Dominick Claudio

President & CEO, Claudio Corporation

By Cathy Bonnstetter

Dominick Claudio, Morgantown native and president and CEO of Claudio Corporation, did not plan to be a mover and shaker in West Virginia or even a businessman. His goal was much simpler.

“I wanted to be my dad,” he says. “I knew I wanted to be a good father and a hard worker. I figured the rest would work itself out.”

Well before most people start thinking about making a living, Claudio was collecting lost golf balls behind his house in his Radio Flyer wagon and selling them to golfers at the Mountainview Golf Course. When he reached the eighth grade, he continued finding value in what others discarded.

“My first real job as a kid was my flea market table,” he recalls. “I decided to dedicate my Sunday mornings to selling to the Morgantown flea markets. I’d gather whatever free inventory I could find either by dumpster diving or performing outdoor duties for goods. I would fill up my dad’s old truck on Saturday, and my mom would drop me off the next morning at 6 a.m., help me set up my table and return for me at noon. A mentor once told me, ‘If someone tells you they’re an entrepreneur, ask them what they sold when they were 12.’ Ironically, I’m still in the business of resale today.”

Claudio graduated from West Virginia University with a degree in accounting and finance in 2010 and began working at Donnelly-Boland and Associates in Pittsburgh, PA, in 2011.

“My dad helped me find my traditional career path in accounting and finance and provided an example of how to run a successful small business,” he says. “My mom helped me find my natural career path by teaching me to become my best self.”

While Claudio enjoyed his job, he could not ignore his entrepreneurial spirit. In 2012, he opened Unique Consignment in Star City, WV. In 2016, he left Donnelly-Boland and opened his own accounting firm, Claudio & Company, across the street from Unique Consignment. Today, Claudio Corporation, a West Virginia holding company, manages businesses and properties in Clarksburg, Fairmont and Morgantown. The company’s mission is to help startups grow by offering a sponsorship in exchange for equity.

“My current position at the Claudio Corporation allows me to be boots on the ground in our local communities in North Central West Virginia every day,” he says. “From real estate to retail management, consulting to construction, I am blessed to fill so many shoes on a regular basis.”

Claudio puts this same level of dedication into volunteer work to make North Central West Virginia a great place to live and work. He is the treasurer for Main Street Morgantown and a member of the Morgantown Area Partnership and Marion and Preston County chambers of commerce. Claudio also gives his time and resources to Main Street Fairmont, Main Street Morgantown, The Salvation Army, SHIELD Task Force, Friends of Fairmont and the Ranch Community Store.

Claudio is proud of the businesses he has built and enjoys creating jobs and opportunities in his home state. Since he began his small business journey in 2012, he has carried three items in his pocket: a copy of “Live Your Life,” a poem by Shawnee Chief Tecumseh to help him find courage and overcome obstacles; a list of the 12 universal laws to remind him why he does what he does; and a list of 10 rules Benjamin Franklin used to help him understand his personal time and the way he handles himself.

While he has achieved great success at a young age, Claudio has big plans for the future of his corporation, including the revitalization of downtown buildings as living spaces to offer the walkability his generation values and bring people back to the communities, and he plans to do it all with his fiancé, Juliana, by his side.

“Our community ultimately determines who we are, and our community needs us to give it shape and planning,” he says. “This is my home, the place that made me who I am, and I see its existing beauty and potential. It deserves the favor of the next generation.”