IT WAS SERENDIPITY THEY ALL AGREE…
Vince and Shawna Fisher, owners of Aqua Pool and Patio, are planning a wedding for Shawna’s daughter at their Pensacola home.
They needed someone to style the house and fill it with special touches. Liz Taylor, who had been doing interior design
for more than three decades, seemed the perfect person for the job.
Out of that happy happenstance grew a fast friendship, a business partnership and the realization of a dream.
The result is Aqua, a furniture showroom designed to bring Pensacola beautiful objects, from furniture to
just-the-right stylish gift, at an affordable price and in a warm and friendly atmosphere.
“They have helped me realize my dream,” Taylor says of Vince and Shawna. “Opening Aqua had been a true labor of love.
They have let me create a store, fill it with beautiful objects I love and to share that with Pensacola.”
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The store, built from the ground up at 1320 N. Ninth Ave. in Pensacola, opened in early February and brings an exciting new look and feel to the Pensacola market. With an outdoor patio containing a modern fountain, the 10,000 square feet within Aqua has an open, airy feeling where customers can find items unique to Northwest Florida. Moveable walls allow for the creative displays of hundreds of objects.
“We wanted a place that was welcoming, where people could come in and feel comfortable,” Shawna says. “I’m the kind of person who can get a little bit intimidated when I shop. I can feel like maybe I somehow don’t belong. We wanted Aqua to have
an atmosphere and a personality that makes everyone who comes through the doors feel as if it’s a place to enjoy to relax,
have fun and find that perfect thing, whether it’s a new dining table or a simple, small gift.”
Part of that special Aqua vibe is a complementary coffee bar where customers are encouraged to pour themselves a cup to enjoy while looking over the store. And the moveable walls allow for Aqua’s interior space to be reconfigured, allowing the store to retain a fresh, new look.
“It was really important for us to create an atmosphere that is fun where people could not only shop, but also just enjoy themselves.
We’re celebrating life everyday and we want Aqua to reflect that.”
Aqua’s goal, says Liz, can be captured in three words: friendliness, stylishness and affordability.
“We are constantly going to market, locating and bringing in beautiful things,” she says.
“We want to utilize what we have to constantly create new spaces so when
our customers return they will find a freshness and something new to tickle their fancy or catch their eye.
“Our goal was to have a store that was welcoming, filled with beautiful objects that are
accessible and affordable for Pensacola and the surrounding area.
I think we’ve done that and I couldn’t be more proud.”