Vegan Fresco, the first vegan supermarket in the Netherlands

The first 100% vegan supermarket opened in Amsterdam last Friday. Founder James Fresco speaks of “a logical step”.

“More than a trend”

The supermarket, located in the Jan Evertsenstraat in Amsterdam-West, was named Vegan Fresco. The range consists exclusively of vegan and plant-based products. On top of the more established vegan products such as oat milk, vegans can also find products here that they usually (had to) order online because there were no other sales outlets: cheese or shampoo, for example. But that is about to change.

Vegetarianism and veganism are trends that have been gaining momentum in recent years. According to the Dutch Vegetarian Union, some 1.5% of Dutch people ate vegan food every day last year, a share that is significantly higher than previous estimates. The growing number of vegan restaurants also shows that the target group is growing.

Founder James Fresco considers a vegan supermarket a logical step in that sense. Through crowdfunding, he collected the necessary funds to open the new store. And it doesn’t stop there: he wants to open three more stores later this year.

The choice of Amsterdam is no coincidence: according to Fresco, it is one of the most progressive cities in the field of veganism. “This is going to explode. It’s not a trend anymore, this is what the world is going to look like”, he says in newspaper Het Parool.