Always Seizing the Carp

Played tennis with my friend Ales (pronounced "Alesh") on green clay at Hamr Zabehlice today — the only court in that club and that I know of in the Czech Republic that has that particular surface.

Generic photo of green clay

Although it's difficult to find red clay in the US, green clay — while not exactly ubiquitous — is fairly common (I played on it often at the La Paloma club in Tucson). This seemed to be a bit better quality than what I'm used to in the US ... and the tape is nailed down better than on the courts there, so you don't get the ball catching the front lip and bouncing over your racket. But still ... a different experience than I'm used to here. Even more surprising, if it's on the Court 1 at Zabehlice — their "Center Court." Huh.

Anyway, after tennis, Ales and I showered and went upstairs for a beer and to discuss our business for a bit. Then, on our way out he showed me that one of his flower boxes now stands by the check-in counter of the club. 

Wait, let me backtrack. As I think I mentioned before, Ales publishes a Czech magazine called Bylinky ("Herbs"), and for a few years sold a translated version of it in the US called My Herbs, primarily at Whole Foods stores around the country. I wonder how many people there knew the original was published in Czech, and sold in Prague? (He's not currently selling the English version, though I know he's continuing to look for opportunities to pick up the traces).

The Czech original

The American version

Anyway, a year or two ago Ales was given the opportunity to buy a brick-and-mortar flower/plant shop in Říčany, a suburb about 20 minutes outside of Prague. He seized the opportunity and now runs that as well.

Ales, on the left, shortly after buying the shop, busy building it out (with his dog)

The current storefront

Then, last year, recognizing a gap on the market, he began putting small self-serve boxes of flowers in about a dozen office buildings around town, where people can grab a bouquet and pay on their phones via a QR code. So far, he reports, not one person has taken flowers without paying for them, though there's nothing really stopping them from doing so.

Anyway, Ales has become acquainted with the manager of Hamr-Zabehlice club after playing there off-and-on for the past twenty years, and he has now been allowed to place one of his self-serve flower boxes there as well. Which, I think, is very cool. So I took a photo. 😀

So, the next time you're at Hamr-Zabehlice and need flowers ...

My friend Nico used to talk about how, from what he had learned, the key to succeeding in business was staying flexible and knowing how to pivot to what's working, leaving behind what's not. Ales seems like a perfect example of this. A magazine publisher who gets the opportunity to own a flower shop/nursery, who then observes a potential market for convenient self-service flower sales ... and during all this agrees that the business *I* suggested to him has enough merit to work on developing it with me as well.

I'm fortunate, and proud, to be in business with him. You'll be hearing a lot more about him —and our business — soon.