For Dez Ross, creativity has always been more than just a passion. What started as a personal love for making wearable art has grown into Peak Positive, a brand built on creativity and self expression. As the small business approaches its four-year anniversary, Ross hopes to reach more milestones and keep spreading the real meaning of ‘Peak Positive.’
Ross, a senior photography major, discovered early on that his artistic passion leaned toward fashion.
“I really enjoyed making stuff and seeing it on a body as opposed to making wall art and it only being seen in somebody’s house,” Ross said.
Starting at 7 years old, Ross found how much he liked to create art. He began selling $1 drawings in middle school and moved on to drawing on blank white hats and selling those to the people around him.
Eventually, this love for creation led him to combine his desire and passion for graphic design to create a brand during his junior year of high school.
He started with graphic T-shirts, then moved on to hoodies and eventually added designs for hats and sunglasses, which can all be found on his online storefront.
The first step in starting his business was finding a suitable name.
“Figuring out a good name for the brand was all God’s doing because I definitely didn’t come up with it on my own,” Ross said. “Back then, whenever me and my friends saw or did something that was cool or good, we would say that it was ‘Peak.’”
For Ross, the name Peak Positive was a spontaneous decision, but the name felt suitable for the business and its message.
Ross said he defines Peak Positive’s main message as “rising to the top of whatever it is that you’re doing. Whenever you think you’re at the top, keep pushing. Peak to the stars and you can never run out of levels to get to.”
Reid Davis-Henaine, a close friend of Ross and sponsor for Peak Positive, said that it acts as a reminder that even if something isn’t going your way, it is still worth trying as you never know where it will take you.
“It’s a constant reminder to keep searching for a new peak and keep growing because there will always be a taller mountain and someone’s gonna climb it, so might as well be you,” Davis-Heanine said.
Seeing people’s enthusiasm for his brand motivated Ross to expand his designs, offering more colors and selling to friends, teachers and counselors.
Davis-Henaine said Ross’ products “started being all that I would wear all around App State” turning him into a “walking billboard.”
Though primarily a clothing brand, Peak Positive’s mission is to inspire creative minds to express themselves freely.
“I don’t like to say Peak Positive is a clothing brand, because ultimately it’s a creative outlet where I, myself, and other creators, musicians and models can get our names out there,” Ross said. “If you have the artistic drive to create, do it and don’t let anybody stop you or tell you differently.”
This is reflected in the Peak Positive environment, which is seen as a “collective of individuals and creatives that are constantly looking for a proverbial new mountain peak to climb and conquer,” Davis-Henaine said.
Davis-Henaine described Ross as “one of the most amazing people that I have ever met and I can put my full faith in that man every time and he just somehow makes it work.”
Davis-Henaine also said that one of the main reasons he has so much faith in Peak Positive is because he knows who runs it and sees how much dedication and drive Ross has for the business.
“Dez is insanely dedicated, hardworking, and passionate,” Gissell Estrada, a Hospitality and Tourism Management major and model for Peak Positive said. “ His creativity manifests itself in so many ways, and inspires my friends and I constantly.”
Ross hopes to make Peak Positive a full-time venture and collaborator with more artists while continuing to work with past partners like musician Drew Ballentine, known as NARB!, a friend since high school.
Peak Positive has collaborated with NARB! on hoodies and T-shirts blending their graphic artwork into unique designs.
Estrada said over time Ross has made the business an increasing collaborative effort in which he allows everyone to have a voice in his vision. “He makes what the people want and is quick to support local businesses/bands by hosting pop up shops quite often,” she said.
Ross also created Peak Star Studios, a platform for photography, video and physical artwork such as graphic design, painting, clothing and apparel. He seeks to combine his creative platforms and form a cohesive network for his audience to follow his unique exploration of life through artistic work.
The real intention behind Peak Positive is to provide a safe space for creative minds in this crazy world, which is reflected by Estrada who said it “feels like you truly get to experience what Dez is trying to push with his brand, Positivity!”
