Close Family Ties

Solidarity: The three brothers Pepijn, Floris and Reynier van Bommel are the masterminds of this traditional Netherlands-based company.

modernised the building two years ago with great skill and sensibility. Their father Frans passed on operational control as early as 2002. Everything looks tidy and carefully designed with a good mix of old and new - quite typical for the Netherlands. One can spot the humorous details that also characterise the style of the shoes everywhere. One example is an enormous family tree with funny - and rather strange - creatures, which was especially designed by a professional artist. Furthermore, the conference room also houses Floris’ toy collection.

Target Market Germany

Germany is becoming an increasingly important market for the Netherlands-based shoe specialist. The brand has already established itself in the multi-brand retail sector and will open its first larger Floris van Bommel store in Cologne this September. The shop will boast a 110 square metre sales area; the concept was developed in collaboration with Agentur Wink. “We are planning to open six stores in Germany over the next two years”, says Pepijn van Bommel, the company’s commercial director. Reynier, his brother, is the acting CEO of the business. “We want the brand to be more visible, because we see a lot of potential here.” When asked whether the three brothers planned to run the company together right from the start, they just laugh. Well, maybe it isn’t just a laugh after all. However, it does seem that the family ties run deep for the next van Bommel generation.

“It’s fairly difficult to copy us. Our production method is simply too elaborate for that.”

Floris van Bommel

Van Bommel. Only very few shoe manufacturers have a history as long as van Bommel’s. The company has been in business for no less than 280 years. It even still manufactures shoes at its original location in Moergestel. In 2013, the 140 employees manufactured 150,000 pairs of shoes. The site also houses the company’s warehouse, where it stores 40,000 pairs of shoes and more than 60 different models every season. Van Bommel supplies 1,200 customers in Holland and Belgium. In Germany, the brand currently has 200 customers such as Breuninger, Ansons, KaDeWe, Alsterhaus, Oberpollinger, and Prange. Van Bommel runs own stores in Antwerp and Bruges, as well as a Floris van Bommel store in Amsterdam. The brand also has plans to open an outlet store near Amsterdam soon. www.florisvanbommel.com, www.vanbommel.com