Formed from a merger of seven villages, Zaanstad enjoys the dynamism of a small city combined with bucolic tranquillity and vistas of open meadows in the Zaanstad landscape – a unique living environment on the northern edge of the densely built Randstad conurbation.
Heritage
Situated just to the north of the North Sea Canal, Zaanstad is the 15th largest city in the Netherlands, with a population of 140,000 and a dynamic industrial heritage. When Amsterdam developed into a global trading power in the 17th century, the Zaan Region joined this economic boom. The staple products stored in Amsterdam were refined and processed here, and more than 1,000 windmills were built in the Zaan Region. Today, the seven historic windmills gathered along the River Zaan waterway at Zaanse Schans are a highlight of Dutch industrial heritage. This unique historic village with green, wooden houses and fully functional windmills – producing mustard and grinding pigment for oil paints, for example – attracts about 850,000 tourists per year. Zaanstad is also famous for its links with Peter the Great, who came to this important ship-building area in 1697 to learn the trade. The Port of Zaanstad is an active component of the Port of Amsterdam complex.
Zaan Food Industry
During the late 19th century, Zaan industry and trade enjoyed a second spurt of growth, as it switched to manufacturing. Zaanstad thrived thanks to its direct link with the Port of Amsterdam via inland waterways, used to bring in raw materials. The Zaanstad area became the heart of the Dutch food processing industry, and the presence of leading Dutch brands encouraged numerous specialist suppliers to settle in Zaanstad. This is how the Zaan food industry emerged, with the cocoa processor and biscuit producer Verkade, the soup and sauce specialist Honig, and the first Albert Heijn grocery store, which grew into the international Ahold retail group. Another big Zaanstad company, albeit in a different sector, is Forbo Krommenie, the world’s leading manufacturer of linoleum and other floor coverings.
Knowledge & Service Sectors
Nowadays there are 7,500 companies in Zaanstad, providing almost 50,000 jobs. However, there is a shift away from the industrial background, which now accounts for nearly 20 percent of jobs compared with about 60 percent in 1960. Zaanstad is therefore focusing on a shift towards knowledge- and service-based sectors. Many offices have been developed in the vicinity of Zaandam railway station, where the Albert Heijn supermarket group has its headquarters.
Cultural & Commercial
Zaandam is also a regional cultural and commercial hub, with quick rail and road links to the northern part of the Province of North Holland and the rest of the Netherlands, as well as to the international aviation hub of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (www.schiphol.nl). Modern and lively, but with smatterings of cultural heritage, Zaandam offers the modern Zaan Theatre complex (www.zaantheater.nl), ample and varied shopping in pedestrianised zones. In the near future, the centre of Zaandam will develop dramatically, as new office buildings, housing and amenities are constructed. The new heart of the city will include a City Hall, a library, a mega cinema complex, leisure, sports and educational facilities.
More information:
www.zaanstad.nl
Get in touch with the Amsterdam Foreign Investment Office at afio@ez.amsterdam.nl or see www.afio.amsterdam.nl for more information.
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