Van Duinkerken Sport & Kamperen

Industry Retail

Place Nijkerk

Customer Van Duinkerken Sport & Kamperen

Driving along the A28 near Nijkerk, the new building of Van Duinkerken Sport & Kamperen catches the eye immediately. At a glance, the impressive glass entrance tells you what it’s all about: caravans, camping and sports items. A prominent location which is also easily accessible – surely no coincidence?

‘No, absolutely not,’ says Ariën Appeldoorn, director and partner at Van Duinkerken. ‘We chose this position for a reason. We’ve only been open a few months but we’ve already welcomed many new customers because we are so visible from the motorway.’

The new way of shopping

The building has been designed to completely reflect the latest ideas relating to the new way of shopping. No routes directing customers through the store, a spacious layout and a restaurant ensure that the visitor feels at ease. A unique feature is the glass wall partition between the store and the caravan workshop, giving visitors a good idea of the service they can expect from Van Duinkerken.

"Joop van Keulen was right: everything was finished on time and we opened on the agreed date. We are very pleased."

Ariën Appeldoorn, director and partner at Van Duinkerken

Interior design that defied time constraints

Van Keulen Interieurbouw designed and built the entire shop. Why did Van Duinkerken choose Van Keulen?

‘We undertook quite an intensive search,’ says Ariën Appeldoorn. ‘We’d already gone a long way with our previous interior designer, but this project ultimately proved too big for them. So we’d wasted a lot of time. Someone mentioned Van Keulen Interieurbouw. We called Joop van Keulen and said: “We’ve got three months left.” Joop said: ‘We make everything ourselves. That’s fine.” He showed us round the factory in Nijverdal and that was enough. We were persuaded.’

‘The design phase is always nerve-wracking, because creative people need time. And that’s something we didn’t have. Luckily Van Keulen managed the project really well. If something was taking too long, they made sure that a decision was taken. And their production department deserves huge praise. When the design was finally ready, they immediately got to work. If a product had to be changed or modified, it was often back before we knew it.’