Monique is the owner of “De Nieuwe Boekhandel”
I was born with a book in my hand. As a child you could always find my tiny fingers wrapped around a book of some sort. As I grew, the books I read grew and this is how I developed my love for books.
I worked as a manager of a bookstore in Amsterdam for over twenty years, before I decided to start my own bookstore. I deliberately named it “De Nieuwe Boekhandel”, which is Dutch for “The New Bookstore”, because I wanted to show that you can still be very innovative in an industry that is ailing from the rapid digitalization.
I constantly try to stay at the forefront of developments. I not only connect with my clients in the bookstore, but also keep them up to date or talk with them via twitter and Facebook. I have an online bookstore, where I sell physical and electronic books and I frequently organize literature events and lectures for booklovers.
This is no different with the method of payments I chose for the store. I opted for a card only policy, because it is more convenient for my clients and my employees. Queues are shorter, my employees won’t need to handle cash and spend time counting the register after closing time. It is also more transparent for the tax governing bodies, as all our revenue passes through a checking account.
Moreover, it is a safe way to do business. I want to focus on what I love the most and that is selling books, without having to think about the possibility of robbery or theft.
Since we are the new book store, I make it my job to keep track of all new developments, including the payment industry. I do not exclude that in the future we will transfer to a new and more advanced way of payment to make for an even better experience for my customers.