The Max Verstappen shop: the whole world shops in Swalmen
Published on 13 May 2025 by de redactie
There is no talk of Swalmen without talk of the Max Verstappen shop. Home to every kind of Max Verstappen merchandise, it also showcases the impressive career of the four-time world champion, which attracts fans from far and wide.
A genial calm reigns over the eleventh hour of any given day of the week in the Limburg town of Swalmen, close to Roermond and not far from the German border. Germans passing through on their way to a day of shopping are diverted from the main road through the sleepy town streets. One place catches their eye, all heads turn to look at it: the Max Verstappen shop. Men and women of all shapes and sizes park their cars, grab their bags and float through the doors.
Once a guest has crossed the threshold, eyes are immediately drawn to the memorabilia in the store. The jewel in the crown is, without a doubt, the Red Bull RB12. It’s the car Max Verstappen drove on that memorable day on Pentecost in 2016, when both Mercedes fortuitously, or unfortunately, depending on who you ask, crashed into each other and out of the race, and Max Verstappen charged to his first Formula 1 Grand Prix win.
Verstappen’s story comes to life in Swalmen, among countless rare racing memorabilia, exhibited in different spots throughout the store – in the vitrines, frames, and on the displays. The helmets, race overalls and trophies from his karting days, the race overall of his first win in Barcelona and the ‘Viva Las Vegas’ overall inspired by Elvis Presley, still sporting it’s champagne stains, live out their golden years in the store. Further along, displays show the ‘Poleman of the Year 2024’-belt and the sprint race trophy from the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix - an unsuspecting second place trophy that clinched him his latest world title. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
“Well look at it this way, it’s still nice and dirty, and there are even dead flies on it”, owner Roger Hermans says proudly, referring to the helmet Verstappen wore when he claimed his first victory. “Really, we should make two little holes in the display case so you can smell the sweat.”
Hermans has welcomed all kinds of visitors from abroad, both near – Germans and Belgians – to much farther afield. “One time there were six people who had traveled all the way from Japan. Another time, four people from China made the trip here”, Hermans reminisces, smiling. The story of a young Brit also comes to mind: “He had seen so much about the store online, that he said to his mother: ‘That’s where I want to go’. Once he turned eighteen, his parents let him go on a shopping spree. He bought a bunch of stuff, stepped into a taxi and flew via Düsseldorf back home. How cool is that?”, Hermans recalls, fondly.
More information, the address and opening times of the Max Verstappen store in Swalmen you can find here: https://www.verstappen.com/store/max-verstappen-store-swalmen
Or visit the Max Verstappen shop in Batavia Stad Fashion Outlet in Lelystad: https://www.verstappen.com/store/max-verstappen-batavia-stad
