You are a woman who is a mother, an artist, and an entrepreneur — and for many years you’ve supported women in business. What drives you?
In recent years, the support of women has been mentioned in every context. For me, it’s a lifelong mission. It’s a great honor to meet new women each year, build new friendships, learn countless new things, and keep expanding the community that has grown around the project. Over the past seventeen years, the patrons of various editions have included true icons of the business world — exceptional women such as Eva Jiřičná, Eliška Hašková Coolidge, Silke Horáková, Dana Bérová, Taťána le Moigne, Eva Štěpánová, Věra Komárová, Simona Kijonková, Kateřina Kadlecová, Romana Ljubasová, Laura Janáčková, Kateřina Šrámková, and Jaroslava Valová — and I value that deeply.
This year marks the eighteenth time you will reveal the names of the most successful Czech businesswomen. How did the ladies do in the seventeenth edition?
A total of 141 women advanced to the finals of the 17th edition of the Czech Businesswomen Awards. The top Czech entrepreneurs received awards based on the size of their companies, along with several special honors. For the first time, the jury’s evaluation carried the same weight as the economic assessment provided by the competition’s expert guarantor. Together, they recognized the owners of successful Czech companies in a total of eight categories. In 2024, out of 17,312 companies fully owned by women, 2,670 participants with the best economic results were selected, from which 141 finalists emerged. The companies competing for the laurels this year generated a combined turnover of approximately five billion CZK and employed over 2,000 people. Half of the women who made it to the finals lead family-owned businesses. For the first time ever, 1,212 businesswomen entered the competition. That’s a brief summary in numbers.
We’ve mentioned the eighteenth edition of the Czech Businesswomen Awards, but there is also the ninth edition of the Czech Leaders Awards and the sixth edition of the Czech Exporters Awards…
Yes, and every year these competitions reaffirm that the companies participating in the Czech Leaders Awards and the Czech Exporters Awards are the backbone of the Czech economy. We express deep appreciation to all the businesses active on the Czech market, as well as those that have managed to expand beyond the country’s borders. Our mission is to provide support, media visibility, and most importantly, recognition for their hard work and the success they’ve achieved.
You are the sole owner and director of Agentura Helas s.r.o., which in 2024 was invited to manage and revitalize the unique premises of the Monastery of the Minorites of St. James in Prague. How do you manage to connect the activities of the Business Platform with this role?
These unique spaces, rich in history, give all of our activities a deeper dimension thanks to their energy and remarkable story. For the first time in 800 years, they are open to the public. In addition to now being the headquarters of the Helas Business Platform, we’ve quickly established educational guided tours, host workshops for both children and adults, and organize cultural and social events, concerts, and exhibitions. We’ve even launched our own product line inspired by the local Angelic Garden – Hortus Angelicus, once the largest botanical garden in Central Europe, which stretched all the way to where the main post office now stands. Our herbal syrup, tea, and floral coffee recipes are inspired by the healing herbs used by Charles IV and his successors.We’ve also prepared numerous educational activities. New exhibitions are being created in the monastery, including one dedicated to the unique pipe organ from the Basilica of St. James, where visitors can actually touch the historic organ pipes. The Monastery of the Minorites in Prague is coming alive, not only with a seasonal floral exhibition in the Romanesque cellars, but also with unconventional musical performances for all generations – adults and children alike. The year-round concert series is enhanced by educational programs for children starting from infancy, organized in cooperation with Filharmoniště.
The Helas Business Platform and Prestige magazine have come a long way together. Do you remember how many years have passed since the beginning of your cooperation?
It has been an impressive 26 years of mutual support. Ms. Jitka Tesárková and I have always had a great working relationship, and Prestige has consistently been a wonderful media partner. I truly value such long-term and lasting connections and wish the project many more successful editions to come.
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