Vrijbuiter, the Dutch retailer with three megastores for camping products, opened a fourth store in Zaandam earlier this month. Sport Partner reports that Vrijbuiter previously acquired De Kampeerwinkel, another camping store in Zaandam, which was owned by Joost Karsten. It then closed down this store and opened a new Vrijbuiter on a surface of 8,100 square meters, about twice the size of the former Kampeerwinkel. As part of the deal, Karsten has become one of Vrijbuiter's shareholders and managers, along with Gerard Kremer and Ate van der Veen. Karsten worked at Vrijbuiter for several years before he opened De Kampeerwinkel. Vrijbuiter already has three stores in Roden, Gouda and Roermond. The width of their offering is appealing to Dutch consumers who eagerly go camping in warmer countries during the summer, and it has been drawing customers from Germany and even Denmark. The store in Roden, which covers 25,000 square meters, boasts about 1.2 million visitors per year. The huge offering includes a range of private labels, which has been expanded with Redwood Outdoor, the price-driven brand of De Kampeerwinkel.

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