Schmidt Optiek, the longest-running optician’s in the country, is the crown jewel among Amsterdam’s eyewear shops. Their store on Rokin opened its doors in 1868 and they’re rightly proud of their status of purveyor to the royal household. Their second branch, located on Gelderlandplein, is frequented by Zuidas business professionals and local residents alike. The health of your eyes is in very experienced and capable hands at Schmidt Optiek and they offer a wide range of frames, with the spectacular customized glasses by Cartier or Dita – diamonds optional– topping off their collection.

Schmidt Optiek focuses first and foremost on your vision, but their varied range of frames guarantees you’ll look the part as well. Did you know that former Dutch Queen Juliana and her husband, Prince Bernhard, had their own drawer in the mahogany-clad Rokin store? And their branch on Gelderlandplein houses an even wider range of frames.

There is a dazzling display of correction glasses, reading glasses and sunglasses by brands ranging from Lindberg to Chanel. As fashion designer Coco Chanel famously put it: “The best things in life are free. The second best things are expensive”. This fits in with Schmidt Optiek’s vision: they focus on the health of your eyes and the medical aspect of your glasses, selling high-end fashionable frames comes second.

A nostalgic wink

The sleek interior of Schmidt Optiek in the Gelderlandplein shopping mall may be in stark contrast to their Rokin store, but the compartments in dark brown are a reference – a nostalgic wink – to the hundreds of mahogany drawers in their historic shop downtown.

The Schmidt Optiek branch on A.J. Ernstraat was established in 1968 and has much more floor space than their 150-year old store on Rokin. Edwin van Dijk is the eighth generation of store owners. His son, head of management Tijmen van Dijk, and marketing manager Jim de Vos tell us more about the company.

Measuring with a ruler

Jim: “I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say we have some of the country’s finest optometrists working for us. They measure your eyes and gather all sorts of information including the position of your pupil, the moisture balance and vision correction. They even use special tiny rulers! The whole procedure takes about an hour; after all, the health and condition of your eyes are very important. And if necessary, they’ll refer you to an ophthalmologist. To be honest, other eyewear stores don’t have sufficient knowledge as the only training their employees have had is a 3-month in-house crash-course. Here at Schmidt, however, we consider optometry a serious profession.”

“It takes years of studying optometry in order to be able to assess what pair of glasses will provide the right correction for someone’s eyes. And that’s absolutely crucial! To give an example: my mother’s eyesight deteriorated significantly as she was given the wrong prescription glasses after a measurement that hardly took 15 minutes – this was long ago, but unfortunately it is still more common than you’d think. We don’t want that to happen to our customers.”

Glasses as a piece of jewellery

Tijmen, a well-dressed young man, explains why glasses are so important for Zuidas professionals. “Eyewear is like jewellery to them; glasses are obviously more conspicuous than your shoes, watch or tie. And in our Gelderlandplein store that is a very important factor: the business customer is looking for a pair of glasses with a serious look, but what they really want is something that defines their identity and will make them stand out among all the other businessmen in their grey or navy corporate uniform.”

“The right pair of glasses enables business professionals to lend a subtle twist to their look: slightly different coloured arms, a unique positioning of the actual glass… Moreover, glasses are more than a fashion item: they can accentuate or mask certain facial features, so it is important to get the right type of advice on the aesthetic part as well. The more comfortable you feel wearing your glasses, the more confident you’ll appear.”

Futuristic innovations

Schmidt Optiek is a company of extremes as the difference between their stores on Rokin and Gelderlandplein shows. On the one hand there is the traditional craft and medical knowledge of the 150-year old company, on the other hand they’re offering the latest futuristic innovations in the world of opticians such as glasses with lightweight, fully flexible arms. Hundreds of labels, influencers on social media, rappers and models are keen to promote Schmidt’s eyewear.

Jim: “It is hard to imagine that not even that long ago glasses were regarded as ‘nerdy’, whereas these days eyewear represents something very stylish. And here at Schmidt Optiek we try to connect to that. It is exciting to bring a classic brand to the fore using modern marketing tools, with all the events and promotion activities that go with it.”

Schmidt Optiek

Arent Janszoon Ernststraat 569

T 020 644 2108

Rokin 72

T 020 623 1981

W www.schmidtoptiek.nl

Schmidt Optiek recently acquired Reyer Lafeber opticians in Utrecht. In this wonderful eyewear store, Schmidt Optiek will focus on extending its range of products and services. In a pleasant and luxurious ambiance, Schmidt offers a wide range of eyecare and sells beautiful frames and sunglasses, as well as special collections. Buying a new pair of glasses will be a very nice experience in this wonderful new eyewear store. 

Within my circle of friends, many prefer a weekly night club dance to a workout at the gym. But why not combine the two, especially considering the current moment. Saints & Stars is a gym that feels like a five-star night club and promises that you’ll burn up to 1000 cal. in an hour. You’ll leave feeling in top shape.

The name and the entrance of the gym, Saints & Stars, situated in a former church at the heart of Amsterdam Zuid, reminds me of a chic night club in Barcelona. While waiting for the English-speaking receptionist, we can hear the music loud and clear. Dimmed lights, light show on the ceiling, and the music’s low bass tones make you long to step onto the dance floor.

Wearing an appropriate outfit and holding our phones, we step inside. It’s after passing the circular lounge corner and seeing the fitness equipment that I realize where I am. It’s time for an intense workout.

Deluxe and sexy

Tom Moos is the creator of this ingenious gym concept. Eric Kuster was signed up to provide a ‘luxurious and sexy’ interior. Moos, coming from a fitness-loving family, opened his first gym on the Tweede Constantijn Huygensstraat in Oud West, only to refine his original concept at the Gerrit Van Der Veenstraat in Oud Zuid. The doors opened on the first of July 2020.

Moos shows me around the impressive church transformed into a three storey gym, which has a relaxing atmosphere, and of course, with the appropriate support, is meant to make you burn 1000 calories in just one hour. “The millennials visiting us have no time to waste”, explains Moos.

Experience centre

“Saints & Stars is not an ordinary gym, it is a five-star experience centre”, says Moos. We enter the Open Gym, where we find the latest app-operated fitness equipment. There are only a few Dutch fitness centres using this advanced system. First, you set your targets with a personal trainer, and then you start working out at your own pace.

In the app, you receive your customized training instructions. Your trainer keeps an eye on the intensity of your workout and verifies how many calories you burn. There is no mercy after a lousy night’s sleep. Moos smiles: “We even send an app notification or call you if we have not seen you for a while. Not to push, but to motivate. We want you to get the most out of your training and yourself.”

Focussed on relaxation

Moos’ goal is to get the gym members more confident with their looks and in a better shape when leaving the gym. At the check-in, you receive a bottle of water and a shower towel. Your workout towel is waiting for you in the gym. The elegant dressing rooms are all fitted with lockers, and in the lounge area there is plenty of room to get yourself back together. There are bottles of shower gel, shampoo and even perfume available in the showers. Everything at Saints & Stars is meant to help you relax after a powerful training session of Holy Booty, Holy Build, Holy Shred, Open Gym, or with your Personal Trainer. These are the five concepts provided by Saints & Stars.

“We move along with the trends, which is why we launched Holy Booty in Oud Zuid. Here you mainly train your buttocks”, says Moos. “The Holy workouts are supervised by our skilled Star trainers. From the moment you walk in, release and prepare yourself for a hard workout. The trainer, the music and the lights pull you through the intense training sessions. We offer the complete experience which makes you forget about time.”

Chandelier

On the first floor of the former church, sunlight enters through the stained– glass windows. An impressive, modern version of a chandelier sparkles in the centre. The original organ is still present in the spacious Open Gym, where, when I visit, a small group of men and women are doing weight training.

Moos: “Monthly, every first Friday, we have a DJ performance to simulate a club feeling. Some people do not work out because they don’t enjoy doing so. Therefore, we turn our space into a party. During weekends, the music and light shows are more intense. That is part of the whole experience.”

Moos leads me to the most popular workout programme, which is in the basement: the Holy Shred. Larz, like some other trainers at Saints & Stars, used to work for Nike, adidas and Puma. Now at Saints & Stars, he is responsible for an hour of high-intensity training, making you feel used up, but – above all – fulfilled when leaving the gym. The light show seems to come from every corner. Lights are integrated into the ceiling, walls and floor. The music is loud. “This absorbs you during your workout, provides you with tunnel vision, completely wrapped up in yourself, not caring about others. That is the way to intensify your training and get the most out of it. And while doing so, you cross that line.” 

The total workout

Shredding stands for the total workout, burning your fat and sculpting your body to perfection. This is noticeable when the heavily perspiring bodies pass us at the end of the  workout. Is this an option for plus-size bodies? Moos: “It certainly is. First of all, you define your goals with your Personal Trainer; then you get a free try-out on all concepts to get an idea. On average, our members train 2.5 times a week. We take care of the total one-hour workout. I can guarantee that in only a short time there is a visible result.” 

Saints & Stars focuses on service and results, not on selling memberships. “We are a boutique gym, comparable to a boutique hotel, designed to target a specific group, not an all-inclusive production. You exercise with like-minded people; consequently, working out gets a social aspect, you are here with friends and make new friends. Moreover, it creates a sense of community, which is great to see.”

Are you ready to cross that line?

Explore our Next Level Gym now and experience a free trial class in one of our Holy Workouts or the Open Gym. Sign in at www.saints-stars.com/en/activate using the code: ZUIDAS

Saints & Stars

Gerrit van der Veenstraat 38

AMSTERDAM

T 020 85 45 770

E info@saints-stars.com

Tom Moos – CEO Saints & Starts, Amsterdam

At Finesse Bodyline Clinic in Woerden, they use Ultrashape: a devise which breaks down fat cells by means of ultrahigh soundwaves. Ultrashape is an effective way to lose your fat rolls, love handles, belly or men’s breasts. If you think ‘my beautician around the corner can do the same thing’ you are totally wrong.

It is a sore point to Finesse-owner Cor Kok, all those companies pretending to do a similar treatment as he and his team.  “Handling real UltraShape devises requires specialised, and medical training and only registered medical staff can do so. What we do cannot be compared with the work of a beautician, and that bugs me sometimes. In particular, when you see your own pictures on someone else’s website. But all well, we believe in our own skills. We use the UltiMed Contour Concept.”

Cor, a nurse by origin, even after twelve years, is still enthusiastic explaining what Finesse stands for. “The bottom line of the UltiMed concept remains the Ultrashape. The treatment can be compared to the disintegration of kidney stones, with the same outcome UltraShape disintegrates fat cells. It is done with ultrasonic soundwaves; the outer wall of the fat cell falls apart. The contents of the fat cell, the triglycerides, break free and will leave the body in an absolutely natural way. The body produces fat cells until about the age of eighteen, it stops there. So, what has been removed won’t come back. The treatment is safe and permanent. A painless alternative to liposuction.”

Persistent storage of fat

A remarkable amount, both men and women, visiting the clinic in Woerden look considerably slender at first sight. Cor: “We treat a lot of people who work-out on a regular basis and have a healthy food diet, nevertheless they do not lose fat rolls or other persistent storage of fat in the known problem areas. A healthy lifestyle in combination with our treatment gives the best results. Therefore our UltiMed-approach is based on those facts. It consists of three items: demolishing of fat cells, stimulating the drainage of waste by vacuum massaging, and working out on the cross-trainer. The matter of utmost importance: finding the cause of the problem and tackle it. If you don’t get on top of this, the body will keep on storing the fat in different areas.”

“While trying to find the cause, we are also looking at specific disorders and we check if medication or hormones are playing a role. We perform thorough blood research, if necessary a stool investigation, we check organ functions, we look at thyroid and adrenal glands, and we look at possible lack of minerals and vitamins.”

Catch 22

“The metabolism, all those biochemical processes and the interaction between the organs are crucial. You can have a health food diet, but if your intestines don’t work properly, you don’t take in the nutrients. We give advice about proper, healthy food. Diets are a regular Catch 22. You lose weight very quickly and for a very short while, you gain the weight again, and that is followed up by yet another diet. People hop on and off from crackers and smoothies to diet-shakes and low-carbohydrate food, and while doing so disrupt their entire metabolism. It’s a vicious circle.” 

“If necessary we communicate our results with a GP, we have a good working relationship with them,” concludes Cor. “The goal of our total package is to get our clients’ health back on track and making sure, of course, to keep our clients’ slim bodyline. However, it’s more than just the curves. Furthermore, clients report back to us on a regular basis that, with our support, they now know what they can or cannot do. They now realize, a strict regime is not needed at all and they now, literally and figuratively, feel so much better.” 

Finesse Bodyline Clinic
Pompmolenlaan 19a
Woerden

T 0348 409 199
W www.finessebodylineclinic.nl

Photo Cor Kok by Elke Smit Fotografie