Shops in The Netherlands and Their American Equivalents

April 5, 2018

Just For Fun

During the first month in a new country, there are a lot of things you need to figure out. It all seems so simple later on, but when you’re new, you can’t help but be clueless. I felt this way when I first arrived in Amsterdam, specifically when it came to understanding the shops in the Netherlands and where to buy what.

We knew not to bring things like blow dryers and hair straighteners from the US due to the voltage differences so that was the first thing on our list to buy when we got here.

Now, go to Google and type “where to buy a hair straightener in the Netherlands.” You get posts on Trip Advisor with tourists asking the same question and tourists posting bad answers. There is just no easy list of where to buy stuff. So for those who are moving to the Netherlands, I hope you can find this list and go to Blokker, instead of the less helpful tip on the Trip Advisor thread that sends you to HEMA first.

This is a list of stores in the Netherlands and their American equivalents. Keep in mind, these stores are on a much smaller scale than in the U.S., so when I say Target, don’t expect much, there are no superstores here, especially not in the city.