Last Saturday 22 September 2018, an important milestone was celebrated by Van den Oord Group: their centenary. Outside of party location Passion Cuisine in Haaren, the Netherlands, two beautiful Scanias were on display. One was a red Scania from 1972, and the other a new green one from this year according to the company’s current fleet of cars.
In 1918, Piet van den Oord started the potato wholesaler’s when he was 18 years old. He started by selling the potatoes door-to-door. His brothers Louis, Hendrik and Gerard helped him, and Piet soon took on the function of buyer of potatoes. This then quickly led to the founding of a wholesaler’s on the Haarstraat in Ammerzoden. In 1965, Groothandel P.A. van den Oord & Zn N.V. was founded, and Piet’s sons, Jacq and Frans van den Oord, carried on the company together.
“It all went very well in terms of business, until Piet’s health failed him. It’s a shame he died so young and didn’t see how the company developed over the years. If he were to return for one day he could see how the company has expanded. I’m sure he’d ask Mum: ‘Mum, have you seen what those boys in Empel all accomplished?’”
After a winter sports holiday in Austria, they came up with the plan to start a cold store. That’s why a new activity was added to the company in 1986: the cold store Vriesoord B.V. The cold store activities were expanded even more in June 1998, when a cold store in Boxtel was acquired.
In 2008, another new activity was taken up: Pierre and Stephan thought they could sell the used trucks and trailers themselves. Thus, another activity was conceived. The leasing of second-hand trucks, lorries and trailers under the name Vriesoord Trucks B.V. soon followed.
The fourth generation, Sophie, Thijs, Philippe and Pim, can now often be found at the company. “It’s worth congratulating how the boys, their family members and all employees have ensured this company remained healthy and flourishing for 100 years. The people who made sure that this milestone was memorably commemorated also deserve a compliment. Good luck in future, and keep it up!”
For more information:
Groothandel P.A. van den Oord
Larenweg 102
5234 KC 's-Hertogenbosch, NL
www.pavdoord.nl