We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Denise Silas. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Denise below.

Denise , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

When the pandemic hit I had been in leadership with Mary Kay for 27 years. Mary Kay corporate worked closely with the sales force leadership team to navigate the changes created by the pandemic. At the end of 2022 the entire country was trying to figure out just how to get back to a new normal. Mary Kay continued to support the sales force and the sales force worked closely together to navigate what post pandemic would look like.

During that season I discovered the devotional 100 days of Believing Bigger. I, like many people, was looking for direction of how this new normal would look like in all aspects of my life. I had the opportunity to walk through the book with the author during the last 100 days of 2022 to set up a new start for 2023. This devotional emphasized defining your gifts and talents when you take off the labels. One day talked about being multi-faceted and asked the question if you were sitting on gifts because you have gotten yourself caught in a box because of the labels. This book changed the trajectory of my life.

Also during this time many women around me were struggling on what that new normal looked like for them, they were stuck. I had worked in the beauty industry for almost 30 years helping women to get unstuck and helping them create strategies to achieve goals. When I reflected on being multi-faceted, I knew God was calling me to something bigger. I had something that I could offer those women who were struggling. Prior to the pandemic I hosted EmpowerMEnt workshops with my team and customers. I knew I was being led to step outside of the pink bubble to support other women not connected to my beauty business.

I knew I could execute an EmpowerMEnt Breakfast to close out 2022. I set it up and invited those women outside of the pink bubble. By the time I hosted the 1st breakfast – Embrace ME, God had given me a series – Evolve ME, Engage ME and Elevate ME. The series was complete by June 2023 and I averaged 30 women per breakfast. After completing the last breakfast women kept asking for the next one. Because of the positive response and the feedback we received from the women, my daughter suggested we continue in 2024 and that is when Empowered by DS was born.
Empowered by DS LLC was officially launched in January of 2024. The mission is to empower women to be the best version of themselves creating experiences that will help them to build confidence community and connection through experiences that provide safe spaces for growth and healing.

In addition to One to One Coaching the Signature events include:
Quarterly EmpowerMEnt Workshops
• Annual Vision Board Experience
• Mid Year Inspection
• Final Lap
Retreat
• Escape to EmpowerME – a Day Away Excursion
• Wellness on the Water Cruise
Diva Dinner and Dialogue
Annual Feel the Teal in Your Hottest Heels for Ovarian Cancer Awareness
Adopt A Grandparent Christmas Project
Vision to Victory Celebration
EmpowerME Quarterly Subscription Box
Let’s Talk About It Tuesday – weekly
DECIDE Tribe Membership Community

In 2024 and 2025 over 100 women have come into our community to experience one or more of the events. As a result, we have added different experiences to continue to build community, connection and confidence.
In 2024 the Diva Dinner and Dialogue monthly event was launched to give women who were not able to attend on Saturday morning another an option to connect with women over conversation in a social setting.
Also in 2024 the Quarterly EmpowerME Subscription Box was launched. The box was created because so many women pour into others but are seldom consistently poured into. The purpose of the box is to provide a happy for a women which keeps them focused on them and the desires of their heart. It includes a themed tshirt and drinkware, a customized journal with affirmations, tracker and scriptures, a pause and prep package and other self-care items. The journal specifically helps them to stay focused on a personal goal they can work on over the 12 weeks. Our themes have included, EmpowerME, Bettering My Best, Self-Care Isn’t Selfish, Focused and Fabulous, Protect Your Peace, Get Up Go Hard Let God, & Grace Over Grind.

In 2025 the first retreat, Escape to EmpowerME was launched. This Day Away Excursion gave women the opportunity for a day away with other likeminded women to escape their everyday life and then to be able to reset and regroup. I decided on just a day away because with the many demands on women they aren’t willing or able to get away for long periods of time. In 2025 we took 38 women to Nashville. There will be another day away excursion plan for 2026 to Birmingham and then a Wellness on the water cruise planned for 2027.

Let’s talk about it Tuesday was also launched in 2025. This Tuesday night virtual conversation via zoom was created to expand the topics that would be shared with my community of women that would help them be the best version of themselves. This provided a platform to empower women across the country with women that had other experience and knowledge than I did. Weekly I interview either an expert or someone who would share their testimony on topics. We have had over 40 episodes with over 200 women who have registered to listen in.

Feel the Teal in Your Hottest Heels was started in memory of my sister Beatrice Miller wo passed from Ovarian Cancer in 2011. Although Empowered by DS didn’t start until 2024, in September I have hosted an event to bring awareness and raise money since 2011. The primary business color is Teal in my sister’s memory.

The final experience of the year is the Vision to Victory Celebration. The series of experiences throughout the year is considered a movement to bring them to a celebration in their honor at the end of the year. That is why we kick off the year with the Vision Board Experience. We want to acknowledge any and everything that has been done to move them closer to what God has called them to do, be or have.

As I moved into 2026 I wanted to go deeper with women who specifically wanted growth. There is a FREE based FB Community but as we know that doesn’t always mean true community. I learned there were women who valued the community that was being built. They participated consistently and was connecting with each other. I launched the DECIDE Tribe Membership Based Community for those who wanted that deeper connection and a structure community. Depending on the level, this would include a Book Club, access to all experiences, coaching and more.
We have evolved over the years but what has stayed at the core is the safe space we have created for women to feel seen, heard and understood while connecting, laughing and healing.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I have a degree in accounting and my CPA certificate. Numbers has always been my thing. While pursuing my accounting career, I stumbled into the direct selling industry because I had a fear of talking in front of people. I saw it as a way to grow while making a little extra cash. I pursued the leadership path so I could have flexibility when I started having children. What I discovered was I really like helping people to achieve. So for 30 years I worked with women to achieve goals in the beauty industry. During those years I curated a lot of workshops, events and celebrations to support my team and appreciate my customers. I have had a lot of training on leadership, working with and developing individuals, building teams, strategizing and achieving goals.

The beauty of Empowered by DS I am able to work with women in whatever passion they have vs just the beauty industry. I am very passionate about helping women get clarity of who they are, what they want, give them strategies to achieve them and celebrate their growth and accomplishments.

I help individuals and groups go from unstuck to unstoppable in one to one or group settings. I do this by helping them to evaluate and maximize gifts, talents, experiences and passions to ignite their next season. This can be valuable even if they aren’t feeling stuck.

I offer:
CPR Coaching
Facilitator & Speaker
Experience Curator
EmpowerME Subscription Box
Membership Community
• DECIDE Collective
• DECIDE Experience
• DECIDE Elevate
• DECIDE ELITE

I’m most proud of seeing women build their confidence to create movement to their desired goals and the community that is being built.
I’m also proud of the courage to move forward when their wasn’t any evidence. Grateful to take all of the experiences and connections I have and use it to serve during this season.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I believe in the saying “Know like and trust you.” I have always worked to stay consistent in my image whether it was professional or personal.
Encouraging women has been the focused in my messaging. Positive post, inspiration on a one to one. Encouraging individuals on a team I was serving with. So when I started inviting individuals to events I was hosting, it wasn’t a surprise. I had already invested time and energy establishing who I was and what I stood for.
I am very active in the Chamber community, at my church and several other organizations where my market is. They see me living what my business brand represents – empowerment.

Have you ever had to pivot?

After our first year of business we noticed that the venue we were using was starting to sell out at 40. We thought we needed a bigger space because more was definitely better.
The second year of business we looked into getting a bigger venue that seated 100 to hold more people. When we looked back over the numbers, the months with over 40 people, were the experiences that had some type of activity. Many of those people did not come back when there was not an activity.
When I realigned myself with the mission and the purpose of the experiences, I wanted empowerment and not entertainment. Having more people did not really serve the mission. The true purpose was helping women build connection, confidence and community and the more people in the room it was harder to make the real connection and give everyone a voice.
After evaluating the second year it was decided to scale back to a more intimate space for the third year.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.empoweredbyds.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/empoweredbyds
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/empoweredbyds2024
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denisesilas-empowerme
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@EmpoweredbyDS