Dia Simms

Content. Entertainment. Fashion. Fragrance. Retail. Now, tequila. Dia Simms has distinguished herself as the visionary creative and marketing force behind multiple global brands in multiple industries. A pioneer in utilizing social media and digital innovation, she has been named both an Ad Age Woman to Watch and a winner of the Diageo Global Marketing Brilliance Award. Now at the forefront of branding for the tequila industry, she shares her insights on what it takes to build, lead and manage successful brands—and how to fuel yours for success.

The most recent McKinsey report shows that companies in the top 25% for ethnic diversity at the executive level are 33% more likely to have above-average profitability than those in the bottom 25%. Dia Simms has seen that in action throughout her career. While leading Combs Enterprises, the company garnered a reputation for its ability to see trends, innovate, connect with consumers, retain great employees and achieve enormous business success—all benefits that Dia attributes to both the diversity of the team and leadership. As CEO of Lobos 1707 Tequila & Mezcal, she has used the same strategy, making sure women and diverse people are represented while building these two ultra-successful brands. Speaking as a rare African American CEO and from her experience recruiting, building and leading highly effective, diverse teams, Dia provides insightful recommendations to increase diversity and drive success.

As a 20-something working at the Department of Defense, Dia Simms was successfully negotiating $100 million contracts. She credits her skills to the training she received while at the government entity. And it’s something she’s used and improved on throughout her career, helping her launch and build businesses and brands and secure nine-figure deals. She even uses this talent with her husband and daughter. “It comes in handy,” she says. And it’s something we all need for work or at home. In this empowering talk, Dia gives you the essential strategies and skills to successfully negotiate anything, from bedtime for your child to discussing your salary to closing a sale to getting that contract signed to so much more.

One of the many things Dia Simms is truly passionate about is achieving the impossible. And throughout her career, she has done just that: taking brands and businesses from ideas to success and hundreds of millions of dollars in record time. In this talk, she shares her secrets for successfully building a company from scratch and the tools you need to do the same. The time is now to start operationalizing your dreams and Dia will give you the roadmap to get there.

In the business world, there are disruptors. And then, there are DISRUPTORS. And Dia Simms definitely falls into the latter category. Throughout her storied career, she has been able to successfully bring a fresh, innovative, commercially forward and profitable approach to companies and brands, both new and old. And with one of her latest ventures, she has taken it to the next level and beyond. Pronghorn, a 10-year initiative to drive diversity, equity and inclusion in the spirits industry, is regarded as a modern disruption to DEI. It’s a template for how to effectively diversify the spirits industry by investing in black executives and entrepreneurs in a sustainable and scalable way by 2032. In this keynote, Dia shares her knowledge and how you can build a brand business and successfully disrupt the marketplace for the greater good.

As an entrepreneur, brand expert, market disruptor and trailblazing leader, Dia Simms has made a name for herself by achieving the impossible. And that wouldn’t have happened without a great team beside her, she says. So what’s her secret? It all comes down to being a leader who others want to follow. In this talk, Dia gives you the tools she uses to be the best leader she can be while driving demand for her brands and boosting the bottom line.

As next-gen owners, we have an opportunity to recruit, retain and advance diverse teams and portfolios of brands, both of which have real positive commercial upside when put into action. Dia Simms, co-founder of Pronghorn and CEO of Lobos 1707 Tequila and Mezcal, will describe how to turn vision into action as we lead diverse practices for our companies.