In the early 1990s, a request came from the Council of Churches for Women For Peace to provide the recently arrived refugees and asylum seekers in Amstelveen with wearable second-hand clothing. A number of women, including Mieke Haver, took up this challenge and thus the Clothing Project was born. The project was placed under the auspices of Vluchtelingenwerk Amstelland in 1995, making the first clothing bank in the Netherlands a reality.
More than ten years later, on April 5, 2006, the Clothing Bank was legally incorporated and the Amstelland Clothing Bank Foundation was established. In the first years, the board of the Foundation consisted solely of the volunteers on the shop floor. Later, with the appointment of Jurriaan Fransman as president of the Foundation, a start was made to separate executive and administrative volunteers. This process was completed in 2020. Processes and procedures have also been adjusted to comply with laws and regulations.
Housing was difficult from the beginning, but on September 7, 2011, the Clothing Bank moved to its current location at Galjoen 4 in the Waardhuizen neighborhood. This was thanks to the efforts of Jacqueline Koops, then alderman for Social Affairs, Care & Welfare.
Gradually, our market share has also increased. Since 2009, the Clothing Bank has also been accessible to holders of a City Pass with green dot from Amsterdam/Diemen, which has more than doubled the number of visitors. We now cover Amsterdam and all Amstelland municipalities.
During the corona crisis, the Clothing Bank remained open as a necessary facility. With the recent reception of refugees from various countries, the Clothing Bank is again providing clothing to the original target group.