History of Van der Peijl in Zeeland
Business starts in a mere shed
Being an employee with the former APC (Esso), Mr. A.C. (Dré) van der Peijl was active in the oil business. In 1940, when he was in danger of losing his job due to a shortage of oil, he laid the foundation of Van der Peijl Groep. He used to visit his clients by bicycle and continued to do so. He purchased his products by carrier cycle and cycled to Amsterdam on a regular basis, selling Perfekta solution (glue for tyres, made by Bison) on his way out. He spent the night with family along the way and returned to Zeeland with all kinds of products for his clients back home. No wonder he would soon be known as “the person you just had to consult and he would get it for you”. This is still the mission of Van der Peijl Groep. By the way, Dré van der Peijl’s bicycle was soon replaced by a motorbike.
Increased turnover after flood disaster
In the early 1950s Dré was joined by his sons Johan and Cees. By then the ‘wholesaler in car materials’ managed a large tyre depot for Michelin, as well as a range of other products that kept pace with the swiftly growing Zeeland industry. 1953 Was to become a year of paramount importance in the company’s history; regions that had been flooded during the flood disaster were rebuilt, which lead to an enormous industriousness. Van der Peijl managed to double his turnover.
Terneuzen branch set up
In 1964 Henk, the third brother of the second generation, started a branch in Terneuzen. The Zeeland Flanders industry developed at high speed, under the leadership of the DOW-branch there. As early as the early seventies Johan introduced, a, to those days’ standards, highly modern computer system, which resulted in a very early computerization process. In 1975 a branch was opened in Middelburg, to give the region of Walcheren optimum service.
Three cousins
Nowadays three cousins from the third generation are at the head of the family business: Rob, René and Arthur. In 1991 several other business were taken over, resulting in a substantial expansion of the company’s market share. Subsequently the Lokker-group - with branches in Axel, Goes and Zierikzee -, ZVH Oostburg and Prent-Goes were taken over and renamed AD-branches. Next, Westerweel’s IJzerhandel Terneuzen, a specialist in fastening techniques, became part of Van der Peijl Groep.
Takeover Akkermans Groep
To achieve the desired degree of scaling-up, along with the required synergetic effects and an expansion to the region in western Brabant, the Akkermans Groep was taken over in 1997. This group consisted of all Akkermans branches, Beljaars and AMTC. The two groups make an ideal combination, thanks to perfectly linking product ranges and working areas. Since 1998 we present ourselves as the Van der Peijl Groep, a chain of technical wholesalers. |
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