Press release

El HEMA first days: huge success

pick up line t-shirts, chocolate sprinkles, tea towels and cut-up djellabas sold out immediately

Amsterdam, August 26th 2007 (18:00) - El HEMA was a huge success this weekend. Crowds lined up in front of the store, pushing around the racks, and there were a lot of enthousiastic reactions from the audience! The cut-up djellaba, the El HEMA chocolate sprinkles and the Arabic pick up line t-shirts sold out on Sunday.

Enlarge

In de rij voor El HEMA - During the opening weekend of El HEMA, a long line of visitors was in front of the exhibits entrance all day long. Willem Velthoven

The El HEMA exhibition and restaurant are open in the evenings of Thursday through Saturday and on Sunday afternoon. The most successful products will be on display, but will only be on sale again in two weeks.

Since the opening on Friday night, El HEMA has been super busy. Long queues formed in front of the imaginary Arabic HEMA. There was pushing around the shelves and more long lines at the cash register. Even with a maximum of 2 items per client several products sold out on Sunday afternoon. "We were prepared for a lot of people", said Willem Velthoven, "but not that this many people would want to have the Arabic products. We will need the next two weeks to replenish the supplies of the pick-up line t-shirts, the chocolate sprinkles and the cut-up djellaba."

Opening times:

El HEMA's new opening times (from 21 November 2007): Wednesday to Saturday from 12:00 to 20:00 and on Sunday from 14:00 to 18:00.

Special events:

The El Hema shopping night, with lectures, presentations and performances will be every Thursday. With on the 6th of September experimental films from the Middle East and North Africa, and on Thursday September 27th a workshop on the secrets of henna. The Lebanese designer Pascal Zoghbi will teach on Arabic Kufi calligraphy on the 28th and 29th of September.