Our inspiring women

25 YRS

Sometimes they hardly realize how quickly time has flown by. 25 years, that’s a good quarter of a century. While founders Jos and Jorien Wijker still remember so well how they ‘camped’ in an old school building in Amsterdam-Noord in the early days, overjoyed and a little high from the energy you feel when starting your own company. Of doing what you want, what you believe in one hundred percent. The same applies to the first followers, the people with whom Summum built lasting relationships early on. They are still there – with a lot of new recruits, of course, who, like the others, feel and appreciate the warm bond with and unique character of Summum.

Hooray, we’re 25! Together to that new dot on the horizon: another 25 years!

Mareille Post

Has been a designer at Summum for 25 years

Mareille Post attended fashion academy, a choice she owed to her mother. ‘A chic woman, who always looked beautiful. She sewed her own clothes and often gave me a piece of cloth to string buttons on. Delightful.’ When Jos and Jorien Wijker started Summum in 1998, they immediately asked Mareille to join them, making her the very first employee. ‘We started in an old school building in Amsterdam-Noord and did everything ourselves. Designing, packing, marketing, lunch, garbage, cleaning, everything. That was complex, but also incredibly exciting and fun.’ The most special thing about her work? Just spotting someone in her design on the street. ‘The first time that happened was in Amsterdam. I thought: wow! A magical feeling.’ She finds the freedom and creativity with which Summum designs just as valuable. ‘Am I not ready for something new after 25 years? No, because you know: in my job I always find so much innovation, we are always looking for new ideas here.’

Li-Janne Naglé

Has been Summum’s fabric supplier for 25 years

25 years ago, Li-Janne Naglé was a new mother. ‘I already worked with Jos and Jorien, who also had young children. It was a chaotic, fun cocktail of work, trips abroad, fairs in Milan and Lille, babies and Maxi Cosi’s. I was a traveling mother. Sometimes the babies stayed home. Then the wine was on the table and we danced until late at night.’ Laughing: ‘We were always the last. Very serious.’ How Li-Janne became a fabric supplier? ‘During my student days I had a job in the fabric department of the Bijenkorf. Later I looked for work in Amsterdam. I saw an advertisement in the newspaper: “Wanted: intern. fabr. saleswm.” I thought: nice, internal fabric saleswoman. A week later I was in Paris; that abbreviation turned out to stand for international fabric saleswoman. I was immediately sold.’ Li-Janne now works for herself and has several clients. ‘But Summum is my favourite. It fits me like a jacket. I can blindly go through the racks, pull something out, hop home with it and then it’s as if I’ve been living in it for a year.’

Jorien Wijker

Founded Summum 25 years ago

Founder Jorien Wijker still remembers exactly which shoes she was wearing when she signed the contract for Summum’s first office 25 years ago: moon boots. ‘We were in an old, draughty school building in Amsterdam-Noord. Without heating. We shared the toilet with the rest of the building, and we had a mobile kitchen. It was camping life.’ Laughing: ‘If customers wanted to come by, we said: we will come to you.’ She never dared to dream that Summum would become so big. ‘I especially hoped that we would become big enough to actually have our outspoken showpieces made. This is difficult at first, because you are too small to fit into your budget. Now I make sure that we don’t become a chain. It should keep something boutique and family-like. We don’t want to be exclusive, but selective.’ Future dreams? ‘A place where everything comes together, that would be magical. With a beautiful bistro, a flower corner, a few hotel rooms with a sea view...’ Laughing: ‘Totally impracticable, of course.’

Ellen Megens

Has been selling Summum in her store for 25 years

‘I love it when it’s busy. If I can just keep up,’ says Ellen Megens (61). She has had her own fashion store for 29 years, where she sells Summum, among other things. ‘I used to play shop like any other child, but I knew: I want to continue doing this, even when I grow up.’ De Peperkorrel, as her store is called, sells various brands. ‘Most of what hangs here is from Summum, so I get a lot of customers who come for that.’ She remembers Summum’s early days. ‘They were in an attic, and they shared the rest of the building with artists. I immediately felt welcome, very special. In fashion you meet plenty of people who are arrogant, but at Summum everyone is themselves. It feels like a warm bath. It’s in the little things. When I call, I never have to explain who I am, everyone knows your name. And it’s in larger gestures; during corona times, Summum continued to think along with their customers. I’ve never felt like a number here.’

Floor Bosch

Is a graphic designer at Summum and is 25 years old

Floor Bosch was five when she ‘ordered’ her first clothes as a toddler. She already knew exactly what she liked. ‘My mother gave me such a big clothing catalogue, where I could tick what I liked. When the box arrived I tried everything on and was allowed to keep one set.’ Her very first favourite piece of clothing: a pink top from Coolcat. ‘I thought it was completely hip at the time. It had spaghetti straps and sequins, to stand out at the children’s disco. Now my taste is more modest and classic.’ She met Summum through her mother, who also works there. ‘She always came home with enthusiastic stories, so when I was looking for an internship I chose Summum. My mother especially liked the warmth and coziness of a family business. Now that I work there myself, I understand what she means.’ What if Floor can dream out loud for Summum? Then she sees a shop in a forest. ‘A place where you can try on and feel all the clothes. With a restaurant, so you can relax and recover from the whole experience.’

Anne Zwart

Has been a fan of Summum for 25 years

Sometimes it’s not your friends, but the mothers of friends who open your eyes. Anne Zwart also knows this, who was impressed by a Summum dress at the home of a friend’s mother 25 years ago. ‘Through her I developed my taste and discovered that higher-quality clothing not only fits better, but also stays beautiful longer. I couldn’t easily afford that – I was fifteen and had to make do with a clothing allowance. But I saved so carefully that I was occasionally able to buy beautiful pieces on sale.’ She is now a lawyer. ‘I wear a gown during a hearing. I only put it on in the hall of the court, so my clients and opponents will first see me there in my own clothes. Then I want to feel strong and confident. At Summum I find pieces that are high quality without being stiff, because they have something creative or feminine. This means I can wear them in all kinds of ways.’