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Le Patio Lifestyle

Home décor from around the world

By Curtis M. Wong
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
August 20th, 2008 issue

JAN PŘEROVSKÝ/THE PRAGUE POST
Monika Vostřáková, owner of Le Patio Lifestyle, fills her shops with unique items from around the world.
Le Patio Lifestyle can brighten any room.
Looking for something to spice up your living room or kitchen? Check out Le Patio.
Le Patio Lifestyle


Web:
www.lepatio.cz

Prague locations:

Národní 22
Prague 1
Tel.: 224 934 402

Dušní 8
Prague 1
Tel.: 222 310 310

Újezd 19
Prague 1
Tel.: 257 317 277
Though she’s been running Le Patio Lifestyle since 2004, owner Monika Vostřáková still gets excited when she receives the company’s monthly shipments — particularly when the package contains an aluminum box, usually reserved for jewelry.
“When an aluminum box arrives by post, it’s always a party here,” Vostřáková quips. “I’m a woman, after all.”
Of course, jewelry is just one fraction of the many products offered at Le Patio Lifestyle, an upscale boutique whose specialty is imported home furnishings. A stroll around the company’s Malá Strana location is truly sensory overload. Featured here are colorful ceramics from Tuscany, wine pitchers from France, mother-of-pearl chandeliers and candlesticks fashioned of shells and coconuts from the Philippines. Interestingly, a stylish selection of locally produced crystal and ceramic products seems oddly natural among the many exotic items from foreign ports of call.
Turn a corner, and you’ll stumble across even more unique treasures — armchairs and sofas in leather, home linens in multicolored silk with Asian embroidery, countless editions of coffee table photo books from the Art Deco era. And, last but not least, a glass counter displays one-of-a-kind, ladies’ accessories — silver rings, bracelets and necklaces studded with emeralds, rubies, sapphires, turquoise and other sparkling gemstones.   
It may come as a surprise that Vostřáková, a former diplomat, lacks any formal training or background in interior design or fashion. Despite this, she possesses a strong sense of personal style, which she says comes naturally. Having studied law and political science in Paris before professional stints in Vietnam and Lebanon, Vostřáková now considers her earlier career endeavors as providing on-the-job training — albeit in a roundabout way  — for her current role as Le Patio’s leading lady.  
“Diplomacy was an interesting experience for me, and I certainly would be able to do what I do now without my diplomatic background,” Vostřáková says. “As in the diplomatic world, you have to travel, and you have to meet people. It’s different in many ways, of course, but as in diplomacy, it’s mostly about the people.”
Also crucial to the job, she says, is her eclectic fashion sense and decorative visions.
“I like to call Le Patio a cross between a shop and an art gallery,” she says. “The basic thing is to have personal taste. … My shops are very personal shops, and my style is all about mixing and matching. It’s a combination of individual pieces coming together.”
Of course, Le Patio has been known for its international character since its establishment in 1992 by Belgian native Marie Borenstein. At the time, Borenstein focused entirely on iron furniture.  
Vostřáková joined the company initially as a store manager, and says she immediately put an accent on Asian designs, partly inspired by her time spent abroad. As a result, most of her shop’s products appeal to Prague’s international community — people, she says, who are willing to think outside the box when furnishing their home or preparing for a night on the town.
“Most of our customers are people who aren’t conservative — people who like to mix styles, patterns and colors,” she says, adding that her clientele has included local artists, actors and politicians. “These are people who like to have a different interior in their homes ... maybe they really like what they see on their trips abroad. They’re quite cosmopolitan people, actually.”
Striving to satisfy those customers ensures that Vostřáková maintains a rigorous work schedule that often requires a lot of travel. A product-scouting trip to Morocco is currently in the works, as are return ventures to France, Belgium and the Philippines.
And just recently, Vostřáková assisted in the interior design of nearby Thai eatery Noi, which recently opened to rave reviews from local foodies. But keeping busy isn’t an issue as long as it doesn’t interfere with the quality of services and products that she strives to consistently maintain, she says.  
 Although she says she’d like to expand the company’s product line further, perhaps to include specialty foods such as wine and olive oil, Vostřáková says she has no current plans to open any more Le Patio shops beyond the existing three. While expanding may be good for company profits, doing so could potentially lessen Le Patio’s intimate feel, which she says is the heart and soul of the shop’s appeal.
“I’m really striving to have new and unusual things for sale all of the time,” she says. “In this profession, passion is most necessary. I couldn’t do it otherwise.”

Curtis M. Wong can be reached at cwong@praguepost.com


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