2019 was a busy year for us, as we moved from the Ceintuurbaan in Amsterdam North to the Jacob van Lennepstraat in Amsterdam West. In doing so, we have switched to an innovative way of working. We've had a lot of help from friends, family and partners. In this blog, we explain why we switched from a walk-in store to a showroom. We also tell you how the move went and we would like to emphatically thank everyone who helped us. This blog was written by Ben Cornelisse, Wouter and Brigitte's son and website maintainer.
Wouter and Brigitte have been the owners of Slaapkamer Amsterdam for 16 years now. The concept of the store had not changed at that time before the move, namely a place with regular opening hours and a nice shop window. They've always wanted to do something different than other companies, maybe Wouter's stubbornness is: That's how Wouter delivered his stuff himself in all this time (still, by the way) and even drove abroad a few times to assemble a bed. Or is the innovative view due to Brigitte's creativity: She is always trying out new things and, for example, is currently making silk pillowcases with beautiful patterns marble.
We have always worked as a regular walk-in store, where the store was open from 10:00 to 18:00. This meant working a lot of hours every day, as Wouter also delivered beds and mattresses in the morning. The idea of a showroom, a store where you can visit beds and mattresses by appointment, has been in our heads for a while. In our view, a showroom has two advantages: First, more time and attention are available to the customer, because the customer is the only one in the store with Wouter. Secondly, we can plan our time better, as we don't have to keep the store open all day.
Although we have many fond memories of the Ceintuurbaan, the Ceintuurbaan became increasingly crowded with tourists. That's why we had the feeling that it was becoming less and less of a shopping street, especially for a bed shop. In addition, with the Showroom, we no longer needed a shop window, as much more would be done online. We moved to an office space in Jacob van Lennepstraat, which is almost the same size as the Ceintuurbaan space.
First, the plans were made for the interior of the new space. For example, we had the idea to build a gas fireplace, create a Hotel room and more. Pictures of the 3D model taken by Choc Studio are below.
In the month of August, we were closed to make the move. We moved all the items from the Ceintuurbaan into our warehouse in Haarlem while we were painting the new location. After painting, we built the toilet and sink ourselves. We even built the new gas fireplace ourselves (see photos below). Our goal for the renovation was a clearer and quieter store. We feel that this atmosphere worked out very well and we are proud of the result.
After the move, we also adopted a different corporate identity. For example, the logo and website were both outdated and we both wanted to make it more friendly. For example, we changed the red logo to a pistachio-colored logo and gave the website a better look. We strive for as clear and easy contact as possible with the customer and hope that our new style reflects this. Make an appointment to see the store for yourself.
We would like to thank everyone who helped us during the move:
The interior design of Choc Studio
https://www.chocstudio.nl/
Tom Broersen's internet marketing
https://broerseninternetmarketing.nl/
The help with Sjaak Glasbergen's website
https://websitesetup.nl/
All our suppliers
Anyone who helped with the move
Ben Cornelisse,
Son of Wouter and Brigitte.
Creator and maintainer of the Slaapkamer Amsterdam logo and website
