Queen Máxima visited HEMA in its centenary year
Photo: The Dutch Royal House
Queen Máxima paid a working visit to the variety store chain HEMA in Amsterdam on Thursday, as the company marks its centenary. She was given an explanation of the design process and spoke with employees about their work and their interaction with customers.
Queen Máxima paid a working visit to HEMA in Amsterdam on Thursday 17 September. The variety store chain is celebrating its centenary this year.
Queen Máxima at the entrance to the HEMA store in Amsterdam. Photo: The Dutch Royal House
• A hundred years of fixed prices
HEMA stands for Hollandsche Eenheidsprijzen Maatschappij Amsterdam, the Dutch unitary prices company Amsterdam. The first store opened on 4 November 1926 in Kalverstraat in central Amsterdam.
The founders, Leo Meyer and Arthur Isaac, wanted to create a department store for ordinary people. At the time department stores in the Netherlands were mainly for the well off, and at HEMA the goods cost 10, 25 or 50 cents.
At the bakery counter. The tompouce, a pastry of puff pastry, custard and pink icing, is among the chain’s best known products. Photo: The Dutch Royal House
• From idea to shelf
The visit focused on the development of the company, from the place it holds in everyday life in the Netherlands to the way its products are designed, developed and sold.
The Queen was given an explanation of the design process. Photo: The Dutch Royal House
The Queen received an explanation of the design process and spoke with employees about their work, how they develop in their jobs, and their interaction with customers.
The Queen looked at the products close up. Photo: The Dutch Royal House
• Gifts on the way out
The Queen was given gifts by the staff. Photo: The Dutch Royal House
HEMA is today one of the best known retail chains in the Netherlands, with stores in several other European countries as well.