Hans and Loes were forced to close their bakery, which is still for sale

Loes walks through the empty bakery. A year after they closed. The flour containers are still there, as are the ovens and refrigeration. All other machines have been sold. “It remains a sad feeling,” she says wistfully. “That’s why it’s a good thing that we move to Medemblik. Then we don’t have to see it anymore.”

Last year they closed the store’s doors for the last time on October 1. The ever-increasing energy prices made it impossible to go any further. So they stopped earlier than planned, after 32 years. “We were actually going to end on July 28, 2024, when Hans will be 64 years old. We already thought of that ten years ago,” says Loes. “There was going to be a festive week and we were going to publish a magazine. But that never happened.”

A year of saying goodbye follows. From the store, from the loyal customers, from the machines. Of the life they were so used to. Hans: “We received a lot of flowers and they said ‘strength’. It is a kind of grieving process, without anyone having died. Fortunately, we were very sad about it. The idea of ​​having fun was suddenly gone. The proud feeling of: ‘I made that‘, I missed that very much.” Loes adds. “It is a great pity that it turned out this way. On the other hand: you don’t know how things would have turned out differently. Many bakers are having a hard time financially.”

Talk shows

So it was a search for a ‘new life’. “The store’s order book was always the guiding principle of our lives,” says Hans, whose alarm clock invariably went off at three in the morning. “We are finally starting to relax a bit. We discovered television in the evenings. We never saw those talk shows. Usually the News was the last thing, then it was time for bed.”

Hans is now a truck driver two days a week. “I suddenly find myself driving a truck full of mustard that has to go to Saudi Arabia. Very different, but fun.” Loes works behind the counter at a dentist. “People often don’t come in as cheerfully as they do at a bakery,” she notices. In a few weeks they will move to Medemblik and say goodbye to Hoogwoud. “Maybe a good thing too,” Loes thinks. “To really wrap it up here.”

The bakery and the house have been on Funda since April, but the first viewing only took place last week. “I thought: we’re going to lose that in no time. I don’t understand why it can’t work out. This is ideal for someone who needs space for a hobby, or for a bed and breakfast. Maybe it’s too big. But you could very easily can turn it into three homes. Then it can accommodate three couples,” says Loes. “Ideal, right?”

The bakery shop is full again. Not with bread and pastries, but with private belongings. Toys, clothes, pans and 30 squirrel cuddly toys. “We were going to use it for an autumn cake. But then we suddenly stopped. This is all without it. Everything has to go from here. If it hasn’t happened by the end of October, people can come and get it for free.”