Heineken collectors are so important
for the promotion and protection of the
brewery's history." Annesietske Stapel,
curator of the Heineken collection at
the Heineken Experience in Amsterdam
www.heinekenexperience.com
Heineken ambassadors
Good will hunting
NOVEMBER 200S
"Heineken collectors are so important for the promotion and protection
of the brewery's history," Annesietske says. "Very often, Heineken collectors
come to the museum and voluntarily help us examine historical items.
These collectors possess an unbelievable amount of knowledge and are so
enthusiastic about Heineken, coming in and helping us catalogue our
collection. Other collectors use our inventory as a reference to catalogue
their own personal collections."
Another reason Heineken collectors are so important is that they often
possess valuable pieces of memorabilia that are not categorised in the
Heineken museum collection. "Items are frequently offered to us for sale by
collectors and sometimes we find a genuine treasure. I recently purchased
the design drawings for a Heineken pin-up calendar from the 1950s,"
Annesietske says. "The calendars themselves with the passing of time have
been lost. But who knows, perhaps they'll turn up at an auction
somewhere!"
Jan describes himself and his fellow collectors as Heineken ambassadors,
unofficial representatives of the brewery, devoted to the brand and eager
to preserve the values it stands for. "The amount of times the word
Heineken has passed across my lips..." Jan says. "We collectors are like
walking advertisements for the brand. Heineken has become such a big
part of my life, it's a part of me. Every time I hear the word Heineken, my
ears prick up. Every time I see the Heineken logo, it catches my eye."
And what is it that keeps collectors going? What motivates them to
continually add to their collections?
For collectors like Jan and Jeroen, it is the passion for the hunt, the
knowledge that the next big bargain or the next rare treasure could be just
around the corner. "Heineken collectibles are wonderful," Jan says. "Every
single item in this room has a story behind it. My passion will never fade."
For Jeroen, the drive to add to his prized collection is balanced with the
acceptance that it will never be complete. "The fact is," explains Jeroen
with enthusiasm, "my collection will always be growing. There is just too
much cool Heineken stuff out there. I could keep on collecting new things
for the rest of my life and I'd still never have everything."
