Things Concept Store

Things Concept Store

'A cozy, snug store where everyone can come and shop, was my biggest dream. On September 10, 2022, this dream came true. I opened my very first store in the Korte Molenstraat in Cuijk.'
My name is Dominique Iftekaralikhan and I was born 26 years ago in Voorburg. I grew up in the province of Gelderland. But in August 2022 I moved to the beautiful Cuijk in Noord Brabant. At the beginning of this year I had a dream about a shop in the middle of the center of Cuijk. It was a very special dream where I was negotiating a rent price with my deceased grandfather in a shop. I woke up at 6:18 in the morning and decided to look up this shop right away. In retrospect, the '18' is a very special number. My shop is located at the 18th house number on the street. I had no address, only the details from my dream. After some searching I came across a shop in the Korte Molenstraat. I went to have a look right away in the afternoon and asked around in the neighborhood. This shop kept popping up in my head and after a few days I contacted the real estate agent to get some more information about this shop. And that's how the ball started rolling. In August I got the keys to the store and from that moment on everything went very quickly.

Things Concept Store is a cozy, snug store with a unique concept. Not only can you find jewelry, bags and accessories in our store, but also second-hand brand clothing. You can come and sell or donate your women's clothing to us. The clothing you bring in will stay in our store and on our webshop for 8 weeks. This way, you not only earn some extra money, but you are also very sustainable. Nowadays, fashion changes a few times per season and this is not only very bad for your wallet but also for the environment. Everyone can come and shop in our store. Our youngest customer is 7 and our oldest is 101 years old. Isn't that completely crazy?

I grew up in a family where there was a lot of poverty . Sometimes there was no food because there was no money. You can probably imagine that there was no money for clothes. If there was some money, for example through child benefit, I quickly found clothes too expensive. I only had a certain budget to buy clothes. So I fell in love with second-hand clothes and bargain hunting at a young age. The most important thing to me is that everyone can come and shop in our store. It doesn't matter to me whether you have a week's budget or don't have to look at anything. Together we always find something nice between the racks. We have clothing items from €5 to €250. Something for everyone.
Last week we celebrated our 100th regular contributor. I find this very special because I build a certain bond with every contributor.

I now call it 'our' shop because I have had a new colleague since February; Willie . Willie was actually already retired but when she saw my very first vacancy, she responded immediately. I asked her to email her CV. After 2 days I received it in my email. Afterwards I heard that this was a fumble because she was not that handy with the computer. Willie came for a job interview and we clicked immediately. As if we had known each other for years. 2 weeks later she started and I can never imagine my start-up company without her. Nowadays, computer work is very good for her :)

We promote our store in various ways. We make extensive use of Instagram & Tiktok . On Tiktok I regularly share funny stories that I/we experience in our store. A while ago I posted a story about a couple who had used our fitting room in a special way. This video was quickly viewed 700,000 times and picked up by various major social media channels. Customers then come from all kinds of different villages/cities to come and see our store. I not only think that is super fun and very special, but I also think it is very nice that these people come to visit the center of Cuijk.

You can not only choose to come and sell your clothes, but also to donate. We make packages from these clothing items for women who, due to various circumstances, do not have the opportunity to buy clothes. I think it is nice and special that there are regular contributors who also regularly come and donate. When we have put together another nice package, I post a message on Tiktok. Then women can email and I choose someone to send the package to. I always say that I do not expect a story from anyone. But still, very distressing messages often come in. That affects me, I think it is bad that people have ended up in certain situations. I am happy that I can contribute in this way.
If you are in the area, come and have a nice browse or chat. You can find our shop in Korte Molenstraat , at number 18 of course :)