David Ghiz is embarking on a new venture — one that puts the industry veteran in the discount clearance business.
In 2014, Ghiz opened Imagine Backyard Living in Scottsdale, Ariz., a boutique retail experience with a showroom featuring vignettes of spas, outdoor kitchens and furniture, plus private rooms where shoppers could take hot tubs for a test soak.
He opened a second location earlier this month, and it’s a bit of a departure from the original shop. It’s a no-frills outlet store in an industrial part of Phoenix’s East Valley, a region that includes Mesa, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert, Ahwatukee and Maricopa.
Ghiz arranged through Jacuzzi and its affiliated brands to supply overstock from the manufacturer’s Southern California headquarters.
“Here it’s a big space dedicated to hot tubs and swim spas,” said Ghiz, president and owner.
It will carry around 45 units, including current and previous year’s models, red tags and even pre-owned selections.
“It was a brainstorm with Jacuzzi, and trying to figure out how to expand our brand,” he added. “It was a collaboration with them and some ideas I had on how I thought we could grow the business in the Phoenix market.”
The company stands to benefit from this second location for several reasons, Ghiz said. For one, it places Imagine Backyard Living in one of the fastest-growing regions in the U.S. U-Haul recently ranked Tempe as the largest migration destination in the country based on the number of Tempe-bound moving trucks rented in 2017. And Mesa is in the midst of a population boom as it approaches half a million residents. The Easy Valley outlet also will create synergy with the original location. Folks in the market for a hot tub or swim spa may also be interested in the broader array of outdoor living products in Scottsdale, about an hour away.
“It’s a complete interface with the other location,” Ghiz said.
He’s considering operating the outlet store with limited hours, perhaps Friday through Monday. That would free up employees to restock and deliver products faster.
Ghiz has a track record of building up successful businesses. He and his brothers, Lewis “Buzz” and Edward, once owned Paddock Pools, a pioneering retailer/builder founded by their father, George. While under their management, that company expanded to multiple locations throughout Phoenix and Las Vegas. For years it was a mainstay on PSN’s Top 50 Builders list. The brothers sold Paddock to a private equity firm in 2005.
Imagine Backyard Living’s Scottsdale branch has since become the largest volume single-store dealer of Jacuzzi and Sundance Spas in the world.
