Amsterdam in business

Fibre runs through itAmsterdam’s ICT industry

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Russell ShortoThis city’s DNA

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Destination reachedThe Amsterdam Metropolitan Area has much to offer busi-nesses and their employees. An excellent infrastructure with an extensive harbour – the fourth largest in Europe – and one of the most connected airports in the world; a most accommodat-ing tax system; an incredible pool of talent.Known as the birthplace of the public company as well as of the industrial revolution, the region has a long history of entre-preneurship. Creativity, innovation and a mercantile spirit have always been the core values of the people of this region, and will continue to be in the future.Amsterdam Marketing and amsterdam inbusiness, the organi-sations that bring you this magazine, are working together to make it as easy as possible for you to invest here. By offering your company and your employees assistance at every level, but also by presenting to you our greatest asset: a city where people love to live, with a cultural life that is unmatched, in a setting – the Canal Ring – that has been listed a UNESCO World Heritage site in its entirety.AMS, of which you are holding the first issue, gives you the facts of doing business in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area, but also the feelings. It gives a voice to the entrepreneurs and internationals who have come here and embraced the spirit of Amsterdam.In this first issue we present interviews with Michael Crimp, the man behind IBC, the largest conference in Amsterdam that has been coming to our city for over 20 years. We portray international professionals in their homes, such as Carolyn Timson, head of design at Tommy Hilfiger, and we asked Geke Faber, Mayor of Zaanstad, to show us her new work-place, a city hall of outstanding architectural beauty. In the heart of this issue we portray the all-important ICT industry in Amsterdam, centred around one of the largest internet hubs in the world and a first-class fibre optics network.What does AMS stand for? In the international language of air travel, it is the code for Amsterdam. It is what you find on your luggage label when you travel here. Destination reached. What could be a more appropriate name for a business magazine that invites you to come and join us?

Frans van der AvertDirector of City Marketing, Amsterdam Metropolitan Area

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lars van den Brink has been fascinated by the power of photography to capture time and reality for as long as he can remember. At the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague, Van den Brink discovered that he was able to arrange and rearrange reality and capture a story with his images. He works for a variety of clients, including NRC Handelsblad newspaper, the Dutch Government and numerous graphic design agencies.

mark smith moved to Amsterdam four years ago, having worked as a journalist in London and the Middle East. ‘Amsterdam was quite a culture shock after my last home, Dubai,’ recalls Mark. ‘My fi rst assignment for Time Out Amsterdam was to attend a naked dance party!’ Now the editor of that magazine, Mark also writes for Condé Nast Traveler, MONOCLE and The Sunday Times Travel.

matt farquharson has been a journalist for nearly ten years. Specialising in business and travel, he has written and edited for national newspapers and magazines all over the world. Originally from London, he has been based in Amsterdam since 2009, and his Dutch is improving very slowly.

Art director sabine Verschueren has many prestigious titles to her name, including Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad’s bimonthly luxury lifestyle magazine, DeLUXE. For her work on Oog, the official magazine of the Rijksmuseum, Verschueren was named art director of the year. She works from her studio in Amsterdam’s De Pijp neighbourhood, a stimulating multicultural melting pot.

Photographer henk Wildschut studied at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague. His work, characterised by a contemplative and often distant perspective, has been exhibited in Amsterdam, Sidney, Shanghai, Beijing, London, Prague and The Hague. The book of Wildschut’s 2010 series ‘Shelter’ won the Kees Scherer Prize for best Dutch photography book 2009/2010, as well as the prestigious Dutch Doc Award 2011. Wildschut is currently working on a project about Dutch food production for Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum.

Editorial board

Frans van der Avert

Geerte Udo

Riske Akkerman

Editor-in-Chief

Bart van Oosterhout

Art Director

Sabine Verschueren

Designers

Sandra Nakken

Zlatka Siljdedic

Translator

Heather Lane

Copy Editor

Megan Roberts

Contributors

Lars van den Brink

Claudie de Cleen

Matt Farquharson

Colleen Geske

Chris Gloag (Hollandse

Hoogte)

Jessica Hagy

Herman van Heusden

Michiel van Iperen (Artbox)

Hans Kops

Zora Ottink

Martyn Overweel

Robin de Puy

Russell Shorto

Mark Smith

Ivo Weyel

Henk Wildschut

Thijs Wolzak

Printer

Habo da Costa

Photo cover

Lars van den Brink

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Colleen Geske

On my initial trip to Amsterdam in 2004, the fi rst two things that caught my attention were the endless hordes of bicycles and the tower-ing height of the Dutch. After spending a little over a week in the city, so many unanswered questions circled in my mind: Why didn’t every city in the world adopt bicycles in such a way? How was I ever going to avoid getting run over by a fervent cyclist? And, would I forevermore need a stepladder to reach cup-boards in a Dutch apartment? Seven years lat-er, most of my questions have been answered, but the Dutch and their unique cultural quirks continue to fascinate me on a daily basis.

You may have noticed more than a few wheeled contraptions whizzing by you in this town. In fact, it sometimes seems impossible to separate where the Dutch begin and their bi-cycles end. Rain (or rain, or rain) or shine, the Dutch can be found crisscrossing this bridged city on their trusty (and rusty) two-wheeled friends. Of course, everyday cycling in itself is not such a special feat, but the Dutch certainly bring their own distinct fl are to the sport. Firstly, don’t expect to see any fancy, sophis-ticated, titanium-suspension-rigged bicycles in Amsterdam. Nope: the Dutch prefer their gearless, rusted, chain-just-barely-hanging-on variety. Why, you ask? Well, practicality and frugality run through every Dutchie’s blood. Why spend more on fancy features when your thighs and lungs can make up for the rest? Heck, the Dutch even prefer to power their necessary bicycle lights with their own leg-pumping-power; again, a reliable solution at no extra cost! Most importantly, don’t be surprised by the uncanny Dutch ability to ride a gearless bicy-cle while talking on a mobile phone, carrying two children, six bags of groceries, a televi-sion set and a mattress. Having grown up on wheels, the Dutch conduct daily superhuman acts with laid-back casualness. With over 880,000 bicycles in a city of less than 790,000

In the city of bicycles and giants

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Colleen Geske

On my initial trip to Amsterdam in 2004, the fi rst two things that caught my attention were the endless hordes of bicycles and the tower-ing height of the Dutch. After spending a little over a week in the city, so many unanswered questions circled in my mind: Why didn’t every city in the world adopt bicycles in such a way? How was I ever going to avoid getting run over by a fervent cyclist? And, would I forevermore need a stepladder to reach cup-boards in a Dutch apartment? Seven years lat-er, most of my questions have been answered, but the Dutch and their unique cultural quirks continue to fascinate me on a daily basis.

You may have noticed more than a few wheeled contraptions whizzing by you in this town. In fact, it sometimes seems impossible to separate where the Dutch begin and their bi-cycles end. Rain (or rain, or rain) or shine, the Dutch can be found crisscrossing this bridged city on their trusty (and rusty) two-wheeled friends. Of course, everyday cycling in itself is not such a special feat, but the Dutch certainly bring their own distinct fl are to the sport. Firstly, don’t expect to see any fancy, sophis-ticated, titanium-suspension-rigged bicycles in Amsterdam. Nope: the Dutch prefer their gearless, rusted, chain-just-barely-hanging-on variety. Why, you ask? Well, practicality and frugality run through every Dutchie’s blood. Why spend more on fancy features when your thighs and lungs can make up for the rest? Heck, the Dutch even prefer to power their necessary bicycle lights with their own leg-pumping-power; again, a reliable solution at no extra cost! Most importantly, don’t be surprised by the uncanny Dutch ability to ride a gearless bicy-cle while talking on a mobile phone, carrying two children, six bags of groceries, a televi-sion set and a mattress. Having grown up on wheels, the Dutch conduct daily superhuman acts with laid-back casualness. With over 880,000 bicycles in a city of less than 790,000

In the city of bicycles and giants

Going Dutch

people, you’re sure to see some interesting spectacles on wheels.

Isn’t it ironic that the nickname for the Netherlands is the Lowlands? Quite frankly, a more descriptive term would be the High-lands – or at least the High-People-Lands. If you haven’t noticed, Dutch people are tall. Really tall. Tall enough to make even a ‘nor-mally’ tall person feel quite short.The odd thing here is that the Dutch haven’t always been tall. Ever been inside one of Amsterdam’s 16th-century canal houses? Those tiny doors and quaint low ceilings were indeed built for much smaller people. Howev-er, in just a century, Dutch people went from being amongst the shortest nations to being the tallest peeps on the planet. A recent study linked the number of cows per capita to the height of a country’s people. We all know the Dutch have no shortage of cattle, so perhaps the copious consumption of dairy (think cheese, cheese, cheese) can be blamed. Whatever the cause, there always seems to be a bicycle (and a pair of trousers) built for even the tallest of chaps. So, what do ubiquitous bicycles and Dutch giants have in common? Well, they are simply two charmingly unique elements that make up the endearing nature of Amsterdam, a city that will capture your heart and imagination at every turn. It certainly has mine. <

Colleen Geske is the author of the blog Stuff Dutch People Like (stuffdutchpeoplelike.com) which celebrates, questions and pokes fun at all things Dutch.photo Robin de Puy illustration Jessica Hagy

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Ziggo DomeAmsterdam rocks out

When a stage has been anointed by the Queen of Pop, you know it’s something special. Back in July, Madonna graced this cavernous new rock venue – capacity 15,600 – adjacent to the Amsterdam ArenA. George Michael, Lady Gaga and Lionel Richie are set to follow in her wake this season. www.ziggodome.nl

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text Mark Smith

UnseenPhoto Fair

Photography has grown into the medium of our time. The range and diversity of styles in art pho-tography has never been so broad and never have we seen so much interest from museums, galleries and the public. With Unseen, Am-sterdam is fi nally host to a photog-raphy exposition that does justice to this global development.‘A new photo fair with a festival fl air’ is the slogan behind Unseen, which takes place at Culture Park Westergasfabriek. More than 50 national and international galleries will be presenting both new and

From top right: Jiang Zhi/m97 GalleryAndrew Phelps/Robert Morat GalleryKoos Breukel & Roy Villevoye/Motive Gallery& Van Zoetendaal CollectionsHiromi Kakimoto/The Third Gallery AyaLaura Henno/Galerie Les Filles au Calvaire

big-name talent, and a special col-lection of photographs all priced under €1,000 to encourage new collectors. However, Unseen is not just a commercial exhibition but also a festival, with an extended line-up of activities including an evening programme, lectures and presentations, fi lms, the photog-raphy book fair Offprint and an exhibition covering nine decades of fashion photography, with works by Richard Avedon, Helmut Newton and Edward Steichen, among others. www.unseenamsterdam.com

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The Conservatorium HotelOld Dutch meets newItalian design

Anyone who’s visited both the Rijksmuseum and the Stedelijk Museum – each within walking distance of this, the fi rst European property from Israeli hotel chain The Set – will tell you that Amsterdam does two things extremely well: the old and the new, often in striking combination.The Dutch Golden Age collides with contemporary Italian design courtesy of architect Piero Lissoni at this beautifully renovated building in the grand Museum Quarter. Behind the imposing neo-Gothic façade of what was originally the city’s most prestigious bank (and subsequently the home of the revered music school that lends the hotel its name) there operates a thor-oughly modern, pared-down but undeniably upscale eight-storey, 129-room luxury hotel. Lissoni’s audacious transparent extension – a soaring, light-fl ooded structure that man-ages to engulf the original building while remaining true to it – is breath-takingly am-bitious, and is the perfect place to enjoy a spot of people-watching over afternoon tea. The Conservatorium Brasserie is a laid-back diner with plush sofas and coffee tables, where you can order anything from a club sandwich to a champagne cocktail. Upstairs at the more formal Tunes Restaurant, the seasonal à la carte menu is a symphony for the taste buds.www.conservatoriumhotel.com

2013A year of milestones2013 is a very big year indeed for Amsterdam, as the city celebrates a host of important cultural and historical landmarks. In addition to marking the 400-year anniversary of the stately Canal Belt – that marvel of aquatic engineering designated a UNESCO World Herit-age site in 2010 – Amsterdam will be celebrating the reopening of the fully renovated Rijksmuseum; the 125th anniversary of the Concertgebouw (concert hall) and its world-renowned Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra; the 225th anniversary of the pioneering Felix Meritis centre for arts, culture and science; plus the 175th anniversary of Artis Royal Zoo, where visitors have been enjoying nature in the city centre since the days of Charles Darwin.www.iamsterdam.com/2013

Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam

Hot on the heels of openings in Berlin, Edinburgh and Jerusalem, the Hilton Worldwide hotel network is currently putting the finishing touches to its high-end home on Amsterdam’s Herengracht. Expected to open in 2013.www.waldorfastoria.com

Concierge desk at the Rome

Cavalieri

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NoorderparkbarEngineering ingenuity

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NoorderparkbarEngineering ingenuityEngineering ingenuity

Stedelijk MuseumArt institution reopens

Amsterdam’s modern art institution origi-nally opened its doors in 1895 and in the century that followed, the Stedelijk built a world-class collection of art by everyone from Georges Braque to Barbara Kruger. By the beginning of the millennium, however, modernisation was required, and Amster-dam architect fi rm Benthem Crouwel won the contract to extend the main building via a giant ‘bathtub’ design that will open its doors on 23 September 2012.A great work of art in itself, the new façade has been made possible by the engineering expertise of a Japanese company with its roots in Arnhem, the Netherlands. Plastics manufacturer Teijin donated the 6,000km of its patented Twaron high-performance man-made fi bres and 1,500km of Tenax carbon fi bre. By using just the right quantities, there is virtually no contraction or expansion of the composite panel, which would compro-mise the building’s sleek lines. The result is the largest composite building in the world – with little need for joints or welds – and the Stedelijk joins the ranks of world-famous buildings made of unusual materials.www.stedelijk.nl

www.teijinaramid.com

Conceived as an outdoor ‘living room’ for the city’s northernmost borough, this architectural gem was constructed out of three industrial containers and other ma-terials sourced entirely via the online auc-tion site Marktplaats (the Dutch equivalent of eBay). On sunny evenings, you can raise a glass here to Dutch engineering ingenuity and Amsterdam’s community spirit in action.www.hetkomtaltijdgoed.nl

The BankRegeneration succes

Overlooking the city’s bustling Rembrandtplein entertainment area, ABN AMRO’s former headquarters is now home to Starbucks’ European concept store (where you can sample experimental blends fresh from the grinder), award-winning gourmet supermarket Marqt, the offi ces of game develop-ment studio Guerrilla Games (see feature, page 30) and Booking.com, to name but a few.www.thebankamsterdam.nl

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Originally home to a Golden Age tobacco merchant, the new premises of conceptual art institute De Appel have undergone a suitably radical rethink by Amsterdam-based architecture fi rm denieuwegeneratie. Flooded with natural light and with serene views on to the gar-den out back, it’s home to an ever-changing collection of contemporary sound, visual and mixed-media installa-tions from challenging artists the world over.www.deappel.nl

EYE Film InstituteArchitectural gem

Some 30 months after construction began on Amsterdam’s most ambitious public project of recent years, the reincarnated EYE Film Institute – formerly known as the Filmmuseum – opened its sliding doors for the fi rst time in April 2012, in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Beatrix. The all-new building, which dominates the view across the water from behind Central Station, is an architectural marvel that hopes to put Amsterdam’s up-and-coming Noord district on the map as a world-class cultural and creative destination. Designed by Vienna-based fi rm Delugan Meissl Associated Architects – also respon-sible for Stuttgart’s Porsche Museum – the EYE’s pale, angular exterior was apparently inspired by the changing textures of the silver screen. Inside, there are four cinemas showing current releases as well as reper-toire from the Institute’s dazzling archive of 37,000 fi lms; a spectacular café overlook-ing the water; a 1,200m2 exhibition space; and a free-to-access education area on the lower-ground fl oor featuring ‘EYE pod’ screening booths. www.eyefilm.nl

Acting on the belief that we are living in an age of accelerated change, the all-new Amsterdam ‘School of Creative Leadership’ THNK is on a mission to nurture the next generation of creative leaders. Although there are substantial admission fees, they refl ect the calibre of tuition, which is infl uenced largely by the creative leadership thinking of pioneering com-panies such as management consultancy fi rm McKinsey&Company, electronics giant Philips and animation studio Pixar. September 2012 sees the start of the second 18-month THNK programme, which is built around ‘conversations’ rather than ‘lectures’, with the emphasis on learning through col-laboration. Fittingly, the setting for all this industrious thought is amid the imaginatively repurposed buildings of the once-industrial Westergasfabriek culture park.www.thnk.org

THNKSchool of creativity

Originally home to a Golden Age tobacco merchant, the Originally home to a Golden Age tobacco merchant, the new premises of conceptual art institute De Appel have new premises of conceptual art institute De Appel have undergone a suitably radical rethink by Amsterdam-undergone a suitably radical rethink by Amsterdam-based architecture fi rm denieuwegeneratie. Flooded based architecture fi rm denieuwegeneratie. Flooded with natural light and with serene views on to the gar-with natural light and with serene views on to the gar-den out back, it’s home to an ever-changing collection den out back, it’s home to an ever-changing collection of contemporary sound, visual and mixed-media installa-of contemporary sound, visual and mixed-media installa-tions from challenging artists the world over.www.deappel.nl

De Appel

photo:Iwan Baan

Markus Selgphoto:

Cassander Eeftinck

Schattenkerk

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lonG stay

The table is an Italian design, bought from a furniture shop on the corner of Van Baerlestraat.

Carolyn Timson, design director at Tommy Hilfiger Originates from South Yorkshire, UK. In Amsterdam since 2004

‘We collect these Polish animal figurines.’

Coffee machine

‘This was here when we moved in, but it’s not the only one we have. My husband is Italian and coffee is very important to him.’

Internationals photographed in their own homes

Denim Tommy Hilfiger tote bag: ‘Always ridiculously full.’

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Timson’s 11-year-old son, Joseph. Her husband Stefano and four-year-old daughter Camilla were in Italy at the time of our shoot.

‘My daughter’s battery-operated piano, a gift from my sister in England. Luckily, it plays its own pre-recorded tunes!’

‘This is Zac, our pedigree ragdoll cat.’

Dolls’ house: ‘Another gift, this time from the grandparents.’

‘My husband works from home at this iMac, so he can spend time with the kids. He has an online cultural agenda, zero20.nl’

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lonG stay

Book: The Dutch, I Presume by Martijn de Rooi, about the icons of the Netherlands.

Chris Zook, business writer and partner at Bain & Company Originates from Boston, USAIn Amsterdam since 2006

Jip en Janneke and Dutch for Dummies, the books Zook used to learn Dutch.

A vase by Alvar Aalto, bought on a trip to Finland.

Couch from Ikea: ‘We love Ikea.’

Chris’s wife Donna, who is an avid lover of horses, found this horse-

shaped lamp

in the antiques shop next to their house.

Souvenirs Zook collects souvenirs from every country that he visits, like this antique chest from China and painted lacquered box from Russia.

The window bays are decorated with old planks that were exposed during the restoration of this ancient house, in the style of famous Dutch designer Piet Hein Eek.

Chris keeps an English/Dutch dictionary in every room.

Pictures of sons Andrew and Alex, both of whom study in the UK.

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Carolyn Timson, design director at life style über-brand Tommy Hilfiger, on why Amsterdam is the only city she wants to live in.

Forty-year-old Brit Carolyn Timson is a great advocate for the fashion brand whose preppy-chic designs she oversees. From her classic-with-a-twist silk shirt to her summer freckles, Timson personifies the fresh, young Tommy Hilfiger vibe – even in the midst of the Dutch downpour during which we meet. Timson arrived in Amsterdam 12 years into her career as a designer. Having been hired by whimsical fashion label Moschino while in her final year of a fashion degree at London’s Kingston University, she relocated to European fashion capital Milan shortly after graduating. Consultancy positions at Italian powerhouse labels Max Mara and Iceberg eventually led her to Tommy Hilfiger’s Amsterdam headquarters, where European operations were in their infancy. ‘After two years doing freelance design for them, dividing my time between Amsterdam and Milan, I realised I was more here in Amsterdam than there in Milan – even though there was technically home. ‘I really hadn’t ever contemplated living in Amsterdam before,’ she explains. ‘I came and bought my engagement ring here years ago, but that was the only association I had with the city. The more time I spent here, however, the more I realised that Amsterdam is a really warm city to live in – not the weather, perhaps – but it’s very easy to live here, an easy place to move to. There aren’t a lot of culture shocks and it’s very easy to integrate into things quickly.’ So in 2004, Timson and her Italian husband

Stefano Xotta, a web creative, moved to Amsterdam permanently, bringing their young son Joseph (now 11) with them. They’ve never looked back.‘If I had to live in a city, with children, with a family – which I do, for my job – Amsterdam is the only choice. It’s a very human way to live; the scale is good; you don’t feel overwhelmed by the city at all. And also I travel a lot, so the connections are really convenient – for business, but also in terms of getting to see the all-important grandparents in Italy and England.’A year after relocating, the couple bought their rented home in the city’s Oud-Zuid neighbourhood. ‘I went a little bit beyond budget when we rented, but I fell in love with the house immediately, it felt like a perfect family home,’ she says. ‘No other house we saw compared. Luckily, it worked out cheaper to buy the house than to rent it! The process was very straightforward – one of the easiest things that we’ve done.‘The space was really nicely set out already; we just painted and slowly furnished it. It’s more practical than for show, our home… We brought some things from Italy – the sofas, some bookshelves – and have collected things here and there. I don’t quite know how it happened, but it was very empty when we arrived; it definitely isn’t now!’ The arrival of Timson’s daughter Camilla four years ago – born, in the Dutch tradition, at home – adds an extra layer of family history to the house. As for the future, ‘It’s hard to get away now,’ she says. ‘We’re happy here. My husband’s business (online Amsterdam cultural agenda Zero20.nl) is based around the city and well supported by the ICT industry here. I only expected to stay for two years, and that was eight years ago…’ She shrugs, smiling. <

‘A very human way

to live’text Megan Roberts photo Thijs Wolzak

lonG stay

Chris Zook, partner at consultancy firm Bain & Company and best-selling author of business titles such as Profit from the Core, on why he chose Amsterdam as his new home. ‘Amsterdam has everything we need,’ says Zook, as he takes my soaking wet umbrella in the hallway of his 17th-century canal-side home. Lightning, rain and thunder can be heard outside. ‘I even love this real Dutch weather,’ he says, laughing. He must be joking, I think, as I stand dripping on the marble floor, but his wife confirms it. Zook is a partner at consultancy firm Bain & Company, headquartered in Boston, and a ‘business thinker’ by trade. He is ranked among the 50 most influential thinkers in the business world by the London Times. In addition to his consultancy work, Zook shares his business knowledge through his best-selling books, the most recent of which, Repeatability: Build Enduring Businesses for a World of Constant Change, offers guidelines on how businesses can survive – and even grow – in turbulent times. Stick to what you’re good at, says Zook; embed that uniqueness in the entire company; and, above all, keep learning. This three-fold theory applies beyond the realm of business, says Zook: ‘When you consider this philosophy in the context of a city, you can see that Amsterdam pulls it off really well. The city retains its heart and soul, the old centre, while continually moving forward.’ Zook and Robinson bought an impressive period building, engrossed themselves in the history of the house and had it completely

restored. The house had lost its original character, Zook says – ‘just like many a company that doesn’t stick to its roots’. Zook and his wife were integrated into Dutch culture in no time. They swapped their car for bicycles, joined local art and culture boards and became committee members of the English Reformed Church in the Begijnhof. ‘Things are simple in Amsterdam,’ says Zook. ‘You’re soon accepted into the community, thanks to the mentality and openness that prevail here and the ease with which things are done. It’s a breath of fresh air – particularly for people like us, from America, which is saturated in rules, bureaucracy and restrictions. The mere fact that you can cycle here without a helmet gives you a sense of freedom. ‘And you mustn’t forget that the principle of the multinational has its roots here. The Dutch East India Company was one of the first multinationals to operate globally. The Dutch are born traders. And you can’t talk about the Netherlands without mentioning Amsterdam: its capital city, beating heart and a major international tourist attraction. Having said that, after living here for a while it feels more like a big village. Everything you could possibly need is within reach. We bought all our furniture locally: from craftsmen, antique dealers, galleries and bric-a-brac markets.’‘And from Ikea,’ Robinson adds, pointing to the sofa. ‘Do I miss anything specific from back home? I couldn’t really tell you, because I don’t think like that – neither privately, nor in business. Successful businesses don’t operate like that either. Everyone is shaped by their past, their roots and their personality. That’s just how it is. The key, however, is to focus on the future, and our future lies here in Amsterdam for the time being.’ <

‘This city is the birthplace of the multinational company’

text Ivo Weyel photo Herman van Heusden

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Why We Came

Cem Bozkurt, Ceo alvimedica medical technologies‘Our

people love to live here’

Alvimedica Medical Technologies sets up its global brand office in Amsterdam. CEO Cem Bozkurt MD explains why.

text Hans Kops illustration Martyn Overweel

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Cem Bozkurt is an ambitious man at the head of an ambitious company. Within the next three years, Bozkurt intends to grow Alvimedica Medical Technologies into one of the five largest pro-ducers of high-end heart surgery equipment in the world. As such, the Turkish company will be mak-ing an important contribution to increasing the survival chances of perhaps millions of heart patients, says the chief executive officer with obvious pride. But he also secretly hopes that placing Alvi-medica at the forefront of medical science will one day bring the No-bel Peace Prize for Medicine to his native country. ‘That is one of the principal targets of our research and development base,’ he says.

The arrival of Alvimedica in Amsterdam is an important step on the path to achieving these ambitious goals, says Bozkurt in the reception area of the recently opened Alvimedica global marketing office. Located alongside a stately Amsterdam canal, the building literally leans against the official residence of the City Mayor. ‘Amsterdam was a natural choice for us,’ continues Bozkurt. ‘We are growing our presence in the Nether-lands, having launched the Alvimedica Vascular Research Center in Assen last year, in the northeast. Amsterdam and Assen are now among our most important global locations. ‘The research centre has made key contributions to product development, and facilitates the further evolu-tion of the organisation and the expansion of our market position. This is a very complex operation in a global biomedical industry that is evolving rapidly, so we decided to set up a coordination centre for all our marketing and brand activities around the globe. To us, it was only logi-cal that Amsterdam should be at the heart of this. After we decided this, it was easy. The NFIA, the Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency, helped us find a location and within three weeks we could start hiring.’ A GLOBAL PLAYER Alvimedica Medical Technologies has a brief yet event-ful history. In 2006 a number of Turkish investors joined forces, having identified interesting market opportunities in what the medical world calls ‘invasive surgery’ and

Why We Camethe development and production of equip-ment such as stents and catheters used in heart surgery. First they took over the Turkish company Nemad, which specialises in stent technology, and then the American catheter specialists In-Vivo. Headquartered in Istan-bul, Alvimedica has now grown into a global player and has one of the largest and most well-equipped clean rooms and production facilities in the world of medical technology. As a result of this growth, a network of sales outlets has been set up that covers more than 40 countries. But to reach the absolute top of their game, Alvimedica must also organise its research and marketing activities on a global scale and ensure that as much knowledge as possible is passed between the marketers and researchers in each of the countries where it has facili-ties. Or, as CEO Cem Bozkurt explains: ‘As we take our place among the leading com-panies in our field, we take a special pride in investing in our human resources. We have created a team of skilled professionals who work together toward success in five different continents. ‘In this global cluster, Amsterdam and Assen play an important role. Assen is our entry to a specific and highly valued pool of medical-technology knowledge that pre-exists in the nearby academic centre of Groningen. The University of Groningen has faculties and courses that are directly relevant to our research and development programmes, mak-ing it easier for us to recruit highly qualified researchers and other talents. And Amsterdam has a longstanding history as one of Europe’s leading business hubs because of its innova-tive character and its accessibility. The combi-nation is a winning one for us.’

‘As far as our global marketing operations are concerned, Amsterdam is the best place for us to be.’

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Which characteristics of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area attract you most? ‘As far as our global marketing operations are concerned, Amsterdam is the best place for us to be. The city has a strong international orientation and a very well-equipped cluster of service organisations. And naturally, there is the vibrant pace of the city’s business life and its immaculate legacy as a global centre of trade for many years now.’

At first glance it would seem easier to concentrate your business activities in your research centre in Assen. What made you decide otherwise? ‘Our multinational team of experts, scientists and professional business executives use the latest com-munication technologies to synchronise our business processes, marketing operations and research efforts. This gives us the flexibility to make optimal location decisions. A global brand benefits enormously from a business setting with as many different players as there are in Amsterdam. The city has a very stable communi-cation infrastructure, a deep and profound knowledge of global marketing and brand strategies and our

people love to live here. Talent simply flourishes in Amsterdam.’ For global brand management you need internationally oriented people – and such people like to live and work in Amsterdam. Do you agree? ‘Indeed they do. From that per-spective I see a lot of similarities with my hometown of Istanbul. Both cities provide a vivid life-style, the proximity of a diverse business community and a strong social universe. Amsterdam and Istanbul also share a rich and strong business heritage and are business hubs as well as attractive cities to live in. These similarities have already nurtured four cent- uries of prosperous trade relations between our countries.’ The economic possibilities of the trade relations between Turkey and the Netherlands have not yet been fully realised. Do you think Alvi-medica will be the first of many

Turkish companies to invest in this region in the near future? ‘Within the past decade, the Turkish economy has shown a solid growth performance, resil-ient to the turbulence in the global economic system. In line with this positive development, Turkish businesses are showing progress, evolving from the producer, provider and ex-porter identity into truly global organisations. At Alvimedica we benefit from the fact that we are almost a start-up: we have structured our business with an international approach and have been an internationally oriented organisation from the beginning. But many Turkish companies are only now restructuring their international operations and realising that they need anchor points outside of Turkey. I am confident that more and more of them will appreciate the potential of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area. And we are playing our part as voluntary ambassadors for Amsterdam within the Turkish business community.’ You spent part of your childhood in the Neth-erlands, where your father was the first Turkish professor at the University of Wageningen. Did this personal history affect your decision to locate your business here? ‘It was definitely a plus that I have experienced daily life here before and that I already had knowledge of the dynamics of the business and scientific environments in the Nether-lands. However, the decision to invest in the Netherlands was a majority one taken by our board and made on strictly rational arguments. Actually, the discussion on the location for our global brand office was relatively short and easy. For us, there were no real competitors to the attractions of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area.’ <

alvimedica

Alvimedica was founded in 2006 by Turkish businessmen living in Denmark and Sweden to develop innovative products in the field of interventional cardiology. In 2007 Alvimedica purchased the Turkish company Nemed, a manufacturer of coronary stents and PTCA catheters, both used for unblocking arteries. In 2009 Alvimedica bought an American manufacturer of diagnostic and guiding catheters called In-Vivo. Alvimedica is now active in 40 countries worldwide, employing more than 200 people. It has become one of the leading global Turkish brands, with a turnover of $40 million in 2011, and $30 million of exports volume.Alvimedica opened its state-of-the-art R&D centre in Assen, the Netherlands, in 2011. It employs 24 people. This year, Alvimedica expanded its operations in the Netherlands to include a global marketing office, located on Amsterdam’s stately Canal Ring.

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Amsterdam celebrates 400 years of friendship and trade with Turkey

The ties between Turkey and Amsterdam go back cen-turies. The tulip, national symbol of the Netherlands, originated in Turkey. Today Amsterdam is home to almost 40,000 Turkish Amsterdammers, and the business ties between Turkey and Amsterdam are strong. This painting from the Rijksmuseum illustrates the story of four centu-ries of amicable ties. In 1612, ambassador of the Dutch Republic Cornelis Haga was welcomed in Constantinople, capital of the Ottoman Empire, making it the first power to recognise the Neth-erlands – which was revolting against Spanish rule – as an independent country. Sultan Ahmed I granted the Dutch the privilege of trade, at very low tax rates, and the free-dom to set up mercantile houses, thus marking the start of 400 years of friendship and trade. Some 120 years later, in 1731, 19-year-old Amsterdam-

Amsterdammer in lzmir

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mer David George van Lennep decided to try his luck in Turkey. He arrived in Smyrna, known today as Izmir and located on the country’s west coast, which was one of the most important trading cities of the Ottoman Empire. There was already a community of Dutch tradespeople in the city, and Van Lennep started out working for an ac-quaintance. In 1737 he began operating as an independ-ent merchant, exporting silk and mohair from the Turkish hinterland, and figs and citrus fruit from the islands in the Aegean Sea. In 1758 – at the age of 45 – Van Lennep married 20-year-old Anna Maria Leidstar, a Dutch woman born and bred in Constantinople, where her family ran a mercantile house. The couple had 13 children, who in turn each made good marriages. One traveller referred to David van Lennep as ‘the uncrowned king of the Dutch community in Smyrna’. Van Lennep’s house, which boasted large galleries with

stunning views of the bay, was the heart of high society in the city. The family also had a 27-room country house and an estate that included a tobacco plantation.In around 1770, David van Lennep commissioned Swiss artist Antoine de Favray to paint his family. The portrait now hangs in the Rijksmuseum and depicts his seven eldest children, with their teacher in the corner to the far right, and Grandpa Leidstar to the left dressed in tradi-tional Turkish clothing. Anna Maria and her eldest daugh-ter are also in traditional Turkish dress, and on the floor is a Turkish carpet. The baby being held by its mother is Jacob van Lennep, who later took over the reins of his father’s trading house and went on to become the Dutch consul in Smyrna and, in 1826, agent of the new Nether-lands Trading Society. The Van Lenneps continued to live in Izmir into the 20th century, yet their ties with Amsterdam have endured to this day.

Amsterdammer in lzmir

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‘This city has always

been open and

neutral’

The Hub

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‘This city has always

been open and

neutral’

netWorks

Beneath the streets of this old city lies one of the most modern fibre-optics networks in the world. This, combined with the presence of an innovative community of ICT entrepreneurs, makes it the ideal place for ICT businesses to set up shop.text Hans Kops & Mark Smith photography Henk Wildschut

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dennis Gada, Client partner, infosys‘My role at Infosys means acting as country rep for the Netherlands. That means managing our fi nances and operations here. Having come to Amsterdam from India seven years ago, I’ve seen our head count grow to more than 500 people and we’re still expanding. I fi nd Amsterdam to be a very encouraging business environment, particularly in the fi eld of ICT. Everything here dovetails with our organisation’s goal of providing consulting solutions that create better business value for everyone. And the Netherlands is a very adaptive community in terms of online banking, social media and so on. Emerging business models are always at the forefront of everyone’s mind.From a personal perspective, I think Amsterdam is very expat friendly. I travel a lot for my role, so having a world-class airport on my doorstep is a huge bonus. The City has also set up an unparalleled Expatcenter, which eases the transition for all of our new hires.’ (photo page 25)

‘THE EPICENTRE OF ALL THINgS INTERACTIvE’ Last year, American online marketing company Reach- Local established its European head offi ce and service centre in Amsterdam’s World Trade Center. The global market leader in the sector for smaller and medium-sized organisations, ReachLocal wants to expand its European activities.Why did they choose Amsterdam as a base? ReachLocal needs an environment that is at the forefront of digital innovation. Here, the company’s consultants can rely on a network of partners that is ahead of the curve in the use of social media, gaming technology and other interactive marketing instruments.‘Amsterdam has it all,’ according to ReachLocal Netherlands’ Country Director Dirk Bavelaar. ‘It’s all about interactivity nowadays, and Amsterdam is Europe’s epicentre of all things interactive. In terms of digital accessibility and stability, the Metropolitan Area is one of the best places in the world and boasts a multifac-eted ICT industry.’

ICT HUBThe Amsterdam Metropolitan Area is an increasingly important centre for ICT, ranking fi fth among the world’s most attractive locations for companies in the information and communication technology industry to set up shop. The city’s ICT cluster is now estimated to include around 20,000 companies. Last year, they made €9 billion and employed just under 100,000 people. The cluster is supported by a rich network of knowledge and research institutes, and it increas-ingly attracts businesses for which ICT is a technology that drives innovation and which therefore want to be located close to the source. These include creative companies in the fi elds of marketing, communication, advertising and design, as well as video-games developers and, for example, the world’s largest producer of navigation software, TomTom.Unsurprisingly, local government considers the ICT indus-try to be the region’s most important growth engine. As the Economic Development Board (the region’s economic think tank for local government) states: ‘Developing the ICT clus-ter is essential to our future growth and competitive strength. It’s an increasingly important location factor for new busi-nesses and serves to stimulate new enterprise.‘These days, ICT is expected to produce a solution for just about every major problem of a modern society, such as managing the care of an aging global population; ensuring that big cities can accommodate two thirds of the global population and still be pleasant places to live; improving access to education; creating a safer world and making society more sustainable. ICT is only really at the beginning of its development. We intend to facilitate the industry as much as possible so that all of these ambitions – and more – can be achieved here.’

netWorks

‘It’s all about interactivity nowadays, and Amsterdam is Europe’s epicentre of all things interactive.’ (Dirk Bavelaar, Netherlands Country Director at ReachLocal)

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Guerrilla Games offi ces;The Hub offi ce;

Dennis Gada, Infosys

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SOLID DEvELOPMENT PLATFORM Amsterdam and the surrounding area now have a solid platform for continued development as well. First and foremost, the region enjoys a strong and widely accessible infrastructure. The network density of ultra-fast broadband connections is one of the highest in the world. The city is also home to the Amsterdam Internet Exchange (AMS-IX), which with 500 members is one of the most important internet exchanges in the world. Ranking second to none as an internet hub, at the end of last year traffic on AMS-IX reached a milestone of 300,000 terabytes. The presence of AMS-IX makes Amsterdam the pre-ferred location for companies large and small that gener-ate large quantities of internet traffic. It has also resulted in the Metropolitan Area developing into a European centre for high-quality data analysis and storage, with a striking number of international data centres having already been established in Almere. Terremark, a subsidi-ary of the American telecom giant Verizon, opened a data centre at Schiphol in June 2010 that not only meets the highest requirements with regard to sustainability, but – thanks to its capacity – has also become one of AMS-IX’s most valuable partners.There is another reason why the ICT industry in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area is growing at its current accelerated rate: the rapid development of cloud comput-ing. More and more software and vital data is being hosted in the cloud, which makes the location of those hosting servers an increasingly important consideration. Compa-nies such as Terremark look for locations that enjoy mini-mal security and political risks and that boast favourable tax conditions. The Amsterdam Metropolitan Area is one step ahead of its competitors in that regard too.

‘Amsterdam has always been open and neutral.’ (Cara Mascini, Chief Marketing Officer at AMS-IX internet exchange)

netWorks

Cara mascini, Chief marketing officer, ams-iX‘Operating since 1994, our exchange connects parties as diverse as local internet service providers through to the large telecoms companies. I think it’s testament to Amsterdam’s forward-thinking nature that we were established so early, originally as a way for the city’s academic community to keep in touch with their cronies in other world centres for technology, like Chicago.Amsterdam has always been open and neutral; these are the values that have made it possible for us to connect so many of the players in the ICT community. It’s an attractive place to do business, because it’s very dense. There’s a level of competition and choice here that drives down costs, but always through innovation.Although we’re a relatively niche operation made up of 40 people, our employees come from all over the world, and we’re very proud of that diversity. At the last count, we have 17 different nationalities at AMS-IX. That makes for a tremendously vibrant working environment, and I look forward to the 18th!’ (photo page 28)

% traffic handled by top 10 European internet nodes

City PercentageAmsterdam (Netherlands) 24%Frankfurt (Germany) 23.2%London (United Kingdom) 14.8%Moscow (Russia) 5.9%Kiev (Ukraine) 3.6%Stockholm (Sweden) 3%Prague (Czech Republic) 2.9%Paris (France) 2.8%Budapest (Hungary) 2.7%Madrid (Spain) 2.5% (Source: The Boston Consulting Group, 2011)

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Guerrilla Games motion capture

actor Jermaine Martis

Clockwise from top left:Cara Mascini, AMS-IX; The Hub

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A gLOBAL vILLAgEAmsterdam is often described as a global city that’s as easy as your home town – the ultimate global village. The most important attraction of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area for international ICT companies is that despite having the infrastructure and service levels of a global city, it has man-aged to remain navigable, accessible and pleasant to live and work in. These qualities have resulted in a high degree of so-cietal interaction and fl exibility: parties that wouldn’t perhaps otherwise come into contact fi nd each other more easily in a metropolitan area where any part of the city can be reached within an hour. And the walls between the various industries seem less high: according to the Economic Development Board, what sets this region apart are the many connections that exist between ICT and other industries – particularly the creative sector. This yields new products and services, and unique joint ventures.The interaction between these industries is not left to chance. The City of Amsterdam and the ICT industry develop many initiatives together that promote the transfer of knowledge within the ICT ecosystem and challenge participants to look beyond the borders of their own sector. Successful examples include accelerators such as Rockstart and Startupbootcamp, which guide start-up companies through their problematic launch and start-up phases and put them in touch with potential fi nancial backers. The theory is that the success of ICT is increasingly dependent on the creativity and entre-preneurial spirit of individuals. After all, the most important innovations of recent decades have been devised by people

John singh, solicitor and Co-founder of the indian expat society‘Having been born in the Netherlands, I’m not an expat myself, but I quickly became aware of the importance of Indian knowledge migrants to the ICT industry and the innovation that thrives here, so I wanted to play a part. That’s what led me to co-found the Indian Expat Society here. Our expansion has gone hand-in-hand with the rise of a thriving tech-focused Indian community in Amsterdam and beyond. We currently have some 1,500 members.Our aim is to make Indians feel at home in the Netherlands. Given that it’s so easy to conduct one’s business and social life in English here, you might think that’s no great challenge. But there are, of course, cultural differences, and our aim is to make people feel at home from the get-go.There’s a plethora of social events, most of which are focused on the area of Amstelveen, a short bike ride from the city centre. Of course, there’s an annual Diwali festival, but we also direct members towards services like online grocery stores (for example, www.spicestore.nl) where they can obtain authentic foodstuffs.’

Top 10 European cities’ internet connection speeds

City Average MBPSAmsterdam (Netherlands) 9.5Riga (Latvia) 8.7Geneva (Switzerland) 8.3Zurich (Switzerland) 7.9Dublin (Ireland) 7.9Brno (Czech Republic) 7.9Kyyiv (Ukraine) 7.7Ceska (Czech Republic) 7.5Valencia (Spain) 7.3Timisoara (Romania) 7.2(Source: State of the Internet, Akama, Q4 2011)

The Amsterdam Metropolitan Area is also an established testing ground for new technology and applications. The Economist Intelligence Unit, an accepted authority, be-lieves that consumers and organisations embrace innova-tions more quickly in the Netherlands than anywhere else in the world. This is part of the reason why major ICT players such as IBM and Cisco base their activities in Am-sterdam and its surrounding areas, and why innovations and new services are tested here fi rst.

netWorks

‘The City has set up an unparalleled Expatcenter, which eases the transition for all of our new hires.’ (Dennis Gada, Client Partner at Infosys)

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‘Amsterdam has a really independent mind set – it’s a place where for centuries people haven’t been scared to innovate.’ (Hermen Hulst, Managing Director & Co-Founder of Guerrilla Games)

netWorks

hermen hulst, managing director & Co-founder, Guerrilla Games ‘For me, being based in Amsterdam represents a European lifestyle in a context where it’s possible to maintain a North American-style work ethic. When I worked in Silicon Valley, I was impressed by the level of commitment and dedication that developers there have towards their output. Now I see that dedication on our creative shop floor too. Amsterdam has a really independent mind set – it’s a place where for centuries people haven’t been scared to innovate. Newcomers are inspired by that spirit of independent thinking. I think it’s what drove me and my friends to set up Guerrilla Games in the first place.We have some 26 nationalities working here in our Amsterdam office. As an employer, I find it easy to attract people from overseas because people are attracted by the quality of life. Take my commute to work; a ten-minute walk along the canals, dropping my kids off at school on the way!’ (photo page 31)

mike lee, mayor & founder, appsterdam‘As a former Apple employee, I knew full well that while you can work on tech projects from a laptop anywhere, there’s a huge advantage to gathering like-minded people in one place. Any idea that you have can be enriched by bouncing it off others. Instead of returning to the Valley for another tour of duty, I decided to set out on a year-long world tour to find the place in the world that could offer app developers the best quality of life for the least personal expenditure. Amsterdam was a straightforward consumer decision in that regard: it was immediately apparent to me that this city has the happiest people on Earth, with all the cultural advantages of a place like New York or London, but with very few of the disadvantages. Appsterdam is a non-profit organisation that runs monthly events giving app developers a chance to network and share great ideas. We help app makers understand and practice community values, such as craftsmanship, quality, diversity, cooperation and professionalism. Practically, that means hosting weekly lectures and meet-ups, game days and trips to local attractions. Other world cities have tried to kick-start a tech industry using purely financial incentives; with Appsterdam the city is the incentive, and everything else flows from the joy of living here.’

with brilliant ideas working from their student dorm rooms. COLLABORATIvE BREEDINg gROUNDS By bringing together development teams from different dis-ciplines, ICT professionals and video-game and app devel-opers are encouraged to look at a problem or at the market from a different perspective. One result is that Amsterdam is developing into a centre for serious gaming: techniques garnered from the leisure gaming sector are used as an engaging way of helping surgeons and pilots, for example, learn new skills and perfect existing ones. Two main events in Amsterdam in this field are the brand new Got Game Conference (20-21 August), bringing together high-level industry professionals with novices and students, and Unite, the yearly event for developers and publishers working with the Unity 3D platform, on 21-22 August. At the Living Labs project space, people from different disciplines meet to develop user-driven, practical and experimental solutions for modern-day problems. In the Health-Lab, for example, uses and service providers come together to give health care innovations a better chance to break through. Another fast-growing collaborative knowledge network is Appsterdam, which invites app developers to choose Am-sterdam as a springboard, and – on a more general level – collaborative communities like The Hub Amsterdam, which is at once an innovation lab and business incubator. All these initiatives contribute to the vitality of the ICT industry in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area by linking technological innovations with creativity, and making them accessible to as many people as possible. <

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Hermen Hulst, Guerrilla Games

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City sCrapBook

1 ‘This is a Christmas card from an illustrator friend, Felicia. She joked that I’m the one of the left!’

2 & 12 ‘I love the Amsterdam art scene, from grand old institutions like the Rijksmuseum to the edgy FOAM photography gallery. So inspiring.’

3 ‘My signature motif. The room keys at my B&B come on one of these.’

4 Ulrika also runs a guesthouse called Maison Rika. This is her welcome card in pink envelope. ‘I want my guests to feel like they’re living the life of an Amsterdam local.’

5 ‘One of the great advantages of living in the Netherlands is the availability of beautiful flowers.’

6 ‘Amsterdam is really learning to love the French fancy.’

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ulrika lundgrenThe Swedish owner and designer of fashion label Rika allows a peek inside her glamorous Amsterdam life

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7 ‘The staff at Small World Catering are always charming and jovial.’

8 ‘I sell these in my store. The A is for Amsterdam, of course.’

9 ‘This place is a cavernous cinema-turned-restaurant serving Italian classics by candlelight.’

10 ‘This Essie brand nail polish reminds me of Delft blue pottery!’

11 ‘This is me with Bart de Groot, a fellow Scandinavian who runs the Acne store a few doors down from me.’

13 ‘From my Rika Boutique. My atelier is upstairs, so I’m regularly on hand for advice.’

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‘My two boys love living in Amsterdam. Here’s my son Luca at the store, before going off to his horseriding lesson at De Hollandsche Manege stables.’

Originally a fashion and interiors stylist for prestigious publications such as Casa Vogue and ELLE Decoration, Ulrika ‘Rika’ Lundgren moved to Amsterdam from her native Sweden 12 years ago, attracted by the city’s inspiring beauty and the high quality of life she foresees for her children, Fexix (16) and Luca (9).

A photo shoot that she was styling took Lundgren to the Spanish island of Menorca in 2005, where she had a local craftsman make her a bag to use as a prop on set: a leather tote adorned with Rika’s now-trademark star motif: ‘A star reminds me of Hollywood as well as rock ’n’ roll,’ says Lundgren of the much-copied aesthetic. After countless compliments and requests from fellow stylists and fashion-world friends, Lundgren commissioned another 100 bags and the ‘Rika’ label was born. Nowadays, her capsule collection of chemical-free leather and canvas bags, chic leather dresses and colourful brogues is available to buy from the ‘Rika Boutique’ store that bears her nickname in the postcard-perfect Nine Streets area of Amsterdam. Her designs are beloved of fashion trendsetters such as supermodel Kate Moss and Hollywood actress Kirsten Dunst. Speaking of Hollywood, Lundgren is something of what that town might refer to as a ‘triple threat’, having already expanded

her Amsterdam-born brand into the world of publishing (the last issue of her high-style Rika Magazine featured contributions from supermodel-turned-photographer Helena Christensen) and, most recently, hospitality. Situated literally across the street from her design atelier and boutique, Maison Rika is a two-room luxury B&B overlooking one of the most picturesque stretches of the Herengracht canal. From the framed butterflies on the walls to the star-shaped key rings, everything in Maison Rika is the embodiment of the designer’s chic aesthetic, described by her right-hand man Jean-Sébastien (a former model, of course) as ‘bohemian rock star’. Lundgren, who lives near the Noordermarkt in the Jordaan district, says that she wants guests to ‘really live the life of an Amsterdammer while they’re staying at Maison Rika’. Hence, guests receive the designer’s personal restaurant and retail recommendations, updated and left on their bedside table: ‘My favourite thing about Amsterdam is that there is a real culture of specialists: if you want tremendous meat, there’s a butcher for that, rather than some anonymous chain store. It’s a town full of people doing the thing that they’re great at.’ Having joined their ranks, Lundgren, it seems, is going to stick around…<

text Mark Smith

‘Amsterdam is a town full

of people doing the thing

that they’re great at’

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pho

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ark

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Russell Shorto

Can a city have a soul? Nobody can answer such a question, but I believe it’s possible to identify what makes some cities successful. For Amster-dam, it starts with water. Imagine yourself as one of the settlers who migrated to an inhospitable corner of northern Europe in about the year 1100. You manage to gain a foothold in a harsh, windswept environment. You grow rye for bread and catch carp in the marshy inlets; you build a home. And then, after winter passes, you fi nd that the shore is remade: your home, the land you thought you knew, is gone.

So came the idea to defend against the sea. With superhuman effort, dykes and dams were built. New land came into existence from out of the sea: polders. But the sea was inexorable, so those origi-nal settlers kept working. They carved canals into their landscape. Thus they turned the problem of water into an advantage: the canals became high-ways. Homes went up along them. A great dam was built near the mouth of the Amstel River: the Amstel dam. Now the settlement had a name. Such work could not be done by individuals. It required tremendous cooperation. Thus was born the famous consensual society of the Low Countries. Where elsewhere in Europe feudal-ism held sway, with power fl owing from King or Pope down to Lords and Bishops and eventually to commoners, here the land was owned by the community that had made it. The twist is that this communal society also became Europe’s most individualistic society. Because those same people did not feel they owed fealty to King and Church, they became their own masters. Where property elsewhere was owned by the Church or State, here it was bought and sold by individuals. Ordinary people had a degree of control over their lives that would have been impossible elsewhere. Thus the great paradox of Amsterdam: a communal culture giving rise to an individualistic culture. That little progression – water, communalism,

individualism – explains everything that would come in the city. The rise of a ship-building industry, of a global exploration industry, comes out of that progression. A complex corporation, the Dutch East India Company, was the result of an unprecedented level of cooperation among individuals. The world’s fi rst stock exchange came into being in Amsterdam as a way to trade stocks in that company, and later in everything else. It too was a product of that paradox of communal-ism and individualism, for the individual risk and hope for gain inherent in a stock market rests on a communal sense of security. Art in Amsterdam broke away from the Catholic Church around the same time, and became art by and for and about people. Rembrandt didn’t paint for churches but for individuals. Hundreds of other artists painted portraits of Amsterdam-mers and scenes of real people in their homes. Ordinary people bought them, and hung them in their homes. Tolerance is a much misunderstood word. Am-sterdam pioneered it. The city had hundreds of thousands of immigrants, and while intolerance of others was offi cial policy in other parts of Europe, Amsterdam realised that a mixed society was part of its success: tolerance was good for business.

Jump ahead to the 20th century. In the 1960s, the city had its white bicycle movement: free bikes! They got stolen, but the idea was to promote both communalism and individualism. The Dutch word gedogen means, essentially, tolerating something that is illegal but that doesn’t harm anyone. In the 1500s, it applied to the treat-ment of Lutherans, whom the Catholic Church didn’t like, but whom Amsterdammers didn’t want to persecute. In the 1990s and beyond, it applied to prostitution and soft drugs. Those issues are currently being debated. But the debate too is part of the city’s history. Consensus and individualism don’t coexist calmly. The waters that made Amsterdam are constantly churning. <

The DNA of A’dam

The soul of the city

Russell Shorto (1959) is an American author, historian and journalist, best known for his book on the Dutch origins of New York City, The Island at the Center of the World. He is a contributing writer for the New York Times Magazine and is the director of The John Adams Institute in Amsterdam, where he has lived since November 2007. In 2009, Russell received a Dutch knighthood in the Order of Orange-Nassau.photo Robin de Puyillustration Jessica Hagy

Amsterdam‘situations’

IMAGES

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By choosing a single location, photograph-ing it repeatedly over a period of time and then hand selecting people to feature in the final composition, Lars van den Brink cre-ates a kind of staged documentary photo-graph – a process that takes an entire day per photo. His pictures present a day in the life of a location condensed into a single,

apparently fleeting moment. Lars has contributed to Dutch newspapers NRC Handelsblad and Volkskrant and KLM’s Holland Herald magazine, as well as several government ministries. These images of Amsterdam were photographed exclusively for AMS in the summer of 2012.www.larsvandenbrink.nl

Life, condensed

Station Amsterdam Zuid/WTC, Zuidas area

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Torensluis, city centre

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Fun Forest, Amsterdamse Bos

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PICNICInspired by California’s Silicon Valley, this annual festival of cross-media content and technology was established in 2006 with the intention of establishing Amsterdam as a comparable hub of creativity and innovation. Now in its seventh year, the event incorporates workshops, demos and high-profi le speakers including the likes of English entrepreneur and chairman of the Virgin Group Sir Richard Branson. This year’s theme is ‘New Ownership: the shift from top down to bottom up’.www.picnicnetwork.org

Inspired by California’s Silicon Valley, this annual festival of cross-media content and technology was established in 2006 with the intention of establishing Amsterdam as a comparable hub of creativity and innovation. Now in its seventh year, the event incorporates workshops, demos and high-profi le speakers including the likes of English entrepreneur and chairman of the Virgin Group Sir Richard Branson. This year’s theme is ‘New Ownership: the shift

Art in Redlight

An extraordinary art fair featuring contemporary art, photography and jewellery, brought together in a museum-like presentation in the beautiful gothic Oude Kerk (Old Church) in the middle of Amsterdam’s Red Light District. Since 2005, Art in Redlight has been an important forerunner in the city’s aim to diversify Amsterdam’s oldest neighbourhood. Today, this is also done through projects like Redlight Fashion and Redlight Radio. With an international line-up of established as well as up-and-coming artists, AIR8 (the eighth edition) is a cultural ‘must see’ for September.www.artinredlight.com

CinekidFrom the childhood classics of yesteryear through the pioneering technological techniques of tomorrow, Cinekid celebrates and screens the best of youth-oriented media. Meanwhile, Cinekid for Professionals is a four-day industry programme aimed at international professionals working within the fi eld of youth media. The event brings together broadcasters, distributors, directors, academics and journalists for the opportunity to network with the sector’s leading players.www.cinekid.nl

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Steve Johnson

text Mark Smith

The Great Bear, Esben Toft Jacobsen

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Museum Night

Amsterdam Dance Event

Featuring more than 800 global artists performing in some 60 clubs across Amsterdam, ADE has grown into the world’s biggest club festival for electronic music connoisseurs. Its parallel conference programme also makes it an invaluable resource for the nightlife industry, giving a taste of the trends likely to migrate to dance fl oors the world over.www.amsterdam-dance-event.nl

Amsterdam Dance Event

Featuring more than 800 global artists performing in some 60 clubs across Amsterdam, ADE has grown into the world’s biggest club festival for electronic music connoisseurs. Its parallel conference programme

Stars, Food & Art

A chance to see an array of Amsterdam’s museums and cultural institutions in a completely new light, when they open their doors late into the night for a host of special events, performances and presentations, many with an anarchic edge. One passe-partout ticket grants you access to all the action.

www.n8.nl

IDFAThe world’s biggest and most dynamic doc-umentary fi lm festival takes over cinemas and other venues in the heart of Amster-dam, bringing new perspectives on hot top-ics and sparking intelligent debate. All fi lms are subtitled in English, which is great news for expats and fi lm industry delegates alike.www.idfa.nl

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An extravagant dining concept that’s spread from Amsterdam to Germany, France and the United Arab Emirates, Stars, Food & Art sees a new host of international culinary superstars descend on the city’s Sofi tel Legend The Grand hotel for two evenings of sumptuous dining and elegant entertainment. This year’s chefs include South Africa’s ‘Best Chef’ of 2011, David Higgs, and Atul Kochhar, who’s been credited with reinventing Asian cuisine in the UK. Corporate tables are available.www.starsfoodart.com

W139

Another Life,Alexandre

Dereims

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Arguably more Dubai than Amsterdam RAI (the enormous convention centre where this event is held), Amsterdam’s annual ‘millionaire fair’ is a festival of conspicuous consumption, with stands selling everything from private jets to jewellery. Last year, supermodel Elle Macpherson presided over the proceedings.www.lxrymasters.nl

Sinterklaas

Not to be confused with Christmas celebrations later in the month, Sinterklaas is a tradition of the Low Countries. After days of festive preparation in schools and homes, gifts are deposited in shoes tonight by all-seeing ‘Sint’ – providing kids have behaved themselves.

This two-day industry networking event brings together conference and meeting planners from around the world with the Amsterdam hospitality industry, showcasing all that the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area has to offer the meetings, incentives, conferences and events industry.www.atcb.nl

MICExperience

LxryMasters

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Concertgebouw anniversary

2013 marks the 125th anniversary of Amsterdam’s stately Concertgebouw (concert hall) and its world-renowned orchestra. Celebrations begin in Amsterdam in January and include the world premiere performance of a specially-commissioned composition by New York Philharmonic composer-in-residence Magnus Lindberg; The Concertgebouw Dinner, featuring the presentation of the prestigious ‘Concertgebouw Prize’ and ‘Young Talent Award’; and a season of special celebratory concerts complementing the building’s rich history.www.concertgebouw.nl

Nieuwmarkt, the square dominated by the imposing medieval building De Waag, and the Zeedijk, the long street running the length of Amsterdam’s Old Town, represent the focus of celebrations commemorating the transition into the lunar new year in Amsterdam. Chinese restaurants in the area stay open for special celebration meals, and there are usually traditional lion and dragon dances and spectacular fi reworks around this mini Chinatown.

Chinese New Year

Amsterdam Fashion WeekTaking over the Westergasfabriek culture park to the north-west of the city, this packed schedule of fashion shows and parties sees home-grown talent and guest exhibitors from all over the world showcasing their vision of next season’s hot looks. The Green Fashion Competition, as fronted by Dutch supermodel Lonneke Engel, is a government-funded initiative to give a leg-up to the sustainable fashion stars of tomorrow.www.aifw.nl

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An extraordinary industrious folk

ThE offIcE

Zaanstad used to be called ‘the larder of Amsterdam’. The city is going through an ecnomic revival. In its brand new City Hall, Mayor Geke Faber explains why.text Bart van Oosterhout photography Thijs Wolzak

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Tell us about the building you work in, City Hall, designed by architect Sjoerd Soeters and built in the shape of a row of traditional Zaanstad houses. It’s quite an architectural feat, but what is it like to work here?‘We love working in such a unique envi-ronment. We’re right in the middle of the vibrant centre – quite literally on top of the bus station and right beside the railway. That vibrancy is also refl ected inside the building. The different interiors and fl exible layout mean that teams can meet in different con-fi gurations each time. We have lots of meet-ings, and we can respond quickly to changes. The atmosphere in this building fi lls you with energy.’

Zaanstad is a collection of seven smaller towns. Is there an advantage to this?‘Yes: it has many different facets. We’re a proper city, with all the facilities you’d expect, but at the same time we have seven communi-ties that have all kept their own identities and that give residents the feeling they live in a rural village setting. And Amsterdam and the coastal area are very close.’

The residents of the Zaanstreek seem to be an ex-traordinary industrious folk. Is it in their genes?‘Oh yes, and there are plenty of examples to

prove it. Between 1661 and 1794, for ex-ample, many residents of the Zaanstreek set sail for the Arctic Ocean to go whaling. That enterprising spirit and desire for innovation is still very evident today. Just look at how mon-umental buildings and disused industrial sites are being redeveloped, like the old Verkade chocolate factory or the empty Bruynzeel halls, which are currently the subject of dis-cussions with IKEA. Or the Hembrug site, at the point where the River Zaan and the North Sea Canal meet, which is slightly more tucked away. Covering around 12 acres, the site houses numerous monumental buildings and is surrounded by woodland. This is a unique location for enterprise in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area.’

What does Zaanstad have to offer international companies today?‘First and foremost, a solid economic basis, with companies that can benefi t each other and share knowledge. We have a large logistics sector: much of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area’s goods transportation is operated from here. Zaanstad also enjoys a very attractive lo-cation, just a stone’s throw from Amsterdam, from Schiphol Airport and from the sea ports of Amsterdam, which form an international logistics hub. Together with the neighbouring industrial sites here and in Amsterdam and with the food industry in Zaanstad, we are a very important production area.’

What is the advantage of being so close toAmsterdam?‘We complement each other well. Look at the Zaan-IJ Project, for example, where we’re developing a single connected urban area along our riverbanks, for a potential of 30,000 homes and 40,000 jobs. There’s a lot of room for enterprise, both literally and fi guratively, in an environment of creativity and innova-tion and – last but not least – at very competitive rates.’ <

Europe’s fi rst industrial regionZaanstad was the birthplace of some of the most prominent Dutch multinationals – most notably in the food industry – including supermarket chain Albert Heijn (now part of Ahold, with its main offi ce in Amsterdam) and the Verkade chocolate company, dating back to the 19th century. Why did they settle here?In the 17th century the Amsterdam craft guilds opposed the construction of windmills, which in those days were at the forefront of industrial innovation. By contrast, businesses in the Zaanstreek were given all the space they needed for them, and in no time more than a thousand windmills had been built, making the Zaanstreek the oldest industrial area in Western Europe. Wood was sawn and sails and ropes were made in these mills and ships were built in the nearby docks, which enterprising tradesmen (mainly from Amsterdam) set sail in across the seas. The goods they brought back from their voyages – mustard, cocoa, wood, paint and paper – were processed here too. This laid the foundation for rapid industrialisation in the 19th century along the River Zaan. Zaandam came to be nicknamed ‘the larder of the Netherlands’.

‘There’s a lot of room for enterprise, both literally and fi guratively, in an environment of creativity and innovation’

ThE offIcE

The Zaanstreek is the oldest industrial region in Europe. And although it’s the windmills that attract the majority of tourists nowadays, the area remains a prime business location. Mayor Geke Faber explains why.

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Michael crimp, cEo, IBc

IT STArTEd In AMSTErdAM

Switchon

IBC has been coming to Amsterdam for 20 years. Ahead of the 2012 event, CEO Michael Crimp discusses TV, Twitter, and why he never wants to ride a bike here again.text Matt Farquharson photography Chris Gloag/HH

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‘We cover every aspect of the creation, man-agement and delivery of elec-tronic media and entertainment’

IT STArTEd In AMSTErdAM

a lot of the applications have diverged, and so it’s a very different map to work out. All you can say is that it is very dynamic, there is nothing mature about it, and there is lots of excitement and innova-tion around all these things that makes IBC an exciting place to come. Technology has changed an awful lot in business over the years, and broadcasting is at the core of it. When you consider what we call “appointment TV” – the Olympic Games, X Factor – these are still a big family occasion. But there is more interaction, and the new devices that you see – Twitter addresses coming up in the middle of the screen – are adding a richer seam and social content.’ What is new at IBC this year?‘We try to push the boundaries, and have done a lot with 3D over last few years and super-high definition – amaz-ing screens, 16 times the resolution of HD TV and quite incredible to see. We have an area called the Future Zone that is coming together now [July 2012], and we’re currently scouring research institutes from America, Japan, the UK and Europe to find things that are truly innovative. Last year, we had an exhibit where you put on gloves, headphones and glasses, and picked up a vase. You felt a vase; you scratched it and it made a noise. You had all the sensations – even opening the lid and being able to smell inside – but it wasn’t there. That is the kind of thing we try to present. That’s not a commercial thing – that’s just some-thing to create innovation and thought leadership.’ How can you make sure you reach the right audience?‘We have a culture of innovating and trying things all the time. So this year will be the second year of our Leaders’ Summit, where we invite 100 top CEOs from Europe to come and debate strategic issues. At the other end, it’s the first year of our Rising Stars programme, where we’re inviting people fresh out of university and just starting in the industry to come together and learn.’ What has kept you coming back to Amsterdam for 20 years?‘The initial attractions are still there. It is a very open and multicultural city; it has got fantastic international connections. The language of our business, and one that is spoken very widely and very well in Amsterdam, is English. The RAI is a well-positioned facility with a good team of people, and the City is working hard to understand that we’ve got a long-term sustainable business and we want long-term relationships.’

Can you explain what IBC does?‘IBC is a partnership of six in-dustry bodies that represent the visitors to the convention and the exhibitors. Most of them are chari-ties – organisations such as the Royal Television Society. It’s part of our ethos that we’re organised by the industry, for the industry. The two main elements are the huge exhibition that this year will cover 14 halls – the RAI are build-ing two extra ones for us – and a six-day conference that covers current and future technological, business and creative issues.’ IBC covers all aspects of broadcast-

ing: content creation, technology, the commercial side…‘It’s a lot wider than broadcasting these days – it covers every aspect of the creation, management and delivery of news and entertainment content on all forms of electronic media. The simple way to look at it is that you have four screens – a mobile device, a computer screen, a TV screen and a cinema screen. But all of these are capable of receiving rich and interactive content. Our job is to make sense of how those devices can be used to receive rich entertainment and news media.’ Media has changed dramatically. How has IBC adapted?‘About ten years ago, IBC was a terrestrial broadcasting event – that’s where someone transmitted and you received things through your aerial. Your choices were to turn off or turn over: broadcasting was not interactive in any way. Core broadcasting is still very important, but it’s different now. People can consume media in many ways, and among the younger generation – I watch my son do it all the time – on several screens at once. So electronic media is much wider.’

How do you see broadcasting and IBC changing in the future?‘Technology has become an enabler. These different screens – mobile, computer, TV, cinema – have converged,

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IT STArTEd In AMSTErdAM

Amsterdam and Hilversum are a huge hub for the interna-tional broadcasting industry. How important is that for IBC?‘What we look for is the best event base. People come from over 160 countries, so for us it’s about having the hub that can provide the best venue, the best support, the best facilities, and Amsterdam has always managed to provide that. Amsterdam is a fantastic city. It’s like a big village, it’s got a fantastic atmosphere.Our heart is in Amsterdam, we’ve been there for 20 years this year, and we’ve got good relationships. It is important that we keep our business head in alignment, and that just requires an open conversation, which is very easy to have in Amsterdam.’ How important is it to be able to work with a host city?‘There are 750,000 people in Amsterdam, and we inject another 50,000 to it in three days. That can’t come as a surprise. There has to be a lot of planning and forward negotiations. You cannot have 1,000 extra people an hour coming out of Central Station and getting on the number four tram. You have to have so many more trams and buses and free passes and everything or the place will come to a halt. We spend tens of millions of euros in that one week, so it’s important for an economic reason, but it’s important that the Amsterdammers and IBC feel part of it. But we’ve grown up together – when we first came to Am-sterdam, attendance was 8-10,000; now it is over 50,000.’ Do you get much free time when you are here?‘I make free time. It’s not really free, because you’re on duty all the time, but once the show is over at 6pm, every night in the RAI and in the city there are social occasions, many of them formal, some of them less so. Everyone who comes to IBC – we’re not the sort of people who sit in the hotel, we’re out connecting with our stakeholders and meeting new people. It’s a part of the ethos of the entertainment business. But Amsterdam is not that big, and I would advise people to get a map and have a wander around. The mixture of art, culture and café life is worth experiencing on foot.’

Ever been tempted to cycle?‘I have occasionally ridden a bike. I didn’t really like it that much – the trams can be quite deadly!But you’d be amazed how many people do hire bikes. We bring many students and hire in a load of bikes and that’s how they get around. We feel very close to the city of Amsterdam and we enjoy being there. It’s part of our DNA now.’ <

‘People come from over 160 countries, so we want the best venue, the best support, the best facilities, and Amsterdam has always provided that’

IBC IBC, originally called the International Broadcasting Convention, launched in London in 1967, a time when television was just moving from black-

and-white to colour. It came to Amsterdam RAI in 1992, and has been coming back ever since. This year, IBC will attract more than 50,000 of the industry’s sharpest minds, with a conference and exhibition divided into three broad areas – those who create content; those who package, deliver and make it work; and those who make it profitable. It means a mix of firms that includes the likes of Sony, the Walt Disney Studios, the BBC and Google, and some of the most innovative thinking in the industry. Delegates are as likely to learn about the possibilities for hologram TV as strategies for making the most of social media. The invite-only Leaders’ Summit gathers ‘the most influential and visionary people in electronic media and entertainment’, while the Rising Stars programme engages those who may replace them a few years down the line.

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AAA locATIon

ZuidasAmsterdam’s

premium-class business

district

Strategically situated just a few minutes from Schiphol Airport and Amsterdam city centre, Zuidas is the new international busi-ness centre of Amsterdam.

Zuidas is now home to some 400 foreign or internationally oriented businesses and growing at a rate of one new company every two weeks, making it the regional leader in the number of foreign-owned European headquarters. The area specialises in fi nan-cial and legal services, with an estimated 5,000 professionals working in these fi elds.

One of the main assets of Zuidas is its location in relation to Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport. Schiphol (for short) is arguably one of the best operated airports in the world. Servicing 313 destinations from three directly connected terminals, it holds a top 5 position in Europe in every aspect of air transport. As a business centre, Schiphol area specialises in logistics, with over 500 compa-nies that cater to every logistical need.

Station Zuid is located in the heart of Zuidas, and serves as a public transport hub. It is connected by train to Schiphol (6 minutes) and by high-speed train to Berlin and Paris in 6 hours. A tram brings you to the city centre in just 6 minutes. A new branch of the subway, to be completed in 2017, will increase the area’s connectivity even further.

But there are many more aspects that will help Zuidas to become the economic and commercial heart of Europe. The proximity of the renowned Amsterdam RAI convention centre, for example, which hosts confer-

ences of up to 50,000 guests. Or the world-class VU University with its internationally respected medical research centre. And there’s the World Trade Center in the heart of the Zuidas, which hosts many service companies including the Expatcenter, a one-stop shop for international profession-als who settle in the area.

And there’s more to Zuidas than this. It’s also an attractive place to live. Shops, ser-vices, bars, restaurants and cultural venues are located in the ground fl oor of most offi ce buildings, and some 7,000 houses are being built, some of them penthouses with exquisite views over the old and the new Amsterdam.

Amsterdam Zuidas is not some distant busi-ness district but truly a part of Amsterdam. It is just a few minutes from the Museumplein, the cultural heart of the city, and from there you are a street away from the historic cen-tre, with its world-famous canals.

On the eastern and western sides, Zuidas is bordered by expansive green areas. To the west, the immense Amsterdamse Bos (Amsterdam woods), with the Nieuwe Meer Olympic rowing lake, is a recreational won-derland, with hidden meadows and lakes, a kids’ playground and swimming pools and even an open-air theatre. To the east Zuidas borders the pastoral area beside the Amstel River, where Amsterdammers head on week-ends in their beloved boats. To the south are the green urban areas of Buitenveldert and Amstelveen, with many sports facilities and high-class shopping centres. <

Zuidas

Schiphol Airport

Amsterdam Zuidoost

Amsterdam Harbour

Zaanstad

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Outside the picture

on the left:

LOYENS & LOEFF

Lawyers

ING Bank

VRIJE

UNIVERSITEIT

University

VAN DOORNE

Lawyers

ROYAL BANK

OF SCOTLAND

Bank

DE BRAUW

BLACKSTONE

WESTBROEK

Lawyers

AKZO

NOBEL

Paint & chemicals group

BOSTON

CONSULTING

GROUP

Advisors

HOUTHOFF

BURUMA

Lawyers

GOOGLE

Internet search engine

ACCENTURE

Management consultants

BAKER &

MCKENZIE Laywers

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KEMPEN & CO

Merchant bank

BOEKEL

DE NERÉE

Lawyers

NAUTA DUTILH

LawyersWORLD

TRADE

CENTER

EXPATCENTER

Support centre for internationals

REACH-

LOCAL

Online marketingagency

APG

Pension fund

ABN AMRO

Bank

ARCADIS

Engineers

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What amsterdam inbusiness can do for you

• Provide a single contact point for international companies establishing operations in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area (Amsterdam, Almere, Amstelveen and Haarlemmermeer)• Wide-ranging contacts in the private and public sectors, plus a support network of civic partners within the region and around the world• Customised legal and fi scal advice about the opportunities and challenges of your specifi c business sector – in the Netherlands and across Europe• Country desks in China, India, Japan, South Korea, the USA and other countries• Bespoke fact-fi nding visits to evaluate and select locations, services and professional advisors• Advice for company staff and their families through partner agency the Expatcenter• Long-term support, helping your company through future phases of development in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area• Comprehensive information about subsidies granted by the Dutch government• Corporate responsibility services• Services are free, confi dential and without obligation

Contact usinfo@amsterdaminbusiness.comwww.amsterdaminbusiness.com+31 (0)20 552 3536

The offi cial foreign investment agency of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area, amsterdam inbusiness provides free, active support and independent advice to organisations planning to invest or settle in the region.

As your independent, reliable partner on the ground, amsterdam inbusiness combines essential know-how – to navigate you quickly and effi ciently through the bureaucratic and fi scal barriers part of any cross-border business venture – with know-who – to provide introductions to the individuals and agencies that can add value and knowledge to your business.

amsterdam inbusiness

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220 milion consumers live within a 950 km (600 miles)

radius of Amsterdam

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Just 1% of companies in the Netherlands are foreign-owned; yet they employ 7% of all employees and generate 32% of total private-sector turnover.

(Source: CBS Statistics Netherlands)

2The Netherlands’ ranking among worldwide best countries for business

Country Overall rankHong Kong 1Netherlands 2United States 3United Kingdom 4Australia 5

(Source: Bloomberg, 2012)

City RankLondon (United Kingdom) 1Paris (France) 2Frankfurt (Germany) 3Amsterdam (Netherlands) 4Berlin (Germany) 5Barcelona (Spain) 6Madrid (Spain) 7Brussels (Belgium) 8 Munich (Germany) 9Zurich (Switzerland) 10

(Source: European Cities Monitor, 2011)

Amsterdam’s ranking in top 10 European cities to locate a business

4

Percentage of Dutch private-sector turn-over generated by foreign-owned companies

32%

Amsterdam’s ranking in terms of climate the government creates

City RankDublin (Ireland) 1Bratislavia (Slovakia) 2London (United Kingdom) 3Bucharest (Romania) 4Amsterdam (Netherlands) 5Zurich (Switzerland) 6Warsaw (Poland) 7Istanbul (Turkey) 8Geneva (Switzerland) 9Prague (Czech Republic) 10

(Source: European Cities Monitor, 2011)

fIVE

Portion of Dutch private-sector investments in foreign hands

(Source: CBS Statistics Netherlands)

1/4

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Located at one corner of the logistics trian-gle comprised of Schiphol Airport and the ports of Amsterdam and Rotterdam – the largest and best equipped port complexes in Europe – the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area is perfectly located for European distribution and assembly activities.A glance at the timetable of shipping services to China, for instance, reveals ar-rivals and departures almost daily. Just-in-time services can be delivered seamlessly, and thanks to the hugely diverse cluster of logistics service providers in the area, delivery can be guaranteed to virtually any final destination in Europe within 24 hours.

Logistics triangle

Close to the markets that matterThe so-called ‘Blue Banana’ (also known as the Hot Banana, European Megalopolis or European Backbone), extends from north-west England in the north down to Milan in the south, and covers one of the world’s highest concentrations of people, money and industry. The Amsterdam Metropolitan Area sits at its centre, with easy access to Europe’s approximately 500 million poten-tial customers. It also sits in the heart of the European euro zone.A

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The so-called ‘Blue Banana’ (also known as the Hot Banana, European Megalopolis or European Backbone), extends from north-west England in the north down to Milan in the south, and covers one of the world’s highest concentrations of people, money and industry. The Amsterdam Metropolitan Area sits at its centre, with easy access to Europe’s approximately 500 million poten-tial customers. It also sits in the heart of the European euro zone.Amsterdam’s

rating among large cities for human resources

(Source: FDI European Cities & Regions of the Future,

2012/’13)

2

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118Number of international companies that established new offi ces in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area in 2011 As of 1 January 2012, more than 2,200 international com-panies have established offi ces in the Amsterdam Area, nearly 1/4 of which are headquarters. Within Europe, Amsterdam is second only to London when it comes to attracting corporate headquarters: in 2011, 31 new headquarters were established in the city.

(Source: amsterdam inbusiness)

118Number of international companies that established new offi ces in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area

Increase in passenger traffi c at Schiphol Airport last yearIn 2011, passenger traffic at Amsterdam’s airport increased by 11% to nearly 54 million passengers. That’s more passengers than before the economic crisis began.

(Source: CBS Statistics Netherlands)

11%

Number of new Amsterdam hotel rooms in 2012By the end of the year 2012, Amsterdam will have nearly 1,500 additional hotel rooms, and despite the increased supply, occupancy is expected to grow from the current 75-80% to 81%.

(Source: Savills real estate consultancy)

1,440 City RankParis (France) 1Vienna (Austria) 2Amsterdam (Netherlands) 3Munich (Germany) 4Lyon (France) 5Copenhagen (Denmark) 6London (United Kingdom) 7Frankfurt (Germany) 8Hamburg (Germany) 9Berlin (Germany) 10

(Source: 2thinknow, 2011)

Amsterdam’s ranking among top 10 European innovative cities

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Moving up three places in the last two years, the Netherlands now ranks 7th worldwide and 4th in Europe for enabling trade.

(Source: World Economic Forum ‘Enabling Trade Index 2012’)

City Gross (New York = 100)

Zurich (Switzerland) 144.1 Copenhagen (Denmark) 134.8Oslo (Norway) 116.9 Stockholm (Sweden) 101.9 New York (USA) 100.0 Luxembourg (Luxembourg) 95.5 Munich (Germany) 94.5 Frankfurt (Germany) 90.6 Brussels (Belgium) 90.2 Dublin (Ireland) 83.0 Amsterdam (Netherlands) 82.7

(Source: Prices and Earnings, UBS, 2011)

Amsterdam’s world wage level

82.7/100

Moving up three places in the last two years, the Netherlands now ranks 7th worldwide and 4th in Europe for enabling trade.

(Source: World Economic Forum ‘Enabling Trade Index 2012’)

The Netherlands’ ranking in The Enabling Trade Index 2012

7th(Source: World Economic Forum ‘Enabling Trade Index 2012’)

50Amsterdam’s ranking in the worldwide cost-of-living survey

City RankLuanda (Angola) 1Tokyo (Japan) 2Geneva (Switzerland) 5Singapore (Singapore) 8Copenhagen (Denmark) 17London (United Kingdom) 18Milan (Italy) 25Paris (France) 27Vienna (Austria) 36Stockholm (Sweden) 39Amsterdam (Netherlands) 50

(Source: Mercer, 2011)

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1 A competitive corporate tax rate well below EU average: 20% up to €200,000 and 25% over €200,0002 Advance tax assessment certainty on future transactions, investments or corporate structures as a result of the Dutch ruling practice3 Participation Exemption: all benefi ts relating to a qualifying shareholding (including cash dividends, dividends-in-kind, bonus shares, hidden profi t distributions and capital gains) are exempt from Dutch corporate income tax 4 Double taxation relief for individuals via the Royal Decree for the Avoidance of Double Taxation5 The Innovation Box: an effective tax rate of 5% for income related to a patent or an R&D declaration obtained in respect of self-developed intangible assets (certain conditions apply)6 No withholding of tax on outgoing interest and royalty payments

7 No capital-tax levy on the contribution of capital to a company and any later expansion of share capital8 The 30% ruling for expats: tax-free reimbursement of 30% of an employee’s salary, provided that the employee has been recruited or assigned from abroad and has specifi c expertise which is scarce in the present Dutch labour market9 Horizontal Supervision: the Dutch tax authority is the fi rst in the world to make prior arrangements with large and medium-sized taxable businesses on the tax liabilities expected in the course of the year, and how they are going to manage them. When the resulting ‘Tax Framework’ satisfi es the requirements of the inspector, then in principle no more fi scal controls are needed for the year in question10 Tax agreements with the majority of the world’s trading nations, which prevent double taxation for businesses

Bred for progress and expansion, the Dutch tax system is transparent and stable – and fl exible enough to anticipate the rapidly-changing requirements of international economic fl ows

Companies established in the Netherlands profi t from various tax advantages, including:

At-a-glance: the Dutch tax system

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Opened in 2008, Amsterdam’s Expat-center cuts through the bureaucratic red tape for the Metropolitan Area’s growing number of international com-panies and their migrant employees

Amsterdam’s appeal lies in its rich cul-tural heritage, creative culture, com-mercial dynamism and high quality of life. Ultimately, however, the city’s greatest asset is its people, a healthy – and growing – percentage of whom are international. The Expatcenter was one of the first Dutch schemes to cut the red tape for expats, drastically streamlining reloca-tion procedures and helping them settle in. Four years later, the Expat-center offers a comprehensive range

of services. Together with its partners from the I amsterdam portal site, the Expatcenter continues to expand its digital support for Amsterdam’s international community, both practical and pleasurable. The recently-launched mobile city guide provides a comprehensive cultural agenda plus insider tips on the go.Firm partnerships – with banks and childcare providers, movers, lawyers, language schools and more – mean the Expatcenter has the tools to make an expat’s first few months a little smoother. Because the first step of a journey doesn’t have to be the most difficult one. Welcome to Amsterdam!

Expatcenter

City RankVienna (Austria) 1Bern (Switzerland) 2Copenhagen (Denmark) 3Amsterdam (Netherlands) 4Berlin (Germany) 5Luxembourg (Luxembourg) 6Stockholm (Sweden) 7Brussels (Belgium) 8Dublin (Ireland) 9Paris (France) 10

(Source: Quality of Living Index, Mercer, 2011)

Amsterdam’s ranking in top 10 most liveable European capitals

4The numbers• Over 850 international compa-nies and their expat employees make use of the Expatcenter’s services• Over 400 new expats visit the Expatcenter each month • In recent surveys, companies rated the services provided by the Expatcenter an excellent 8.7/10 • Over the last four years, more than 10,000 expats have visited the Expatcenter for registration assistance

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Contact uswelcome@expatcenter.iamsterdam.comiamsterdam.com/expatcenter+31 (0)20 254 7999Or visit us at:F-Tower, World Trade Center Amsterdam, Strawinskylaan 39, 1077 XW AmsterdamOpening hours: Monday-Friday 09.00-17.00

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3Amsterdam’s European city ranking in terms of languages spoken

City RankLondon (United Kingdom) 1Brussels (Belgium) 2Amsterdam (Netherlands) 3Stockholm (Sweden) 4Geneva (Switzerland) 5Paris (France) 6Frankfurt (Germany) 7Zurich (Switzerland) 8Berlin (Germany) 9Copenhagen (Denmark) 10

(Source: European Cities Monitor, 2011)

Amsterdam’s world ranking as a university city

City RankNew York City (USA) 1Beijing (China) 2Zurich (Switzerland) 3Munich (Germany) 4Montreal (Canada) 5Los Angeles (USA) 6Lausanne (Switzerland) 7Amsterdam (Netherlands) 8Edinburgh (United Kingdom) 9 Toronto (Canada) 10

(Source: Cushman&Wakefield, US News & World Report, 2011)

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One-stop shop for employees• Cooperating with the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND), the Expatcenter is a one-stop shop for international companies and their migrant employees• Employers can use the Expatcenter to initiate residency applications before a new employee even arrives in the Netherlands • Fast-track services mean qualifying expats can begin work as soon as two weeks after their employers apply to the IND• In one appointment, employees can collect their residence permit and registration with their municipality. This will provide them with a citizen service number (BSN), allowing them, for instance, to open a Dutch bank account • Following an agreement with the Dutch Tax Department in 2011, applications for the employee 30% tax ruling can now be made via the Expatcenter • The Expatcenter services international companies across the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area, in the cities of Amsterdam, Amstelveen, Almere and Haarlemmermeer• The Partnership Programme, created in 2009, connects expats with service-providers operating in the expat market