History
In the early 1900s, Mr Jansen from Breda set up an international wholesale business in fruit and vegetables. He supplied fresh fruit and fruit pulp to, among others, HERO Switzerland. The same company found in Mr. Jansen a suitable person to set up N.V. HERO Conserven Breda. This HERO factory, popularly called “The Jam”, settled on the Teteringsedijk. It mainly produced jam for virtually the entire Dutch population. After some time, the assortment was expanded with, among others, the once very famous Perl lemonade and all kinds of preserves. .
Guus, the eldest son of Mr Jansen, became a board member of HERO in the same
period. In 1927, his father had a stately villa built for him and his young Swiss wife on
the factory site; The Villa with the Ship. The older generation of Breda, remember that there was talk of an arranged marriage. Some whisper, however, that his true love was an ordinary Dutch lady from either a shipping family or a family whose surname had something to do with shipping. When Guus and his young Swiss bride wanted a weather vane made for their new home, they chose a ship. According to some, this symbolised the “wedding boat” (“tying the knot”) for future happiness. Other voices claim that it was only Guus who chose the ship as a memento of his forbidden love…
Whatever the true intention was, it is and remains a beautiful and unique weather vane,well known in the region and far beyond. Originally, the ship was forged from copper and coated with gold leaf.
During the Second World War, the gold leaf was whitewashed to fool the Germans, who were confiscating copper everywhere. And with apparent success; the ship was preserved.
Guus and his wife had four children and lived in the villa for several decades. Shortly after the turn of the century, the last descendant died and the property was put up for sale.
After the villa had stood empty for a long time, a young couple from Breda came forward. Daniel and Franka Koeman have a penchant for characteristic buildings and saw plenty of opportunity to tackle the property, which was decades overdue in maintenance. After one and a half years of intensive renovation, the villa was transformed into a small-scale, homely hotel with numerous authentic elements that have been restored in detail. A unique addition to the already existing hotel offering. Franka Koeman enjoyed running the hotel until 2016, before handing it over to Suzanne Kranse in 2017, its current owner.
After a major renovation and restyling, the hotel reopened in April 2017. It is now a charming boutique hotel, due to a beautiful combination of old and new elements. Personality, hospitality and excellent service are at the centre of attention at all times. The special history of the accommodation contributes to the private and intimate living room ambience. A wonderful home away from home after a hard day’s work or a busy work week.