Didi Discar
Principal
Carling Communications
Making the Move to AOR
When Didi Discar started Carling Communications in 2010, she penned the Carling Creed to serve as the agency’s moral compass. The creed has these three tenets:
1. We believe in a purposeful existence. Didi is insistent that every meeting and every agency deliverable must serve a purpose—otherwise, it’s a waste of time and money.
2. All things being equal, the journey should be fun. Didi recognizes that in a career, one or two companies will indelibly shape one’s professional persona and beget lifelong friendships. She aspires every day for Carling to be such a company.
3. Continuous self-evaluation breeds brilliance. Finally, only through self-evaluation can one reach one’s true potential.
Thanks to these three tenets, and Didi’s leadership, Carling has grown to be the largest privately held pharmaceutical advertising agency in Southern California. Over the past three years, the agency has doubled in size and now employs close to 80 people. And in August 2016, Inc. named the agency to its 35th annual Inc. 5000, the most prestigious ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies.
Since Didi enjoys raising the bar and challenging herself and the agency, Carling is now making the transition to an agency of record (AOR) advertising agency. Didi even recently led her team in a pitch for a global AOR account—and won the business!
Didi’s accomplishments have not gone without notice. In 2016, the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) awarded her with its highest national honor, the national Woman Business Owner of the Year, for her creative initiatives to overcome obstacles, create jobs, grow a successful business, and inspire community involvement.
It’s also important to note that Didi understands the importance of giving back. Her drive to constantly improve was highly influenced by her late father, who had been in the Navy. Santos Discar taught his four children to always try to choose the most righteous thing, even if it didn’t benefit them. Her father taught her to appreciate all that she has. To honor him, Didi and the agency are active with several military causes and charities.
