Prague couple’s unusual silver and gold flowers become a blossoming business

Just a few steps away from the hustle and bustle of Wenceslas Square is a garden filled with wildflowers: snowdrops and lilacs, chickweed and violets, bellflowers and daisies. 

But they aren’t growing in beds and brambles – they’re arranged in delicate bouquets. And each bud has been fashioned by hand, out of gleaming gold and silver.

This is GIYOU, a family business specializing in the design and creation of fine metal “jewellery flowers.” Husband-and-wife team Radek Bláha and Milada Bláhová launched the company in late 2022. And ever since, business has been blooming.

“We didn't expect it. We were not prepared for it,” Radek said. 

In 2013 the couple moved out of Prague and settled down in Saky, a small village with 15 houses in the Kladno region, about 30 minutes by car northwest of the capital city. The couple conceived of the idea for GIYOU in 2019. Inhabitants of Saky, according to GIYOU’s founders, having soil rich in iron ore, have worked with metal for centuries. 

The duo say they were inspired by their historic homestead, a cultural heritage site, that dates back to the late 15th century and its garden. And Radek, who had recently left behind a career in law, was particularly smitten with their flourishing garden.

Milada had worked as a jeweller and understood the practicalities - and limitations - of working with precious metals. She wasn’t immediately sold on the idea. “She said, ‘You are crazy. It will not work. There are no such flowers in the world.” Radek recalled.

There was no blueprint and for the first couple of years the flowers were merely an idea. What the founders were working on couldn’t even be put in words, and so new ones had to be created like “jewellery flowers”, “jewellery garden”, “family vase”. 

Nevertheless, over the course of three years, Milada developed prototypes of silver stems and bouquets to realise Radek’s vision. The botanical “jewellery” needed to be delicate enough to resemble real flowers but sturdy enough to be handled and displayed. 

“I am, I would say, half art-thinker, half business,” Radek said, noting that his wife is the real artist behind their brand. “I think we make quite a good mix for such a project” he added. 

The business received media attention right from the start, he says, and quickly attracted the interest of some celebrities. Soon, GIYOU received commissions for custom orders. And the dream of the founders, which few people understood at first, blossomed into a company that began to sell flowers all over the world. 

While they were juggling the demands of a successful new business, the couple was also busy raising young children. Radek describes the early days of the company as “intense.”

In early 2023, a private customer asked the couple to create a custom bouquet of 118 pure gold flowers. “To us, the bouquet’s main significance lies in the way it confirms to us our work is meaningful – that we’re able to create delicate, impressive flowers to complement people’s lives and bring new experiences,” the couple notes on the GIYOU website.

Today, GIYOU sells individual flowers of silver or gold, elaborate floral arrangements, bridal and engagement bouquets, and custom arrangements, plus a selection of porcelain, hand-blown glass and rare vases that the firm is collecting all over the world.

The “jewellery flowers” can be purchased in the GIYOU GARDEN shop in downtown Prague or from the brand showroom in Saky. They can also be shipped to most countries through their e-shop.

Jewellery flowers are mainly opportunity for an unique gift. They can be gifted in person, bound as a bouquet, or placed in a vase, just like fresh-cut flowers. Large bouquets and golden flowers make for an impressive, valuable gift. And when placed in a vase, it brings lasting pleasure and elevates homes. People can also compile their big dream bouquet gradually, over time or create family vases that pass down the generations. 

The couple's aim is to expand the business in Bohemia and abroad. But no matter how popular GIYOU becomes, he and Milada have every intention of keeping the jewellery design and production local and family-run. 

“In the coming year, I would like just to go deeper in what we have,” Radek said.