After 25 years of growth, a lot has changed in e-commerce in recent years. How is bol doing?
Bol is doing well, but I also have to be realistic. Due to economic uncertainty, the changing competitive landscape, and changing laws and regulations, being successful in e-commerce is more difficult than it was a few years ago. This is why I am glad that we focus on the Dutch and Belgian consumer market. We understand and know our customers and partners well and therefore we can easily respond to changes. This is also necessary, because customers expect to be able to buy a broad, unique and high-quality range of products from us. In addition, our customers appreciate our reliable service. We work hard every day to live up to that and to remain a safe and reliable platform.

What impact does the increase in international competition have on bol?Until a few years ago, the Dutch and Belgian e-commerce market was growing fast and there were mainly local players, so there was plenty of room for everyone to grow. Now we are in a completely different situation. With the arrival of international platforms, competition has been increasing for years. These are players with deep pockets for marketing to draw attention to their products.

And what impact does the increasing pressure of European laws and regulations have on bol?
Let me start by saying that we welcome European laws and regulations. With the appearance of international platforms, this has become even more important, because in this way both customers and partners are protected against unsafe products, among other things. At the same time, the pressure of these laws and regulations will only increase in the coming years in the areas of sustainability, finance, consumer law and privacy. We, and our salespartners, experience this regulatory pressure as well.

Bol has included the differences between bol as a seller and its sales partners on the platform in its general terms and conditions. Why is that?We think it's important that everyone understands how we work and why. We are communicating about this now because we want to be transparent and continue to comply with European laws and regulations. By sharing what the differences are we ensure clarity for our partners and that is important for a good working relationship. As far as I am concerned, that is the basis for a well-functioning and successful platform.

Why are there differences between bol as a seller and sales partners?
It's because we started 25 years ago as an online store and then transformed into a platform with sales partners. In that transformation, differences have emerged. Some differences we cannot solve, because they have to do with how we are organized: as a platform on which bol is also a seller. Some differences we can solve and have therefore adjusted. We will adjust further differences, where we can. One example is Select Deals, which are offers for customers with a Select subscription. We will make those deals available to partners in 2025.

Why is bol itself also a seller on the platform?
Because this will ensure that we remain competitive as a sales platform in the Netherlands and Belgium. Customers expect to be able to find an increasingly wide range of products with us, at a good price. Moreover, they often like to have it delivered the next day. It is not easy to meet this expectation for all our products. Bol can do so by being active on our platform itself. To give an example: if you are a baby store, you should also have diapers on sale that parents can use the next day.

How does bol ensure it remains “the shop for us all”?
We want to keep adding more and more unique and high-quality products, because that's what customers need. We prefer to do that with the promise that it will be ordered today and delivered tomorrow at a competitive price. Customers choose bol because of our reliable service. We continue to improve that, both for partners and customers, and that benefits the quality of our platform. In doing so, we build the best possible customer and partner experience, because that's what it's all about as far as I'm concerned. For us, no day has been the same for the past 25 years, so I expect that with the adjustments we are making, we will continue to be the store for everyone in the years to come.