork and into clear, structured execution.
Today, DBD is a central hub for branding success, offering:
Courses & Education – Teaching branding fundamentals and execution.
Templates & Business Resources – Providing done-for-you assets so entrepreneurs can implement immediately.
Done-With-You Systems – Including the Brand Blueprint Deluxe and custom AI-powered prompts to help build a brand from scratch in minutes.
Clarity Sessions – Offering personalized strategy and support.