A paradise not only for vegans. The first department store was established in Prague, where you can buy only plant products
A place where vegans don’t have to deal with what they throw in the basket. And where carnivores can take a break from meat for a while. In January, he opened the first purely vegan department store in the Czech Republic in Prague’s Black Swan. The creators of the project thus respond to the rocketing demand for plant products.
It is the sales of vegan goods that climb in the Czech Republic by hundreds of percent. According to Nielsen, in 2019 the Czechs bought various vegetable milks for 314 million crowns – compared to 2012, sales increased by more than 330 percent, specifically for vegetable yogurts it was even 900 percent.
In comparison with other Czech cities, Prague has a side in veganism, which even before two comparisons was placed after London, Berlin or New York in the ten most friendly cities in the world for vegans and vegetarians. That’s why the main one seemed to be an ideal place for a vegan mall.
Paradoxically, the idea for him was born in Brno. The local bistro Mooi was looking for space for its Prague branch and fell on the Black Swan also because two vegan projects are already operating here: the Loving Hut restaurant and the Vegan World store.
“We agreed with the owner of the house, Danuša Siering, that we would try to find other similar concepts,” explains the founder of Mooi bistro, Zdeněk Třos. His goal was not to create a place where only vegans and vegetarians would go, but where all lovers of varied food would like to visit.
“Our offer is built to appeal to carnivores. Petr Novotný, the chef of the Grandhotel Tatra, invented the recipes for us. He created a concept in which we make everything from fresh ingredients ourselves – so that we don’t have to throw away anything, ”describes Třos.
The founder of the Black Swan, Danuše Siering, toyed with the idea of creating a food court with healthy food a few years ago, but then veganism and vegetarianism did not experience the boom we have seen in the last two years.
She has lived in Prague for over thirty years, which is the capital of plant trends in the diet behind Berlin, and this is what inspired her to expand her community in Prague.
Miroslav Jandáček, the owner of the Vegan World supermarket, which has been operating in the Black Swan for six years, also thrilled the idea of creating a vegan house. For example, I offer vegetable alternatives to meat, salami, cheese, milk or, for example, pastries without meat or eggs. In total, it offers around 6,000 products from the Czech Republic and abroad.
“I’m glad that vegans don’t have to worry about what they’re buying when shopping in the Black Swan now. And they are sure that they will only find plant products. However, most customers have a regular diet and usually only restrict meat, most often for health reasons, ”says Jandáček.
In the past, his shop was often sought after by foreigners from the ranks of tourists. During the crisis, however, he tried to be fed by Czech clients. He would therefore like to build more stores in Prague in the future and is currently preparing an e-shop, which should be launched in the spring.
“I knew that the vegan community in the Czech Republic would grow once suitable businesses were established,” says Siering. “Vegan World is a rarity even compared to the German market. I think he has an even wider selection of goods than the German Veganz. “
Last year, however, the situation in the well-known department store was different. In front of the Black Swan was a patisserie and an Asian bistro, which went bankrupt with the advent of the pandemic.
“I didn’t really mind at all, because I felt that there was no good energy. I had a different vision, “says Siering, who first became vegan twenty years ago through health problems. Since then, it has been its promoter, although today it itself consumes meat and other animal products to a small extent.
“We started looking for tenants at a time when the pandemic was attacking on all fronts. Other companies went bankrupt, but paradoxically we managed to find a tenant, set up a concept and open a Mooi bistro in half a year, “she says, adding that one of the positive effects of the pandemic is a slowdown, which has made people think more about what they eat.
The basis of the bistro’s diet are vegetable kebabs from the so-called nemasa, which the chefs themselves make from wheat protein, tofu, vegetables and spices.
The first company was launched by Mooi more than two years ago in Brno, a new branch in Prague was opened in November by franchisee Kateřina Savická. The founder Zdeněk Třos himself plans to gradually expand his concept in the form of franchises to all regional cities in the Czech Republic.
That the trend of veganism in the Czech Republic is on the rise is also confirmed by other local brands that build their business on plant-based diets. A typical example is Optimistic, formerly known as Nemléko, whose herbal milk flavored with iced coffee or gingerbread was loved not only by vegans.
Domestic customers were also attracted by Mana, who got the Czechs his alternative full-value diet in the form of powders and drinks, and who recently jumped on the bandwagon with the trend of plant burgers. He sold over 180,000 of them a year and exports them to other European countries.
Plant-based diets are growing globally, and in recent years, gastro experts have even begun to perceive them as a balanced player in companies that do not restrict any raw materials.
This is evidenced by the fact that purely vegan restaurants are starting to get on the list of Michelin-starred businesses. The last winner was the ONA restaurant in southwestern France.