Who are we and what do we do?
Van Dillen Antieke Bouwmaterialen was officially established in early 2020, making us relatively young compared with other companies in the industry. Nevertheless, we hold our own and are growing rapidly. Through hard work and, above all, honest business, our stock and customer base grow every day!
We trade primarily in antique building materials, which we buy in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Germany, Spain, Poland and Hungary. The materials, mainly reclaimed facing bricks and antique floor tiles, come from old farmhouses, monasteries, homes and even castles! Once they arrive at our premises, we remove any remaining lime or cement mortar and carry out the other work needed to make them look their best and be fully ready for reuse. We then offer the materials neatly stacked and can always arrange quick, relatively inexpensive transport.
We currently have several storage locations across the Netherlands and even in Belgium, but Bolsward is our main base and the place where everything is processed. In recent years, we have handled approximately 3 million kg of materials a year at our yards. In Bolsward, we have two warehouses directly opposite each other: one is our workshop, and the other houses a showroom with approximately 7,000 m² of antique floor tiles and more than 100 sets of period internal dividing doors, including doors with stained glass. Around 800,000 bricks can be viewed in the outdoor yard in Bolsward, while our total stock exceeds 1,500,000 bricks. This gives us one of the largest known stocks of antique building materials in Europe.
When you visit us, you step right into the working process. Materials are cleaned, stacked and sorted here, a fascinating process to watch according to our previous customers! Alongside our workshop and storage in Bolsward, we have depots in Pingjum, Belgium, Poland, Strijen, Waspik, Zeeland and Groningen. Viewings are always in Bolsward, where almost every material type can be seen.
An anecdote about how it all began
We are a young company with a young owner. Founder and current owner Jesse van Dillen is just 26 years old, and was 20 when he started the business. People often ask how someone so young came up with the idea of entering this industry. The story is worth telling:
“It all started when my grandfather passed away in 2018. My grandparents lived on a large farm near Bolsward. It is a beautiful farm that used to be a castle, ‘the Waltaslot’. They renovated it entirely themselves; it was and still is truly their farm, and it is where we always came together for parties and family occasions. Grandma naturally wanted to continue living there, and we wanted that too. The farm has a huge garden that naturally needs a lot of maintenance, which they always looked after together.
When grandpa passed away, I took on the maintenance together with my uncle Jan and grandma. I mowed the lawn weekly and did other small jobs. One day, the path in front of the farm came up for discussion, a path of old yellow paving bricks. Although grandma thought it was beautiful, she wanted it gone because of the weeds, which she struggled to remove herself. As I had once worked in paving as a side job, I offered to lay a gravel path with a weed membrane underneath; that also suits a farmhouse and is easier to maintain, and she liked the idea.
No sooner said than done: the gravel path was laid and the bricks were left in a large pile. Grandma asked whether I could also get rid of the bricks for her. I remembered hearing somewhere that these bricks were still worth something and decided to offer them on Marktplaats. I eventually sold them for what was a nice sum at the time, and the rest is history.”
The team
Our permanent team consists of Jesse, owner and contact person, Arno, manager and contact person, and eight other hardworking all-round colleagues. They include ‘dad’ van Dillen, who looks after machine maintenance and steps in as our driver when we travel around the country to find the finest reclaimed materials.
Behind the scenes, Siep handles transport, Karlijn is our photographer, and Sil and Jelte look after the website and SEO. Alongside our own team, they work hard to keep everything running smoothly and support our growth and stability.
We also work with various demolition contractors, builders, paviours and other tradespeople who help us with our work. Self-employed workers regularly join us at the workshop in Bolsward as well.
Sil Veltman, a friend of Jesse and the creator of this website, has also made himself indispensable through his great commitment and pleasant way of working. For his contact details, feel free to email or call us!
Thank you for being part of our team; without you, there is no ‘us’!
