Office Depot Buys Office Max
OfficeMax is an American office supplies retailer founded in 1988. It is now a subsidiary of The ODP Corporation, which is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida.[1] As of December 2012, OfficeMax operated 941 stores in 47 states, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Mexico. In 2012, net sales were $6.9 billion, down from $8.3 billion in 2008.[2]
office depot buys office max
On February 20, 2013, an all-stock merger between Office Depot and OfficeMax was announced.[3] The merger was completed on November 5, 2013,[4] creating the largest U.S. office-supplies chain.[3] The OfficeMax name continues to serve as a brand of The ODP Corporation.
On April 1, 1988, OfficeMax was founded in Cleveland, Ohio, by Bob Hurwitz and Michael Feuer. Hurwitz served as executive chairman and chief executive officer, and Feuer was the president and chief operating officer. On July 5, 1988, OfficeMax opened its first retail store in the Golden Gate Shopping Center in Mayfield Heights, Ohio; after being open for 27 years, this location closed on May 16, 2015. Hurwitz left the company in 1993 and Feuer became the chairman and chief executive officer.[5]
It was announced February 20, 2013, that OfficeMax and Office Depot would combine in an all-stock deal, creating the largest U.S. office-supplies chain.[3] However, as of May 2, 2013, a lawsuit filed by a stockholder, Hollander v. OfficeMax Inc et al., U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, No. 13-3330 was filed to block the merger, which would pay all OfficeMax shareholders 2.69 shares of Office Depot in exchange for a single share in OfficeMax. Eric Hollander said in a statement "OfficeMax, if properly exposed to the market for corporate control, would bring a price materially in excess of the amount offered in the proposed transaction..."[23] Office Depot said on May 5, 2013, that it would hold a special meeting with shareholders after the staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission finished reviewing documents relating to its merger with OfficeMax. On November 5, 2013, the merger was completed.[24] On December 10, 2013, Office Depot, Inc. announced that it had chosen Boca Raton, Florida for its global headquarters post-merger, closing the OfficeMax headquarters in Naperville, IL.[25]
BOCA RATON, Fla. & NAPERVILLE, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Office Depot, Inc. and OfficeMax Incorporated today announced the completion of their merger of equals, creating a stronger, more competitive and more efficient global provider of office products, services and solutions. The combined company will use the name Office Depot, Inc. and will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol ODP.
Office Depot, Inc. is a single source for everything customers need to make their workplaces more productive, including the latest technology, core office supplies, print and document services, business services, facilities products, furniture, and school essentials.
Customers can interact with each brand as they always have, including shopping at Office Depot and OfficeMax stores and online at www.officedepot.com and www.officemax.com. Each company will maintain its respective loyalty programs and expects to announce a combined loyalty program sometime in 2014.
Office Depot, Inc. is a resource and a catalyst to help customers work better. We are a single source for everything customers need to be more productive, including the latest technology, core office supplies, print and document services, business services, facilities products, furniture, and school essentials.
Office Depot, Inc. Today Office Depot, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODP) is a leading provider of business services and supplies, products and technology solutions through its fully integrated omni-channel platform of approximately 1,400 stores, online presence, and dedicated sales professionals and technicians to small, medium and enterprise businesses. Through its banner brands Office Depot, OfficeMax, CompuCom and Grand&Toy, the company offers its customers the tools and resources they need to focus on their passion of starting, growing and running their business. For more information, visit news.officedepot.com and follow @officedepot on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Dramatic Growth Over 25 Years While Office Depot is clearly a powerful organization today, the Company's beginnings were quite modest. Office Depot was founded in 1986 and opened its first store in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. In late 1987, David I. Fuente assumed the post of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the fledging company, and took Office Depot public in 1988. The Executive Team immediately began to execute an ambitious plan to expand the Company's footprint in key U.S. markets. The results were dramatic: By the end of 1990 Office Depot had 173 stores in 27 states. That same year, Office Depot announced its merger with The Office Club, Inc., becoming the largest office products retailer in North America.
In 1998, Office Depot merged with Viking Office Products, a public company and the world's leading direct mail marketer of office products. The addition of Viking to the Office Depot organization not only vastly expanded Office Depot's international presence, but also made the Company the leading provider of office products and services in the world.
That same year, Office Depot began to leverage the Internet aggressively, launching the first of a number of new Web sites, www.officedepot.com. The award-winning site established Office Depot as the industry's technology leader, expanded its domestic e-commerce capabilities, and ultimately extended the range of products and services the Company could offer its customers. The following year, the Company launched its first European e-commerce site, www.viking-direct.co.uk, in the U.K. By 2005, the Company had over 30 international Web sites. Worldwide e-commerce sales in 2004 totaled $3.1 billion.
From basic office supplies, such as printer paper and labels, to office equipment, like file cabinets and stylish office furniture, Office Depot and OfficeMax have the office products you need to get the job done. Maintain a well-stocked office breakroom. Save on printer ink and toner to keep your office efficient and productive. Utilize our custom online printing and IT services for small businesses to stand out from the competition through our Print & Copy services. Create promotional products, custom business cards, custom stampers, flyers and posters to strengthen your brand. Beyond the office, our wide selection of school supplies including backpacks, notebooks, pens and laptop computers to help your student excel. Office Depot and OfficeMax have a variety of school uniforms, teacher resources, the latest technology for laptop computers and notebooks, and school supply lists to keep your back to school shopping focused.
The move would combine the No. 2 and No. 3 office supply retailer and lead to consolidation in an industry that analysts have said for years is overstored. It reflects the changing retail landscape as "big box" stores become outmoded and more people shop online.
But the rise of Web retailers like Amazon.com and more expansion into office supply categories by discounters like Costco and Wal-Mart has been tough on the sector. In addition, office suppliers were slow to bounce back from the recession, as consumers and small businesses alike cut back on ordering office products.
"We think a potential merger would result in a significant number of store closings, and thus an improvement in the overall economics of the office supply retail business," said S&P analyst Ian Gordon on Tuesday. "This area has been under pressure from a weak business spending environment and competition from non-traditional channels like Amazon in our view."
The office supply sector is worth about $21.2 billion, according to research firm IBISWorld Inc. in Santa Monica, Calif. Of that, Staples holds a 35 percent market share, Office Depot 26.1 and Office Max 15.6.
The deal still has to go through shareholder and regulatory approvals, and office supply mergers have been questioned by regulators in the past. In 1997, Staples Inc. attempted to buy Office Depot but the deal was nixed by the Federal Trade Commission due to concerns the combined company would have too much of a competitive advantage in the marketplace.
Retail office supplies giant Staples Friday said it plans to acquire the consumer-focused business of Office Depot, including the Office Depot and OfficeMax brand names, in a $1 billion deal that would leave Office Depot completely focused on the business-to-business market.
Such a sale would leave Office Depot a business-to-business product and services company, including its CompuCom business, its Grand & Toy Canadian-focused workplace products and solutions provider, its Office Depot federation of smaller office supply dealers acquired over the years, its B2B digital platform technology business, its corporate office, its global sourcing office and its other sourcing, supply chain and logistics assets.
NEIL AUSTRIAN: The Internet changed everything and I think all you had to do in '97 was walk into Wal-Mart and they may have had 100 to 200 square feet of office supplies and today they've got thousands of square feet of office supplies.
NOGUCHI: Chukumba says brick and mortar office supply retailers have a very stable business, from small to large business clients who want one-stop shops that can deliver supplies quickly in a single delivery. Office Depot and Office Max said they will continue to compete as rivals until the deal closes, which they expect to happen by the end of the year.
The transaction, which was unanimously approved by the Board of Directors of both companies, will create a stronger, more efficient global provider better able to compete in the rapidly changing office solutions industry.
Staples (ticker: SPLS ), the stronger of the two, has already shown that it can effectively and profitably sell other non-office supplies through that channel, with facilities and breakroom now representing over $1 billion in sales for their contract segment and this product category is still growing at a double-digit rate for them this year. 041b061a72