Inside Out - Shini Europe

‚Inside
Out’ is a series
of articles, created
especially to introduce to
all ShinEurope Distributors,
companies which cooperate
with us every day. By saying
companies, we mean not only
companies itself, but also
countries and places where they operate – live
and work.
In current ‘Inside Out’ you
will find out about tulips,
clogs, windmills, bikes,
cheese and many other
curiosities of the Netherlands. We will check how
high the level of tolerance is and how the issue
of drugs legality actually
looks like. This month we
will know better, perhaps
the most liberal country in
the today world. About all
these things above and
many others we will interview Arnold Vermeijden
from Obinion.
Enjoy :)
ShiniEurope | Inside out
As our first step – someting about
your country. What associations,
first of all, raises your country?
There are many stereotypes of our
country. The only one that is really
true is the level of tolerance. Not
many Dutch people are easily surprised if something happens out of
the ordinary. Many old windmills are
still there but nowadays new ones
are installed for generating electric
power. Wooden shoes are worn
only when there are tourists around,
other than that Dutch people prefer
“normal” shoes. Our government
invented the “polder model” which
means that difficult decisions are
made only after long discussions
and agreements. A long process but
once completed will ensure lasting
support by the majority.
What are the most important dates
during the whole year?
On 30 April our queen Beatrix celebrates her birthday. At “Koninginnedag” the whole country has a day
off and parties all day long. Starting
with the “Koninginnenacht” the night
before. On the 4th of May we remember all those that are fallen in
the second World War and on the
5th of May we celebrate the liberation of our country. During this day
there are many festivities like festivals. Furthermore we have the Christian holidays such as Easter and
Christmas.
Dutch cheese market is held in Alkmaar and the cultural Uit-Market in
Amsterdam is visited by thousands.
Really cold winters are celebrated
by the “Elfstedentocht”. This tour is
done by as much as 15.000 skaters
and leads along eleven cities in one
of the most beautiful provinces of
the Netherlands: Friesland.
What are the pros and cons of your
country?
What will you give the foreigner, to
feel the real ‘taste of Holland’?
On the positive side I can mention
the geographical location of the Netherlands which makes it the “gateway to Europe”, the economic climate which is currently one of the
best in Europe and the open mined
people that occupy it. On the other
hand the country is very small which
does not leave a lot of space for the
people.
Something you will never forget:
a raw herring with onions.
What are the most interesting/ the
funniest / the most pleasant traditions in your country?
What are the bestsellers? How does
the market look like? What are the
most popular branches?
Every year the fishing boats go out
and when they return the first catch
is celebrated big time. The famous
Despite the small size of the country
there are certain sectors that stand
out globally. The Dutch are known
Work is very important in our lives,
so ….What is the specific of work in
the Netherlands?
Already a long time ago hard traditional labor like working in coal mines or ship building has changed to
service related professions.
by their “water management”.
Since a big part of our country is below sea level we need to keep our
feet dry by using certain techniques
like building dikes and complete water works like the “Deltaplan”. Our
international transport sector has
grown big mainly because of the
huge port of Rotterdam which by
far is the largest container terminal
in Europe. We keep the largest refineries where all kinds of chemical
are produced out of crude oil. Holland is the largest exporter of fruits,
vegetables and plants. Our farm
techniques for crops and animals
are leading. Near Eindhoven a Philips spin-off makes state of the art
wafer steppers for chip production
for companies like Intel. Worldwide
we are famous for salvaging shipwrecks and building oil-rigs. Less
known are the luxury ship building
for very wealthy customers and last
but not least the well-known Dutch
DJs: Armin van Buuren and Tiesto.
And how about plastic industry?
The plastics industry is stable and
no longer growing. Most molders
are working for third parties and do
not produce their own products. Like
in most industries nowadays there is
severe price pressure.
What products Netherlands imports
and exports?
As from the old days, Holland is well
known in buying and selling goods.
We import and export a million different products from cars to herbs
and diamonds to animals. There is
literal nothing that does not pass the
Dutch ports.
How does entrepreneurs operate in
the market? Are they active, taking
part in the fair or organize something themselves?
Young entrepreneurs with new ideas are actively encouraged by the
government by a special start-up
program. They work with existing
companies that develop and market their ideas or they start their
own companies. Every year there is
a contest among the most promising
start-ups. Real exciting stuff!
ShiniEurope | Inside out
What, in your opinion, is the most
valuable national trait in the workplace?
Probably the most long-lasting and
profitable business is the transport
of goods from other countries in the
world into Europe.
And last but not least, few words
about free time. What are the favorite activities of Dutchmen? How they
spend their free time?
Many Dutchmen like to ride their bicycle. A flat country like ours makes
it easy to bike along. The Dutch like
to be among friends and listen to
music. Where to do this better then
on a good music concert?
True-born Dutchman could not live
without… ?
A feeling of freedom. Harness
a Dutch guy and the fun is over.
What the Dutchman knows about
Poland?
Holland is the largest European investment partner and the number
6 trading partner with Poland in the
EU and increasing. The current turnover exceeds more than 9 billion
Euro per year. We remember that
at the end of the second world war
Polish soldiers helped to liberate
Holland. War cemeteries still remind
us of the heroic deeds of too many
young Polish men who lost their lives in battle. The average Dutchmen probably knows that the Catholic religion plays an important role in
the day to day life in Poland. Many
people will remember the great liberty movement Solidaridad of Lech
Walesa. From more recent affairs we know that some (probably not all) Polish people
like alcohol a lot. Holland
keeps 200.000 Polish,
mainly men.
What is the most frequent subject of jokes
in the Netherlands?
I hate to say it but jokes
about the Dutch are
always about avarice.
I believe they probably
mean our sense for profitable trade ;-)
Thank you very much
for interview.