Let me introduce...
Marcel Koppen is the owner of Gruppo Adanti since 1994. The company represents such brands as GioRgio, Officine Napoli and Evaluna. Marcel is responsible for development & sales in cooperation with Mark Baudoin. Besides the showroom in Nieuwegein, they have the office/warehouse in IJsselstein where his wife is in charge.

How long have you been involved with CAST and what is your first memory?
“Next March I will have been the owner of Gruppo Adanti for 30 years, and therefore also involved with CAST for 30 years. Adanti itself has been a showroom owner from the start of CAST -since 1984, that is. Naturally, we have undergone several renovations and also expanded, but always at this location.”

“Within my family, I am the fourth generation to work in the shoe business. My parents and ancestors had shoe stores, so I already had experience with CAST. I was not yet involved in purchasing, but I did join them at that time”.

“I initially worked at Clarks in England and then at a shoe factory in Italy where my passion for the business really started to grow. My memory of CAST at that time is that it was then a two-story building where it was always busy. Where there was a lot more orientation than there is now. In a nutshell, a fine procurement center, then as a customer and now as a supplier.”

What is the difference between CAST “before” and “now”?
“CAST used to be more of an orientation center. I am surprised that that has become less now.
I think orientation in today's market is more important than ever. In my opinion, too little use is currently being made of that.That's a pity, because of course that possibility is there, because many brands are close together, in the building.”

“In addition, there have been many positive changes in recent years. A lot more events are being organized by CAST and as a result there is a good flow. More different trade shows have been added, which means that CAST as a trade center is also receiving extra attention from retailers. But also for exhibitors to get extra attention from, for example, apparel companies.”

What event has stayed with you the most?
“I remember the attack on the World Trade Center (2001), and I precisely remember which client I was sitting at the table with. At the entrance to our showroom, we had a big TV screen. We played fashion shows on that from a fashion channel. We then switched that channel to what was happening in America. There were all these people standing in front of our showroom from the hallway watching on the TV what was happening. Then at one point you saw the second plane fly into the tower....
That really stuck with me.”

“Another event that has stayed with me is during the time when the extra floor was being built on top. I was sitting here on a Friday night working late. Suddenly it was really bad weather and the water tank, which was built to catch all the water, broke down.
Then some of us worked until midnight to save the showrooms.
That was quite a thing”.

In your eyes, how has CAST developed over the past few years?
“In the past 30 years that I have been involved with CAST, CAST has become the main purchasing center in the Netherlands. This center has become more interesting to many parties than international fairs, so that is really a positive development.
Apart from CAST, there are not many active fairs that are still interesting.
A number of parties who still go to other fairs actually all walk here as well. CAST managed to hold its own all this time and has ensured that they have remained procurement center number one.”

How has your company evolved over the past few years?
“When we joined CAST we were just an agency, but now we also work with our own brands. We have also started working more with inventory, delivering from stock and using never-out-of-stock programs because of the change in the market. We have also grown substantially in automated service to our customers. In addition, we now have a larger showroom. With that, we have achieved a more luxurious presentation.”

What is the added value for you of your showroom in CAST?
“The added value for us is that we have a lot of brands/suppliers together in one place and so we can offer maximum service to our customers. For them it is of course pleasant to drive to one center where they have everything and many brands are together.
The added value is that we can all put our shoulders to the wheel and go for it.”

Future CAST
“The market will continue to evolve and we will never know what is going to happen. Fashion online remains a tough thing, so I actually do expect the brick-and-mortar store to remain important and with that the opportunities for a center like CAST are guaranteed for the future.”

Do you think things need to change?
“You always have to keep up with the time, but that goes for everything.
You can ask yourself whether we should continue to invest in this building or perhaps look for new premises. In any case, the future for the center is that we stay together, continue to put our shoulders to the wheel together and not close our eyes to what the possibilities are and what the market is asking for.”