Lowcountry local ‘Pixie’ Paula proves age is just a number

Pint-sized powerhouse “Pixie” Paula Dezzutti – owner of Skirt magazine, author, CEO of award-winning Local Choice Spirits and Striped Pig Distillery – added another accolade to her impressive resume. Forbes magazine just named her to its “50 Over 50” list for 2023.

 

Featured in the Lifestyle category, she shares the spotlight with impressive women like Judy Blume and Dezzutti’s personal hero, Viola Davis. Forbes “50 Over 50” spotlights inspirational women to show there’s no age limit to success or innovation.  

 

Each year thousands of female leaders and entrepreneurs are nominated based on their impact and achievements. Only 50 in each of the list’s four categories make the cut, and according to Forbes, this year’s list “might be the most powerful yet.”

 

When Dezzutti was first contacted by the magazine she thought it was a scam, until she saw a TV news story about the Forbes list. 

 

“They were interviewing Jamie Lee Curtis, Katie Couric, and Patti Labelle and my name was next on the list!” Dezzutti shared. “I burst into tears and woke up my 81-year-old mother to tell her this was the real deal, and I showed her the list. Even she knew the caliber of the names on the list. It was such an incredible honor, and I was overwrought with emotion. We both cried for two days. I felt so validated and so seen for all my endless years of work trying to make my mark on this planet.” 

 

Forbes isn’t the only one taking note. In May of this year, Enterprising Women Magazine named her one of the “Enterprising Women of the Year” for her contributions to business and leadership. Last year, at the Annual International Women’s Day Summit, she was given the International Woman of the Year Award. 

Dezzutti is not resting on her laurels. This year she published the best-selling book, “Alphabet Soup: The ABCs of NFTs & Other Blockchain Acronyms.” Next year Skirt will celebrate 30 years, Dezzutti and her team are already working on the anniversary edition. She continues to develop Skirt Marketplace, a membership initiative focused on education and creating jobs, along with expanding the Skirt sisterhood to include mentoring opportunities for young women, aged 14 to 24.  

Her advice for success: “Find more passion and purpose in everything, regardless of the outcome. Although it’s easy to get out of alignment, you have to invest in yourself first, identify your very core unique ability, and ignore the people who say ‘no.’ No does not mean stop, it means turn right on red!”

Dezzutti also wants to build more entertainment options, like the open mic at the Striped Pig to give local artists a voice, explaining a desire to build “a community where everybody knows your name and produces events using cutting edge technology and sizzle [that] will wow and educate folks of all ages.” 

Find out more at forbes.com/profile/pixie.