Meet The Buyers at Modefabriek: Perfectly Basics

In Meet the Buyers at Modefabriek we introduce you weekly to buyers of various multi-brand stores, great boutiques, online marketplaces and sustainable stores. This week: Tanja Dirksen from Perfectly Basics. 

From high-quality basic black and white T-shirts to an exclusive high-fashion collection - since 2006 Perfectly Basics has rapidly grown into one of the most beautiful webshops in the Netherlands and neighbouring countries. Perfectly Basics (PB) believes in 'slow fashion'. They stand for high-quality fashion that is not made to last only 1 or 2 seasons. The typical Perfectly Basics style? Think of feminine silk blouses, the perfect jeans and a leather jacket that only gets more beautiful with age. It is better to build a sustainable wardrobe with precious timeless pieces than reinventing the wheel every season with 'disposable fashion'. 

Tanja Dirksen has been working as a Buyer at Perfectly Basics for three years and, together with owner Birgit Van Den Beemt-Blaas, she is responsible for buying the collections. In addition, she also partly does the styling in the studio. A nice combination, because it is an extension of the buying process. First Tanja purchases the item, then she shows how you can wear it through her styling.

"As a buyer, you have to have a good sense of what's going on, because you want to bring the right products at the right time. Now I have to say that at PB we also stay very close to ourselves by always looking for a form of timelessness in everything we buy. We stand for a sustainable wardrobe. That is why the focus is always on long-term best-selling styles of brands and we work with our partners as much as possible in the season so that we can switch quickly. Meanwhile, our beauty range is almost as extensive as our clothing range. This year is also a special year for us because it’s our 15th anniversary, which is quite an achievement based on the fact that we have been an online shop ever since the start. In recent years we have grown mainly organically, people know how to find us and keep coming back more often." 

Why is it relevant for you to visit a trade fair like Modefabriek? 

"A fair like Modefabriek is often the first introduction to the new collections and we really like the focus on Dutch brands. It is also an ideal way to maintain business relationships in a short period of time. We never skip Modefabriek and have made contact with fun and interesting brands there for the first time, with whom we now work very successfully." 

What are you most looking forward to in the coming purchasing season?

"I am looking forward to expanding our buying team which is necessary. PB is still growing in a rapid pace and we are always looking for unique, fun and surprising new brands to add to our portfolio. I am also looking forward to intensify the cooperation with our brands even more, because we still see many opportunities that we would like to use in the future."