A few months after the final lockdown in January 2022, Frederiek Waninge managed to sell her business House of Fred/Cozy Pillow. It was all about the right timing. "I got bored quickly and the phase of scaling up was over.
After her own bag label Merel by Frederiek, it was a dream of Frederiek Waninge to one day set up a multibrand store. But not the traditional kind. If she wanted to succeed in retail, she knew she had to create something unique.
This became the concept fashion meets hotel: clothing boutique House of Fred and hotel Cozy Pillow under one roof, in the heart of Utrecht. A meeting place that inspires and empowers women. What better way to do this than by dressing them well in the basics, was Waninge's idea. She had ambitions to turn it into a franchise formula, until the corona pandemic threw a spanner in the works.
Not a true retailer
Waninge was well underway for a year when things went into lockdown in early 2020. Her business model had to be radically transformed. Waninge: "I was one of the first to offer arrangements and packages in the form of personal shopping with dinners and overnight stays. And we had a large reach on social media, so the switch from physical shopping to online was quick to make.'
Still, Waninge felt she was not on the right path with House of Fred and Cozy Pillow. The global corona pandemic was a major influence on that. But so were other challenges within retail, such as high inventory and the sustainability transition. This led her to decide to sell her business. Not an easy choice, as she had actually just started. 'The factors over which I had no control, I found in the long run,' she explains. 'I'm not necessarily a real retailer, but an entrepreneur. I get bored quickly and the phase of starting up and scaling up the business was over.'
Highest gear
It was the contact with Jan Baan and his wife Marlinde Baan-Verton of family business Omoda, her neighbors on Steenweg in Utrecht, that put the sales process into top gear. 'I know how difficult it is to establish a strong position within retail,' Waninge said. 'Many clothing brands are already sold and there is a limitation on the number of doors. I immediately said to them: I'm going to sell my business and I think you are the best candidate to take it over.'
The entrepreneurial duo Baan was then interested in Waninge's retail concept; the assortment, customer base and complete boutique experience appealed to them greatly. The concept fit into their omnichannel strategy. Moreover, they had just made the switch from shoe retailer to fashion retailer in 2021, with more than 30 stores in the Netherlands and numerous European web shops.
Waninge: "In terms of timing, it was perfect, especially given the challenges facing retail today, such as inflation, increases on buying and selling prices, wage increases and the energy crisis and transition. But speed was also key. I approached Jan and Marlinde myself at the end of December 2021, and four months later we had a deal.
Emotion
According to Waninge, the sale was a fair deal in which they quickly found each other under the guidance of their accountants. 'Omoda bought a healthy business that was literally so take over. I had good occupancy in the hotel, an established loyal customer base and stable revenue. So the transactional part was just a good story.'
But the emotional part fell a little harder on her. Until June, Waninge would remain involved with the store. But once along the sidelines, she saw decisions pass by that made her frown. 'Decisions are being made that you can no longer influence. It makes sense, but it also feels very crazy. I had lost my team overnight and missed the structure and rhythm of my business tremendously. I had no plans for after that, which did give me time to think about what's next? No more retail for me, but I am and always will be an entrepreneur. I am already brimming with new ideas.'
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