Czech savoir vivre for export. After success in Prague, it opened another branch in Barcelona
Adéla Chauville Středová is not afraid of challenges. Five weeks ago, the firstborn daughter was born, and at the same time the Spanish branch of Prague’s La Pharmacie Francaise welcomed its first customers.
La Pharmacie Francaise is a pharmacy that offers French cosmetics. The young architect, who lives between Prague and Paris, started her business together with her mother, doctor Radka Středová.
For many years she traded in dermo cosmetics and was able to run a company that had branches in Slovakia, Poland and Switzerland, so she had extensive experience in remote business.
This experience can now be of great benefit, because both Radka and her daughter do not live permanently in the Catalan metropolis, so the team has to manage their virtual one.
A mother and daughter invested the same amount in the Spanish branch of La Pharmacie Francaise as in Prague – a million crowns. The advantage is that the younger Středová is an architect, thanks to which the expenses are significantly lower than if they had paid for a third-party project.
When asked whether it is easier to start a business in the Czech Republic or in Barcelona, Adéla Chauville Středová answers immediately. “Unequivocally in our country, the Spanish bureaucracy is very lengthy and exhausting.” So why did she choose Barcelona as another place to work after Prague and Paris?
“We have come here a lot since childhood, after school I decided to study here to improve my Spanish. It’s my place and my mom’s place. When we found out that we had freed up an amazing space in the El Born district, we said we would try to build our French para pharmacy here, ”recalls Chauville Středová.
While in the Czech Republic its concept is unique and customers travel to Prague’s Arbes Square from all over the country, in Barcelona the shop works mainly for locals in the ancient quarter, which is located near the famous Cathedral of Santa Maria del Mar.
“In Barcelona, the system works well, where you only shop in your neighborhood. You have your butcher, greengrocer or pharmacist, “adds Adéla Chauville Středová. An experienced manager, who is originally from the Czech Republic but has lived in Barcelona for many years, also helps her mother and daughter run the company.
“The basis of our success is an amazing team. Both in Prague and in Spain. Thanks to the trust we have in it, we can all work in different cities, but we can still build successful businesses, ”says Chauville Středová.