Meet Lisa Duffield | Festival Producer & Retail Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lisa Duffield and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lisa, what is the most important factor behind your success?
I would love to say I’ve been successful because I’m an expert in my field or I have the most brilliant ideas. Sure, I’m creative and I do have authentic ideas but by far the most important factor has been my willingness to do the hard work, the tenacity to follow through and figure out how to make things happen without a road map. I haven’t done anything alone either, I’m in partnerships with amazing people who are strong in areas that I’m not, which has been really crucial.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Phx Fest is a festival businesses with my partner David Tyda and I started about 7 years ago. We produce community driven festivals that celebrate and support the Phoenix food, music and arts scene.

I also have 2 retail businesses I own with my other partner, Grace Perry. Both are at The Pemberton in Phoenix.

Goods at Pemberton is a 70’s rock n roll themed airstream trailer and we sell a mix of vintage and vintage inspired clothing, home goods and accessories. It’s filled with a lot of my personality and stuff I love – nothing is overthought or contrived. There’s a really authentic, good vibe you feel right when you walk in. It’s a fun place to shop and I think that’s a big part of why were successful.

Peaches Sex+ Shop is the newest venture and I’m so excited about it. It’s a sex positive pleasure shop and we offer a curated collection of only high quality sex toys, personal products, books, education and an exclusive line of handmade lingerie by Solstice Intimates.

This concept stemmed from an idea that Grace had for a while and I knew I wanted to be a part of it, so I talked her into partnering and making it a reality.
What we’ve created is a new kind of sex shop that looks and feels more like a high end boutique. The products we carry are beautifully packaged and displayed, nothing is vulgar or extremely explicit, and we don’t even carry age restricted items like pornography. Our goal with Peaches is to take the taboo out of shopping for pleasure products and that all kinds of people, especially those who may not be comfortable walking into a stereotypical sex shop, feel safe, comfortable and above all, empowered!

We just opened our store inside the Pemberton House on June 1st and we have big plans for the future!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Let’s start in the morning because I love going out for coffee.

First stop, Lux. I’ve been a regular for many years and it’s really a Phoenix staple because it has a great atmosphere and everything is just insanely delicious.

Valentine is another place I love – cold brew coffee and pastries are amazing. Also a perfect place for brunch or lunch or dinner with glass of wine or a cocktail later on.

Most of the time, people from out of town are ready for some pool time so grabbing a spot at the Rise Hotel in midtown would be on the top of my list for pools.

Of course we’d go to The Pemberton at least one night! Not just because I have a couple super cool businesses there, it’s a truly a unique and magical place to experience. I love that it’s mostly outdoors so you can enjoy the evening weather year round. It’s really a scene you can get lost in and there’s so many other cool small businesses to check out.

Since Pemberton is right in the heart of the Roosevelt Arts district there’s tons of other fun places to walk to and street art to see along the way. Gotta pop into Barcoa for Mezcal and Arizona Wilderness for the best craft beer and patio.

I love seeing live music so catching a show at Crescent Ballroom or Valley Bar would be on the itinerary.

For a more mellow day, the Phoenix Art Museum is always a special experience.

And if we’re with kids, which the most likely scenario at my age, we’d probably have to skip a few of those bars I mentioned and hit up the Phoenix Zoo instead, which is always fun too!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
That’s easy, I have so much gratitude. To start, I have 2 business partners who are seriously extraordinary (and much more popular) humans!
David Tyda is my partner in the festival world and now he’s also the owner of Barcoa Agaveria. I couldn’t even begin to say how grateful I am to have worked with him over the past 10 years or so. We’ve done a ton of festivals and events but we partnered on our own business, Phx Fest, about 6-7 years ago and currently we produce the annual Phoenix Pizza Festival and Fried French Fry & Music Festival together.

Grace Perry of Gracie’s Tax Bar is my partner in 2 retail businesses, Goods at Pemberton and Peaches Sex+ Shop, which we just opened and is also located at the Pemberton House. She’s a boss.

Last but not least, I have to shout out Biannca Dominguez. She’s a creative, dynamic, multi talented woman who I’m in awe of. She went from being my intern, to one of my best friends and then a little over a year ago when she was working on the Pemberton House, she gave me the opportunity to start a retail business with total creative freedom (Goods at Pemberton) and that has turned out to be the most personally fulfilling and soul saving business I never expected to have.

Instagram: @goodsphx @peachessexshop @friedfest @phxpizza

Image Credits
Ray Squared Mar Marek