Lisa M. Figueredo
Publisher

Lisa, a Tampa native, realized at the age of five that art was something she loved. For her it became second nature. Her parents encouraged her Play-Doh creations and praised her when she colored outside the lines in her coloring books (and Cinderella never wore white!).

Lisa can remember her mother Yoli's entrepreneurial skills at a young age. Yoli would sew beautiful wedding gowns that she would sell to her friends and even entered them at the Florida State Fair winning both 1st and 2nd place. Yoli made many arts and crafts projects that she would give as gifts or sell, always with Lisa right by her side. Her mother even helped commission Lisa's first job at age 15. She was paid $50.00 to hand draw a sign for a local orthodontist. Lisa remembers it as being her first paycheck in the world of art.

Lisa's father Joe would play an equally important roll in business: sales. Most of her life as a little girl she says she remembers being intrigued listening to her father's voice on the phone giving his unique sales pitch to his clients. And to this day Lisa still listens to this advice from her father.

At Jefferson High School in Tampa art classes were always a favorite and never skipped. After graduation art became a hobby when Lisa entered "the real world" where she bought and sold commercial properties. At age 20 she married and at age 21 had her son, Roberto. Realizing she missed having a creative outlet, Lisa went to college where she majored in Art Design and Computer Science.

Lisa has worked in the advertising industry for the past 20 years. Her background is in graphic design, printing, direct mail, publishing, TV and radio.

The idea of Cigar City Magazine came about from Lisa's love of her heritage and memories of her childhood in Tampa. She frequently reminisces about the days when her great grandparents Nena and Ulysses "Lee" Henriquez would take her to Ybor City where she would run through the big cigar factories. Now she hopes to share these stories as well as apply her creative flair to Cigar City Magazine.