“My Clifton Builders Experience made me who I am! It defined what I wanted to do and supporting me in doing it.“

In 2016, Leo was distinguished by both Gallup and the Mexican government as one of the top 1% entrepreneurs in Mexico City, achieving 3rd place among 15,000 participants. This accolade earned him the opportunity to travel to Washington D.C. to pitch his business idea at Gallup’s headquarters to Jim Clifton, the Chairman of Gallup.

Recognizing Leo’s exceptional talent in marketing and communications, Jim suggested they should establish a marketing agency.

In 2017, Leo made the bold decision to leave college and officially commence operations as DaftonMedia (a fusion of Daniel and Clifton), bolstered by an angel investment from Jim. Since then, he has collaborated with renowned companies in Mexico and the U.S., including The World Bank, Harley-Davidson, Lincoln (Ford), Hilco Global México, SHRM, and many more. Eventually, Leo completed his marketing degree online.

In 2018, Jim introduced Leo to his close friend, Roy Spence, the founder of the acclaimed Texan marketing agency, GSD&M. Leo and Jim received two days of invaluable coaching from the founders and current managers of the agency.

In 2022, Leo became a member of the Global Builder Network Council (a Clifton Foundation Initiative), while also positioning DaftonMedia as their marketing agency.

After three years of assisting Dafton’s largest account, an auction house named Hilco Global México, in selling more than $40M worth of used machinery and equipment, Leo founded another company in 2023. Named Trok, the company aims to become the Amazon for used trucks and commercial vehicles, and it has already achieved sales of $1M.

In 2024 Leo won 3rd place at the Clifton Foundation’s Pitch Competition at the First Annual In-Person Builder Summit in Nebraska-Lincoln, earning $1k for Trok to help him test his marketplace business model.