Branching Out: Bol.com to Open Office in Belgium

Bol.com, our online retailer based in the Netherlands, announced yesterday that it plans to open a branch office in Antwerp this spring to better serve the 2,000 Belgian retailers who sell products on the bol.com platform and create more opportunities to collaborate with local partners.  

Almost half the items sold on bol.com now come from Dutch or Belgian partners and this share is expected to increase. These entrepreneurs – including physical retailers who partially outsource their eCommerce activities and fully online players who sell via bol.com to extend their market – can grow substantially through the platform, which is available to millions of consumers in in the Netherlands and Belgium. Further, with logistics from bol.com, they can stock products in the brand’s fulfilment center and offer a range of delivery options. 

“At bol.com, 2 million Belgian consumers are now shopping with us, and we want to serve them as well as possible,” said Sacha Buyck, Manager Belgium. “We like to do that together with local players, because we believe that cooperation is the key to satisfied customers. 

“There are already dozens of Belgians working at bol.com, and for this location we are looking for more colleagues,” Sacha added. “We think it is important to share knowledge and learn from each other. Together we form a relevant store for millions of customers in Belgium and the Netherlands who also shop at our partners.” 

The Antwerp branch is expected to open in May, with the specific location yet to be determined. Bol.com plans to hire associates in functions such as market managers, partner advisors and partner specialists and is listing current vacancies on banen.bol.com. 

Since its launch in 1999, bol.com has become one of the most popular online retailers in the Netherlands and Belgium. Now with 9 million customers, the brand features an assortment of 17 million items in over 20 product categories from more than 20,000 Dutch and Belgian retailers.