Klaudia Konečná from Poni Veni: Why did Slovak perennials become Poni Veni?
Customers confused them with the competition, so after 13 years, they decided on a major change. Klaudia Konečná from Poni Veni reveals in the Biznislab podcast what the rebranding of the brand, the new e-shop, and the replacement of the ERP system brought.
Why did Slovenské trvalky decide to rebrand after 13 years?
Slovenské trvalky was a descriptive name. It conveyed what the company sold and was sufficient for the start. However, it was generic, so it couldn't be protected as a trademark.
Competitors therefore paid for advertising on their keywords. Customers shopped elsewhere, thinking they were at Slovenské trvalky, and sent complaints to them. "It reached such an unbearable level that customers started complaining about things we hadn't even sold them."
They considered the change for three years. The last straw was when even their long-time employee confused a competitor's e-shop with theirs. "When your own employee confuses you, it's probably time to rebrand," recalls Klaudia Konečná.
After 13 years, they decided on a complete rebranding. It wasn't just about redesigning the logo or changing colors, but about a new name, visual identity, and brand communication method. "We completely buried Slovenské trvalky with the entire design, name, everything, and started anew," says Klaudia.
The people and their approach to customers remained from the original brand. Everything else got a new form. And so Poni Veni was born.
Learn more about how to approach brand creation and development on our page brand building.
How the name Poni Veni was created
The new name had to meet two conditions: be legally protectable and have available .com domains for expansion abroad. Poni comes from the Old Slavic poniknúť (to kneel), venire is Latin for to come. The name is meant to evoke the arrival of something new and humility towards nature. The name and claim "Connecting the right person with the right plant in the right place" were created with the agency Levosphere.
The visual identity was prepared by ui42. Poni Veni chose between a rational, more technical concept and a more emotional one. They chose the rational one and would choose it again after a year: "Personally, I liked the emotional one more, but the designers can work better with the first one." The logo combines an arrow, a plant stem, and intersecting paths, symbolizing the plant's journey to the customer. The entire project can be found in case study Poni Veni.
New e-shop, ERP, and warehouse at once. Was it a good idea?
Along with the Poni Veni brand, they also changed the e-shop, ERP system, and warehouse. The project started with a strategy about two years ago. It was followed by the name, visual identity, e-shop design, and ERP technical specification. It took about a year and a half until launch.
At ui42, we usually recommend clients not to change the ERP and e-commerce system at the same time. Klaudia agrees: "And I don't recommend it either." The beginnings brought "a lot of wrinkles and gray hair." The old website no longer allowed further SEO adjustments or innovations, so after the transition, they lost all positions in search engines.
Today, the result is clear according to Klaudia. Connecting the e-shop with ERP Odoo allowed them to scale and work more with data. "The data shows that so far we have a 30% growth this year." If you are planning a similar change, see how we build custom e-shops.
How to communicate a company name change
They started introducing the new brand to customers a year before the launch. They communicated it on social media and added stickers to packages that connected the original name Slovenské trvalky with the new Poni Veni. Despite this, there was a surprise after the launch. Many customers only noticed the change when they opened the new e-shop.
"It required demanding customer support. We were on the phones nonstop, explaining and replying that they were still Slovenské trvalky," recalls Klaudia.
What this means for other companies:
- Expect that customers often ignore the transition period with two names.
- Strengthen customer support for the first few weeks after the switch.
- Redirect the old website to the new one and clearly explain the change on the new website.
"It's very difficult, but in today's world, I would do it again and again," says Klaudia.
ui42's perspective: Why is a strong brand even more important in the AI era?
The story of Poni Veni shows why it's worth investing in your own, easily recognizable brand. And with the advent of artificial intelligence, this is even more true.
Today, customers don't just search for products through Google, but increasingly turn to AI assistants. A generic name like Slovenské trvalky can easily be mistaken for a common category label. A unique name like Poni Veni helps the brand stand out and makes it easier to identify in search engines and AI responses.
At ui42, we therefore recommend thinking about brand building not only in terms of how customers perceive it today but also how they will discover it in the future. It's equally important to use AI in the daily management of the e-shop. For example, our tool FLUIDUM AI helps monitor e-shop performance, campaigns, analytics, or SEO and alerts to important changes.
Selling plants online? A challenge that regular e-shops don't know
Running an e-shop with plants is a slightly different discipline. The goods don't wait patiently in the warehouse but constantly grow and need care.
What makes this living e-commerce unique?
- Weather. During summer heatwaves, they had over 50 °C on the growing areas and watered 16 hours a day instead of two. "It was a question of whether the plants would dry out or we would burn them with water. We chose to burn them with water."
- A growing warehouse. You can't quickly reorder a sold-out plant. Unsold plants continue to grow, but they need to be watered, fertilized, and treated every day, which must be reflected in the margin. Therefore, they plan the assortment according to sales data from the previous year and trends.
- Licenses. About 90% of plants are tied to a breeder's license. For a modern echinacea, the purchase price of a seedling is 50 cents, and the license costs 1 euro.
How Poni Veni improves customer experience even without a physical store?
How to choose the right plant when you can't see it live? At Poni Veni, they try to make the decision as easy as possible for customers. Although they don't have a physical store, they organize open days three times a year, where they receive valuable feedback. Based on customer requests, they introduced personal pickup in Trnava.
Their suggestions are also reflected in the e-shop's features. Garden bed calculator helps calculate the necessary number of plants and plan their blooming. Ready-made plant sets make it easier to choose for specific places in the garden, and shopping lists allow planning planting or sharing inspiration with others.
As Martin Krupa reminds in the podcast, a good customer experience is not just about a simple purchase, but also about choosing a plant that suits their needs and the time they can devote to it.
This is the principle we also build on at ui42. Learn more about how we design e-shops according to real customer needs on the page user experience .
A brand that reduces advertising costs
Performance marketing is fundamental for Poni Veni. "It's definitely PPC campaigns. Without them, we wouldn't move forward. But by doing branding, educating, and setting trends, we can reduce their costs." They have 115,000 followers on Facebook and 22,000 on Instagram. Roman Helt talked about how PPC is changing with the advent of AI in the previous episode of Biznislab. Campaigns for Poni Veni are prepared by our performance marketing team .
Expansion: Czech Republic, Hungary, and the Baltics
After a successful rebranding and modernization of the e-shop, Poni Veni is also looking beyond Slovakia's borders. According to Klaudia, the domestic market has its limits, so they plan to enter the Czech Republic and Hungary. The Baltics are also in play. Not all markets are equally attractive, though. Germany and Poland are currently left aside due to stricter legislation on plant sales. "We would probably lose more than gain there," explains Klaudia.
Another advantage of rebranding is evident during expansion. Unlike the original name Slovenské trvalky, Poni Veni is a brand that can also operate abroad. And with available .com domains, it has an easier path to new markets.
Considering rebranding? Ask yourself these 5 questions
Before embarking on a brand change, try to look at it through the eyes of customers and from the perspective of future growth.
- Can your name be legally protected as a trademark?
- Do customers confuse you with competitors?
- Does your name work in foreign markets where you want to expand?
- Can search engines and AI assistants clearly identify your brand?
- Do you have a plan to minimize SEO losses and communicate the change to customers during a brand change?
Listen to the full interview with Klaudia Konečná in the Biznislab podcast. Are you considering rebranding or a new e-shop? Contact us. We will help you with the brand, custom e-shop, UX, and campaigns.
The Biznislab podcast is prepared by ui42 in collaboration with the SME daily. Hosted by Martin Krupa. ui42 collaborates with Poni Veni on the e-shop, advertising, and rebranding.
