Within Europe, the Netherlands has a dominant market share of European distribution centers (EDCs). More than half of all EDCs in Europe are located in the Netherlands. Approximately 25% of them are established near Schiphol. There is now much evidence to support the hypothesis that a large proportion of EDCs that are established near Schiphol (airport) is Rotterdam-dependent (sea port). In this paper, the authors present a conceptual model to explain the location pattern of EDCs near Schiphol. The theoretical key concepts used for this model are: economies of agglomeration, increasing returns and lock-in logistics. Preliminary results are given of the authors' empirical research to test the model. The theoretical concept of 'lock-in logistics' is included to be able to deal with the resistance to change or inertia of EDCs near Schiphol when they are confronted with negative economies of agglomeration. (A) For the covering abstract of the conference see ITRD E206647.
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