About us

Ziggy's Warenhuis is a combination of two people, Luke and Ziggy, who live together in Rotterdam. Ziggy had always been a collector, and the objects she had built a collection of were brought with her when she moved in with Luke. Since the move, she has been able to share her interests with Luke in an even more personal way, and he began to appreciate many of the same qualities, while also starting to explore his own interests further. Together, we have visited more and more markets and second-hand shops, where we could discover which objects would catch our attention and also look best in our interior, to then combine them at home in the most beautiful and fun way. In this way, a specific style and taste has emerged that now comes together in the department store.

Our department store is also home to three cats: Kimchi, Timo, and Enzo. Kimchi and Timo are two black cats, a sister and brother from the same litter. Enzo is an old Norwegian Forest Cat, who had to endure quite a bit when we brought two young kittens into the house, and they can all appear in a photo every now and then. Kimchi and Timo naturally look very much alike; Enzo, on the other hand, is easy to recognize and, in addition to his long red-and-white coat, has another characteristic feature: he only has one ear left.

Ziggy's original collection contained several categories, the most noteworthy of which can be found here: old books, bibles, missals, and other religious books. In addition, there are many beautiful decorative items such as figurines, crystals, and minerals.

The genre of the book does not always matter, as long as it is old enough, but some genres and subjects have always attracted more attention. Ziggy was born and raised on the coast, for example, and therefore a book with themes of seafaring and ships will appear more often. On the religious side, she had influences that were a mix of Christianity and Protestantism in her youth, growing up in a Christian primary school on the fairly religious coast of both Vlissingen and Den Helder. Although neither Ziggy nor Luke actively follow a religion, the influences have always stayed with Ziggy and have also given her interest in old books a focus on bibles and missals. Not only are those books often very beautiful in themselves, they also often carry a personal flair in the form of, for example, an inscription, notes, and church cards.

Bibles are often given to someone when they get married or when they have reached an important point in their lives, and those usually have an inscription and a signature from the person who gave the gift. People read these books at home or in church and will sometimes make a note of the passages that are most important to them or the psalms they want to memorize. You see this also with missals that were most frequently read by priests, or passages that they would read extra often, including on their own initiative. And in church, cards are sometimes handed out, sometimes for important holidays like Christmas, and sometimes in the form of a memorial card when a church member has passed away; people sometimes collect these cards, and they often end up in their own bibles. We like to leave these cards in the book when we find them to keep it as personal as possible and to honor the previous owner (or owners) of the book. This also applies to other personal items such as bookmarks, feathers, and dried leaves. So if you see these types of items in a photo on the website, they will still be inside the book, and therefore also received by the customer upon purchase.

Although Ziggy already had an interest in collecting objects from as many different countries as possible, such as finding the bible in as many languages as possible, Luke has an extra special place in his heart for geography and topography. For all items that can be traced, we will look for the continent or country of origin, which we also present here in their own categories. This also includes interesting places that technically no longer exist, such as West Germany and Yugoslavia, something that Luke finds extra interesting, and therefore is actively sought after. A lot of variation can be expected in this area, because both Ziggy and Luke find it interesting to know the history of the object and to focus on that, especially if it has a really special story to tell.

Ziggy is also very fond of Asian themes; in her opinion, tea sets are most beautiful from cultures known for creating and serving many types of tea. The soothing aura and taste of the tea that flow together in the style of the service, to present everything as beautifully as possible for the guests, is a combination she doesn't want to miss. Whether it is displayed decoratively in the house just to be observed or whether you actually want to serve tea with it, it can all be important when choosing the right set or items of tableware.

Luke has a strong appreciation for beautiful tableware, its unique and high-quality appearance, as well as the beautiful prints, shapes, and deep colors. And a large part of his focus is also on where the tableware comes from and whether it is from a high-quality brand. Together, we will always choose tableware that has something to be appreciated. The brand, color, shape, meaning, and history can all play a role in how we choose to purchase something. And in many cases with Asian tableware, the fact that there is a beautiful Chinese or Japanese dragon on it can quickly convince Ziggy to bring it home.

Below is a large collection of photos from our interior; see the Impressions page (preferably on desktop) for details about items you see here.