This article is one in a series of interviews with expats in Stavanger. Its purpose is to share with everyone what your fellow expats are doing and also to help advertise the businesses/services/events that these expats are involved in. If you would like to or know of a business/enterprise to be interviewed, feel free to contact us!
Interview with Petra Bekkerin-Top – owner of Tijn & Lieve – a home boutique for gently used children’s designer clothes.
Where are you from?
I am from the Netherlands. I grew up close to Utrecht (the centre of the Netherlands), went studying French, Spanish and Law partly in Maastricht (the south of the Netherlands) and partly in Bordeaux (France) and Barcelona (Spain) and ended up working in The Hague (the west of the Netherlands).
What brought you to Stavanger/Norway?
My husband’s work. He is working for KPMG and was joining a mobility programme to Oslo initially. After nine months in Oslo, we moved to Stavanger because he was asked to set up the oil & gas group at KPMG here.
How did you react to having to move to Norway?
I was really happy with our move to Norway because I like living abroad, meeting new interesting people and above all, practicing my language skills. Next to that, my job in the Netherlands was a demanding career job and I could not spend the time I wanted with my newborn son, so the offer to move came at the right time!
How long have you been here in Stavanger?
We have been here in Stavanger for three years (and before that, in Oslo for nine months) and we just found out that we are lucky to stay for an indefinite period in beautiful Norway.
Can you tell us more about your boutique?
Tijn & Lieve (nicknames of my children Valentijn & Madelief) is all about the 3R’s related to children (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle). It was initially set up as a boutique (consignment shop) for gently used high quality children’s designer clothes and the concept has now been broadened to children’s art. The art consists of paintings based on children’s drawings in which the painter, if wanted, can re-use materials such as small pieces of clothes of the specific child or other materials, to make it more personal. For the future I hope to be able to expand the 3R’s even more to redesigned/recycled children’s furniture.
What made you set this up?
When we came to Norway I finally had the chance to set up my own business and follow my heart. A friend in Oslo was working for a Swedish clothing company and she advised me to start organizing homeparties in Stavanger (I love organising, socialising, speaking different languages, parties and fashion). But I did some research first and I found out that within my international network, people preferred their own familiar brands and lower prices than the Norwegian prices. This brought me to the idea of setting up a consignment shop.
Also, I found out that there were 
no consignment shops like you find in the rest of Europe or America (in Stavanger it is either new clothes or Fretex you find as shops to buy children’s clothes and Stavanger Kids Sale as a big sale for all kinds of gently used children’s things twice a year). In The Hague I used to live in an expat neighbourhood and I purchased lots of nice gently used designer clothes for my little boy in a nice and cosy boutique with personal attention. I liked the idea of buying and selling at the same time especially since children wear their clothes only a few times and it would be a waste to just throw those clothes away. Living in such a beautiful country as Norway makes you even more aware of nature and being environmentally friendly!
Last but not least, I noticed that a lot of moms are emotionally attached to some of their children’s clothes, especially the little ones’ and I have heard a few moms saying ‘I am happy to know my clothes are in a good place now’ when they handed them in. That makes my heart jump!
All in all this resulted in my idea of a boutique of gently used children’s designer clothing, a small boutique that cares about the planet, quality and personal touch. I made a website (meant to trigger people to come by and not to be considered a webshop!) registered the boutique at the Brønnøysundregistrene, started giving out flyers and telling people within my network. Now, the word is spreading; I get mails from people I don’t know yet so that is a good sign!
How did the idea of selling children’s art come to you?
The idea of the art came to me when I was on a holiday in France and I saw this exposition at a castle of a Dutch painter (what a coincidence!) and the whole idea of re-using a children’s drawing and (if wanted) putting some personal things into it like fabrics etc, really appealed to me especially because of my 3R concept. I found out that she had had an interview for a Dutch interior magazine for children and I decided to phone her. She was very enthusiastic about the idea, we drew up a contract assigning me an exclusive distribution right of her art in Norway and in the meantime I got some beautiful pieces from her to exhibit in my boutique. You can find some examples of her art on my website under Patricia Dam. So if you find a drawing of your child you think is worth having on your wall as a piece of art, contact me!
If one were interested in coming by your boutique, what should they do?
Just send me an email for a personal appointment with a cup of tea, and I will provide you with further details like my phone number and address. One could come during the day or even in the evening as long as I have advance notice. The boutique is located close to the British school so it’s really practical for moms to come by after dropping off their children.
If you know some friends who could be interested as well, I could also organise a homeparty for you and your friends (min. 8 persons) and you can have a lovely evening, having a drink, chatting with your friends and looking at the clothes! For an impression, you can take a look here.
Normally I plan several appointments in one day so the boutique is open a few days a week. I do more things besides this (like teaching Dutch) and I want to spend time with my children as well. I consider the boutique as a way to help each other, to do something environmentally friendly and to mean something for society. It is hardly profitable and therefore I will keep it small and cosy!
In addition, I offer my customers the possibility to publicise their businesses too. They can leave their business cards on my coffee table and I will mention their business to other visitors of Tijn & Lieve; this way, we can help each other!
If people are interested in the art, they can also send me an email and we could make an appointment so they can see the exhibition of the paintings, the prices, eventually hand in their favourite children’s drawing and maybe materials they want to have re-used in the painting. I will arrange things further for them and after 3 months they will receive a nice, unique and personal piece of art!
What happens if people cannot find the items they are looking for, in terms of size, colour, etc?
If people can’t find the clothes they are specifically looking for at that moment, I write their wishes down in a special book I keep and as soon as I get in clothes that might be interesting for them, I send them an email with photos.
How has the response been to your boutique so far?
The feedback is generally very positive and I quote funny stories with photos of happy little customers and sayings about their shopping experience at Tijn & Lieve on my site.
Are your customers mainly expats or Norwegians?
Mostly expats. They are familiar with consigment shops for exclusive children’s clothes. I noticed at a Homeparty for Norwegian ladies that it is a new, unknown concept to most of them which is interesting! Tijn & Lieve shows them that there is something in between the usual children shops and Fretex, namely exclusive gently used children’s brandclothing.
If one were interested in selling their children’s designer clothes, what is the procedure?
Just send me an email for an appointment.
You can bring your clothes and we can have a look at them together. Sometimes people want to have a minimum price for it or indicate that the clothes have hardly or never been used; this is important for me to set the right price for my customer. It occurs as well that people hand in clothes with the price tags still on it; the children just didn’t like the clothes or they were simply forgotten. I have a pricing system put up in the shop, just to make things just as transparent as possible for everyone.
On my website under ‘How does it work?’ you can find all the information about the commission. I do the ironing, the administration, keep the website updated with information and photos and send a monthly overview of your credit at Tijn & Lieve (which can be used as a discount on a painting as well). Next to that, I try to organise several homeparties per year for my customers.
How can you be contacted and what method of payment do you accept at your boutique?
You can email me , check out my website and/or join my Facebook page at Tijn and Lieve. Being a member keeps you updated with the latest news!
The method of payment is by cash only.
Thank you Petra for your time and all the best with your boutique! I was there to check out the boutique – it is a lovely, well-decorated room. All the children’s clothes are put on display neatly and tagged. There are many brand names represented in the boutique.
Petra is very welcoming and one can really take their time in browsing through the racks of clothes, while enjoying a cup of tea at the same time. The clothes look new (some of them even are brand-new!) and are well-presented. There are clothes for girls from age 0 – 8 and for boys from age 0 – 6. However, Petra might expand her collection so do not hesitate to send her an email to check!
I really liked the personal touch of shopping there and felt the boutique was really warm and cosy. I was also very pleased with the prices and quality of the items I purchased for my son!
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About Cynthia Myrnes
Cynthia is a Singaporean who has been living in Stavanger since Feb 2008 with her Norwegian husband. She works as a physiotherapist here and also owns her own petsitting service, Stavanger Petsitter, for the residents of Stavanger. In addition, she manages the Stavanger International Moms group. She loves hanging out with friends, spending time with animals, travelling and watersports such as scuba diving and wake boarding. Most of all, she is enjoying the experience of being a first time mom!
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