How Prague's Bodnárs built a 15,000-sale designer planter business

Prague-based Potzillas, founded in May 2023 by Zuzana Bodnárová and her husband Tomáš Bodnár, has grown from a niche online shop for designer planters into a supplier for architects, interior designers and major corporate clients. Over two and a half years, the company has sold more than 15,000 planters and personally installed more than a thousand of them.

The business idea grew out of a simple observation: the Czech market lacked interesting, well-made planters. Over time, though, the couple realized that customers cared about more than just looks. “We found that buyers were missing more than just choice. They need to know the real dimensions, see whether an item is in stock, and, above all, picture how the planter will look in the actual space,” says Zuzana Bodnárová.

Speed as a competitive advantage

For professional projects, the difference between an item that can be delivered in a couple of days and one that takes weeks to arrive can be critical. That is why Potzillas displays real-time stock levels directly on its website for every option. The most popular models are kept at the company’s own warehouse in Prague’s Hostivař district — orders from that warehouse ship within one to two business days, while items from the external warehouse usually reach the customer within a week.

“Stock availability is one of the hardest parts of the whole business. It’s not enough just to have the item in the warehouse — it also has to be shown correctly on the website, and the customer needs to be able to trust that information,” explains Tomáš Bodnár.

Design that has to work beyond the photo

The core of the assortment consists of planters from European brands such as Pottery Pots and Luca Lifestyle — ranging from compact models for the home to large-scale pieces for offices, lobbies, restaurants and terraces. A significant share of the products are made from modern, lightweight composite materials that mimic concrete or stone while being far easier to transport and install.

“A large planter can look great in a photo, but it still has to be carried through reception, a doorway or a lift to reach its final spot. That’s why our design always has to work in practice too,” says Tomáš Bodnár.

From planters to a complete interior solution

As the number of professional clients — architects and interior designers — grew, the company expanded its range to include large live plants, growing substrates, watering systems and high-quality artificial plants for rooms with little natural light. “Designers would often send us a rendering or a photo of a space and want a recommendation not just for the planter, but for the plant as well. Adding them to our range wasn’t a departure from the Potzillas brand for us — it was a logical next step,” explains Zuzana Bodnárová.

The company’s clients include Prague Airport, for which Potzillas has repeatedly supplied designer planters, the law firm White & Case, and clinics of the EUC medical group (a joint project with sister company Dej mi pokojovku). Today, large orders make up a significant share of Potzillas’ business, while the company continues to serve private customers who need a single statement planter or a ready-made solution for their own interior.

For architects and designers, the company offers samples of materials and finishes, as well as the option to order a smaller trial planter to check the shade and texture directly in the space being designed. There is also a separate B2B program with special pricing for professionals and companies.

By the Around Prague newsroom