Unlike in the United States, retailers in Amsterdam and the Netherlands do not have large sales throughout the year or even at the end of each season. Here, and in many other European countries, knowledgeable locals and visitors understand that January and July are the main clearance months when stores offer the biggest discounts and, in the past, this was required by regulation and tradition. Although Amsterdam no longer has to maintain sales only during fixed times of the year, these two months are still when you will find the lowest prices on seasonal items.
So if you’re in Amsterdam braving the chilly days of January or the high-season crowds of July, you’ll be rewarded with a chance to stock up in Amsterdam’s best shopping areas.
Note that in Amsterdam, you will pay a VAT (value added tax) of 21 percent; If you are from a non-EU country, save your receipts to request a refund, or look for stores that offer duty-free shopping for non-EU residents. Stores that display duty-free shopping signs at their window can even refund the tax to your credit card at the point of purchase if you show your passport.
Where to find sales
Every year during January and July, you will find shop windows adorned with sale signs that read UITVERKOOP , OPRUIMING (both mean “sale”), SOLDEN, or simply OFFERS. Even shops in some of the fanciest shopping streets, such as Haarlemmerstraat, Utrechtsestraat, Nine Streets ( Negen Straatjes ) and Cornelis Schuytstraat, where prices for the rest of the year can keep some shoppers at bay, participate in the semi-annual sale.
But even cheaper stores, like the price-conscious Dutch HEMA department store, whose one-euro breakfast is a year-round deal, cut their prices at this time of year. And it’s not just fashion retailers involved; Shoppers can find sales in many types of stores.
Although January and July are the months set for dispatch, stores can decide which weeks to make the big sale and even extend the sale prices to December or June so that buyers can spend the entire month visiting the stores.
Types of savings
When shopping during these clearance sales, you can expect to rub shoulders with hundreds of other bargain hunters for bargains and steals up to 70 percent off the regular prices. Savings start at 10 percent off and increase to more than half the original price. Usually only a small part of the store is designated for displaying sale items.
Additional sales during the year
If you don’t visit Amsterdam in January or July, you can still benefit from some smart shopping. Although previously Dutch stores were only allowed to have sales at certain times of the year (this is still the case in Belgium), those laws have been relaxed and more sales have started to appear throughout the year; It has become less unusual to see end-of-season sales, especially in fashion stores and in chain stores that have locations around the world.
One of the most famous sales in the country, the three-day sale at De Bijenkorf, takes place every September, as it has been since 1984; Visit the picturesque location of De Bijenkorf on Dam Square to experience the national phenomenon.
Amsterdam now also has mid-season sales: one for the spring, in March and April, and another for the fall during the months of September and October. Still, January and July are still the two months of the year with the most sales by far.
