To celebrate the 120th anniversary of de Jong and 60th anniversary of de Jong DUKE, customers, suppliers and other partners gathered in Rotterdam on September 21st and September 22th to take part in de Jong DUKE’s anniversary event “It’s all about experience”.
The Dutch family owned company de Jong was founded in 1897 by Mr. J.M. de Jong Sr., a blacksmith in Alblasserdam. What once started as a blacksmith, developed since 1957 into an internationally operating organization, which specializes in the design, development and engineering of high-end automatic coffee & espresso machines for corporate and professional use. Today, with manufacturing locations in Sliedrecht and in Taylor, Michigan (USA), de Jong DUKE supplies customers all over the world.
Ever since 1957 a passion for coffee, innovation and design have inspired people at de Jong. In 1957, DUKE Vending started as an Office Coffee Service company. Shortly thereafter, the company built its first coffee dispensing machine. In 1971 de Jong DUKE delivered Europe’s first filterfresh® machine. A true innovation to brew fresh coffee using ground coffee. 2003 was the year the company introduced the CoEx®, the world’s first dual brewer. ConnectMe, an online application developed by de Jong DUKE, offering a full 2-way communication brings coffee machines online since 2010. In 2014 the whole bean coffee & espresso machine Nio was awarded a Red Dot design award, followed by an IF-award in 2015.
Today de Jong DUKE still operates according to the same standards and values as they were laid down by the founder when he started the company. In good stewardship deliver a quality product.
The goal of the anniversary celebration was to strengthen relationships and give de Jong DUKE’s partners the opportunity to an experience. Thursday night all guests were invited for dinner in restaurant Down Under, which was hosted by famous Dutch TV chef, Ramon Beuk. Friday morning several activities were organized throughout the city of Rotterdam. Participants could for example visit the Fenix Food Factory, do a Port of Rotterdam Tour or experience the Van Nelle Factory Tour with an urban guide. Friday afternoon, after lunch, two keynote speakers took the floor. Ap Dijksterhuis, Professor in Social Psychology at Radboud University Nijmegen, entrepreneur, author and traveler explained how we make choices and what role our subconscious plays. The second keynote speaker Huib van Bockel, entrepreneur as well as author introduced a new marketing framework called the Brand Bank Account.
According to Maurits J.C. de Jong the event was a great success. “It’s because of our customers and partners that we are able to celebrate our anniversaries. The event today is to give something back and to connect people. Experiences in the form of activities, an awesome dinner and inspiring lectures. I believe the message of both speakers resonates with who we are and how we wish to be perceived by our customers, employees and partners. Huib did a great job explaining how brands should look at giving more than taking and Ap gave people something to think about with his talk about the importance of the subconscious mind.”
One of the participants probably formulated it best. “A celebration befitting de Jong DUKE; well organized, truly unique and inspiring as well as relaxing in a fantastic location.”
Mission accomplished. The event was a great success and turned out to be something to remember. De Jong DUKE wishes to express their gratitude to all attendees for taking part in the 120I60 anniversary event “it’s all about experience”.
The festivities continue as de Jong DUKE will celebrate the anniversary with the entire staff in a special event for all employees and their spouses at the end of this week. Again, the theme will be connecting people through experiences and educational activities.
