Stormy Simon was born to a blue-collar family in Hammond, Indiana, and spent her formative years in a small town in Utah. Married and a mom by the time she was 17, and divorced with two sons at 21, she bootstrapped her way through a number of different careers throughout her early professional life, finding a bright spot as a morning show producer and on-air host with broadcaster Citadel Communications. In 2001, after a short stint on welfare, Stormy sought the guidance of a psychic who encouraged her to visit a temp agency. Stormy quickly heeded that advice, and the temp agency placed her what was supposed to be a short-term assignment in the sales department at the e-commerce retailer Overstock.com.
"When you have decided what you believe, what you feel must be done, have the courage to stand alone and be counted."
- Eleanor Roosevelt
She thrived at Overstock and spent 15 pivotal years of her career at the company, eventually ascending to the Presidency of the nearly $2B company in 2013. Along the way she built the Overstock's Branding, Marketing and Customer Service departments, where she coined the phrase "Customer Care." Her hands-on approach to leadership inspired her to write and produce the iconic "Discover the Secret of the Big O" campaign, which propelled Overstock into becoming a household name.
She garnered numerous distinctions for her efforts in customer service including ranking in the top 4 AMEX/NRF Customer Choice Awards for six years in a row. Under Stormy's guidance, Overstock became a top 25 trafficked e-tail site, was named to Forbes' list of "America's 100 Most Trustworthy Companies" and received multiple Mobile Web and Stevie Awards. She was also honored as Power Player on The List 2016 by the National Retail Federation, was named the Customer Champion by Gartner 1to1 Media, and awarded Top Innovator by Utah Women in Tech in 2015. A devoted mentor to her female employees and a longtime advocate for women overall, one of her proudest achievements was growing the ranks of female executives at Overstock from 7% to 33%.
In 2016, Stormy stepped down from the Presidency at Overstock and followed her curiosity into the burgeoning world of Cannabis. A longtime cannavangelist and usage proponent, she began working at a cultivation center in Denver to fully immerse herself in the industry. Throughout that journey, she became a medical advocate, spent two years as Strategic Officer for a blockchain payment point of sale system, served on the Advisory Board of CannaKids, and in 2017 joined the board of High Times, one of the leading global brands in cannabis culture.
A sought after speaker and panelist, Stormy delivered the keynote address at the Aspen YPO Conference in 2019 and debuted an inspirational TedTalk in 2018. An unconventional leader who charged straight into the workforce, bypassing college and business school, she has been featured throughout the media landscape in multiple commercials for Overstock.com as well in outlets including Inc., Forbes, SF Chronicle, MSN, Cheddar, Yahoo!, Entrepreneur, PopSugar, CNBC, and Fox Business. Active across multiple industries and disciplines, Stormy also serves on the boards of Opu Labs, a blockchain skincare app, 101 Studios, an entertainment company, and TRYP, an emerging rideshare company.
Dedicated to service, she has volunteered her time to a variety of non-profit boards including the Columbus Community Center, which provides jobs to adults with mental disabilities, the Advisory Board of YWCA, Boys & Girls Club of SLC, and the Jon Huntsman Gubernatorial Committee of Economic Development. An advocate for veterans, Stormy is a longtime supporter of Wounded Warrior Project, a charitable organization that helps active duty service members and veterans.
A lifelong activist passionately striving for equality, Stormy had the honor of presiding over the first gay marriage in Tooele County, Utah, where she still resides today near her close-knit circle of friends and family including her feisty granddaughter, Stella, and beloved pets. In addition to launching her podcast, "Lunch with Stormy," which will debut on iTunes on June 29, 2020, Stormy recently raised her hand and declared her candidacy for the District 21 seat in the Utah State House of Representatives.
© 2020 by Stormy Simon