- Office Depot
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Office Depot Inc. 
Type Public Traded as NYSE: ODP Industry Specialty retail Founded March 1986 Headquarters Boca Raton, Florida, U.S. Number of locations 1,641 (April 2011)[1] Key people Neil R. Austrian, Chairman & CEO
Mike Newman, CFO
Kevin Peters, President, North America[2]Products Office supplies Revenue 
$12.144 billion USD (2009)[3]Operating income $265 million USD (2009)[3]Net income $627 million USD (2009)[3]Employees 42,000 (2009) Website officedepot.com 
Office Depot’s corporate headquarters in Boca Raton, Florida.
Office Depot location in Torrance, California.
An Office Depot. store in Fremont, California.
Office Depot’s “Green” store in Austin, Texas.
Office Depot (NYSE: ODP) is a supplier of office products and provides many services. The company's selection of brand name office supplies includes business machines, computers, computer software and office furniture, while its business services encompass copying, printing, document reproduction, shipping, and computer setup and repair.
An S&P 500 company, Office Depot generates revenues of over US $14 billion annually and has 42,000 employees worldwide. It is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida.
Contents
History
Office Depot was founded in March 1986 by the late F. Patrick Sher, the former chairman and chief executive officer, Dougherty, president, and Jack Kopkin, executive vice president.[4] All were formerly associated with Home-owner's Warehouse, the home improvement company that Sher sold to Service Merchandise in 1983 and renamed Mr. HOW Warehouse. The catalog showroom chain eventually sold off the Mr. HOW units to a variety of buyers, including Builders Square, the home center warehouse subsidiary of Kmart Corp. They envisioned a warehouse-style store for office products where customers could purchase items in bulk for discounted prices. This concept lead to starting Office Depot, and the company opened its first store at Lakes Mall in Lauderdale Lakes, Florida in October 1986.[4] The company saw steady growth throughout the years, and opened the 1000th Office Depot North American retail store in Countryside, Illinois in 2005.
Other events and milestones[5]
- 1988 – Initial public offering of stock.
- 1991 – Expands to the West Coast of the United States by merging with Office Club.
- 1992 - Increases operations in North America by acquiring The Great Canadian Office Supplies Warehouse Chain.
- 1993 - Enters contract stationer business by acquiring Wilson Stationery & Printing Company and Eastman Office Products Corporation.[6]
- 1994 – Begins international expansion by signing joint venture agreement with Grupo Gigante in Mexico and licensing agreements with Israel, Colombia and Poland.
- 1995 – Opens 500th store in North America as well as stores in Mexico and Poland; signs joint venture agreement to open stores in France and licensing agreement to open store in Thailand; establishes Business Services Division (now Business Solutions Division).
- 1996 – Launches B-to-B e-commerce Web site.
- 1997 – Furthers international footprint by venturing into Hungary; operates 45 locations outside the United States.
- 1998 – Launches www.officedepot.com; merges with Viking Office Products, the leading direct marketer of office products in Europe and Australia.
- 1999 – Launches first international Office Depot Web site, www.viking-direct.co.uk; listed on Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.
- 2000 - Enters European contract stationer market with launch of the European Business Services Division.
- 2001 – Acquires 4sure.com.[7]
- 2002 - Begins Viking Direct catalog/direct mail operations in Switzerland, Spain and Portugal; expands into Central America with new retail stores in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Costa Rica through a joint licensing agreement.
- 2003 – Doubles European business with acquisition of Guilbert, S.A.; becomes the first office supply superstore to offer fully functional and comprehensive Spanish website.
- 2004 - Introduces “Green Book” catalog of environmentally preferable products, as well as the first free, nationwide in-store electronics recycling program and free, in-store cell phone and rechargeable battery recycling program in all stores in the U.S. and Canada.
- 2005 - Names Neil Austrian interim Chief Executive Officer; relaunches “Taking Care of Business” tagline.
- 2005 – Names Steve Odland Chairman and Chief Executive Officer[8]
- 2006 - Celebrates its 20th anniversary; acquires Best Office Co., Ltd., Allied Office Products, Papirius s.r.o., and AsiaEc.
- 2007 – Joins US Green Building Council; opens first store in Puerto Rico and new Global Sourcing Office in Shenzhen, China.
- 2008 – Introduces “Office Depot Green” product line; unveils first "Green" store in Austin, Texas and received LEED Gold Certification from USGBC; announces alliance with Netbizz Office Supplies in Singapore, AGE in Sweden, and bigboXX.com in Hong Kong.
- 2009 – Signs franchise agreement with M.H. Alshaya Co.; opens first store in Kuwait.
- 2011 - Furthers international footprint into Dominican Republic.; opens first store in Santo Domingo, capital city, with expansions to follow in all major cities of the country.
Online
The domain officedepot.com attracted at least 37 million visitors annually according to a 2008 Compete.com survey.[9]
Store Layout
Beginning in 2004, then CEO Bruce Nelson introduced its new retail format dubbed M2. Some of the aspects include:
- Products are grouped in highly visible, strategically located "pods"
- Core supplies are housed in the outer perimeter of the store
- Low sightlines throughout the store designed for optimal visibility
- Clear signage that allows for easy purchase
- Furniture and technology at the center of the store
- Copy & Print Depot services in every store
Private label brands
In addition to selling many name brands, Office Depot sells products under several store brands, including:
- Ativa
- Ativa Mobil-IT
- Ativa iSeries
- Café Delray
- Foray
- i.e.
- Office Depot
- Office Depot Green
- RealSpace
- RealSpace Pro
- TUG
Customer Incentive Programs
Office Depot Worklife Rewards[10]
On June 1, 2006, Office Depot launched the Worklife Rewards program, which combined several benefits of the former “Advantage Reward” and Star Teacher programs. The Worklife Rewards program issues members a return of 10% on all ink, toner, paper and Copy & Print services.[11] Beginning in January 2011, Office Depot began requiring email addresses for all Worklife Rewards signups, in an attempt to go green and distribute rewards via email. Other customer benefits include:
- No limit to the amount of rewards members can earn. Rewards are paid in the form of an Office Depot Reward Card when you earn a minimum of $10.
- Reward balances that carry over to the next quarter. If Worklife Rewards members do not earn the required $10 in rewards during a calendar quarter, reward balances will carry over quarter to quarter during the calendar year.
- Online account management.
- Savings on travel, retail and service purchases through the “My Worklife Partners” program at [www.myworkliferewards.com].
- Exclusive coupons as well as in-store savings on select items.
Star Teacher Program[12]
The Star Teacher Program is specifically for educators and school administrators, and incorporates the benefits of the Office Depot Worklife Rewards Program. In addition to Worklife Rewards benefits, the Star Teacher program also carries a 15% discount on copy center purchases. Office Depot holds many events for teachers at its stores, including bi-annual Teacher Appreciation Breakfasts that offer free breakfast, giveaways and discounts for teachers.
5% Back To Schools Program[13]
The 5% Back To Schools Program contributes a portion of a purchase to a local school as a store credit that the school may use to purchase Office Depot merchandise. Schools must register with the program to receive the store credit. Purchases of basic school supplies qualify for the program, some exclusions apply.
Ink and Toner Recycling[14]
Office Depot’s Ink and Toner Recycling program encourages customers to recycle their used ink cartridges. Members of the Office Depot Worklife Rewards or Star Teacher programs can bring in empty cartridges for recycling to an Office Depot store. Customers receive $2 back in rewards (paid in the form of an Office Depot Reward card) for each cartridge recycled, up to 10 a month.[15]
Environmental Programs
Office Depot has structured its environmental strategy around three concepts: Buying Green, Being Green and Selling Green.[16] Initiatives supporting this strategy include:
Buying Green
- By investing more than $20 million in energy efficiency initiatives in 2005, Office Depot reduced its electricity and absolute carbon-dioxide emissions from North American facilities by over 10% in 2006.[17]
- In 2004, Office Depot Office Depot cut all global contracts with Asia Pulp & Paper because of APP’s forestry practices.
Being Green
- In 2008, Office Depot created a dedicated brand of green office products: Office Depot Green™,[18] and built the world’s first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified retail store prototype in Austin, TX. The store obtained LEED Gold certification from the US Green Building Council (USGBC).[19]
- Also in 2008, Office Depot won the BSI British Standards award for Innovation. These awards are open to any UK organization certified to ISO 14001, which is the world’s only international environmental management system standard.[20]
- In Europe, Office Depot’s UK Headquarters is a green building, having achieved a BREEAM “Very Good” Rating.[21]
- In 2010, Office Depot's Headquarters in Boca Raton, FL was awarded LEED Gold certification from the US Green Building Council for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance.[22]
Selling Green
- Office Depot offers more than 6,500 products with environmental attributes and certifications.[23]
- Office Depot offers numerous green solutions for its customers, including The Green Book™, Greener Office website, Ink and Toner Cartridge Recycling Program and a Tech Recycling Service.[23]
Sponsorships
In 2005, Office Depot became the “Official Office Products Partner of NASCAR.,[24]” a title the company continues to hold. Also in 2005, Office Depot signed on as the primary sponsor of the #99 Office Depot Ford, owned by Roush Fenway Racing and driven by Carl Edwards.
In 2008, Office Depot announced that it would become co-primary sponsor for Tony Stewart and the No. 14 Chevrolet at Stewart-Haas Racing in 2009.[25]
Activities per country
Stores owned by and operated under the Office Depot name [26]
United States
Israel
Canada (Planned to close June 11, 2011)[27]
France
Japan
Hungary
Poland
Puerto Rico
Dominican Republic
Sweden
South Korea
Stores operating with the Office Depot name under joint venture / license agreements [26]
Mexico (with Grupo Gigante's joint venture)
Costa Rica
El Salvador
Guatemala
Honduras
Panama
Thailand [28]
Colombia
References
- ^ Office Depot Announces First Quarter 2011 Results
- ^ OfficeDepot.com, Executive Officers at Office Depot, [1], Retrieved 2010-11-02.
- ^ a b c Yahoo! Finance, Office Depot, Inc. (ODP) Income Statement, [2], Retrieved 2010-07-27.
- ^ a b FundingUniverse.com, "Office Depot, Inc. - Company History," [3], Retrieved 2010-02-26.
- ^ Idea Group Publishing, "Office Depot's E-Commerce Evolution," [4], Retrieved 2009-11-05.
- ^ CNNMoney.com, "Diversified dollars: 7 corporate programs," [5], Retrieved 2009-11-05.
- ^ internetretailer.com, "Office Depot to acquire Computers4Sure.com and Solutions4Sure.com," [6], Retrieved 2009-11-05.
- ^ BusinessWeek.com, "Steve Odland, Executive Profile and Biography." [7], Retrieved 2009-11-05.
- ^ Compete.com, Site Profile for officedepot.com, [8], Retrieved 2009-10-26.
- ^ MyWorklifeRewards.com, "Office Depot Worklife Rewards Program," [9], Retrieved 2009-11-24.
- ^ Bohen, Colleen (2007-09-24). "TWICE: Office Depot Expands Rewards Program". http://www.twice.com/article/CA6480927.html?industryid=23098. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
- ^ MyStarTeacher.com, "Office Depot Star Teacher Program," [10], Retrieved 2009-11-24.
- ^ OfficeDepot.com, "5% Back to Schools Program*," [11], Retrieved 2009-11-24.
- ^ MediaRelations.OfficeDepot.cc, "Ink and Toner Cartridge Recycling," [12], Retrieved 2009-11-24.
- ^ MyWorklifeRewards.com, "Ink Depot/Ink Recycling," [13], Retrieved 2010-09-29.
- ^ officedepot.cc, "Office Depot - Buying Green, Being Green and Selling Green," [14], Retrieved 2010-07-27.
- ^ exceldryer.com, "Excel Dryer | Hand Dryers | Case Study: Office Depot," [15], Retrieved 2010-07-27.
- ^ EnvironmentalLeader.com, "Office Depot Launches Green Product Line," [16], Retrieved 2010-07-27
- ^ GreenMomentum.com, "Office Depot receives LEED Gold Certification," [17], Retrieved 2010-07-27
- ^ BSIGroup.com, "BSI British Standards recognizes environment champions in ISO 14001 Awards," [18], Retrieved 2010-07-27
- ^ BusinessLeader.com, "Office Depot Wins Environmental Leadership Award - Leader Profiles - SouthFloridaNewsWire.com," [19], Retrieved 2010-07-27
- ^ worldinteriordesignnetwork.com, "Office Depot’s Florida HQ gets LEED-Gold certification," [20], Retrieved 2010-10-18
- ^ a b USChamber.com, "Business Civic Leadership Center - Earth Day 2010," [21], Retrieved 2010-07-27
- ^ NASCARPartners.com, Power - NASCAR Partners, [22], Retrieved 2009-12-15.
- ^ stewart-haas-racing.com, Sponsors 2009, [23], Retrieved 2009-12-15.
- ^ a b Office Depot - 2008 Annual Report, [24], Retrieved 2009-10-26.
- ^ "One-stop shops win again Office Depot latest specialty chain to close - Winnipeg Free Press". 2011-04-20. http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/one-stop-shops-win-again-120264829.html. Retrieved 2011-04-20.
- ^ "Office Depot Company Information - SEC Filings". 2008-02-26. http://investor.officedepot.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=94746&p=irol-sec. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
External links
Categories:- Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange
- Office supply companies of the United States
- Companies based in Boca Raton, Florida
- Retail companies of the United States
- Retail companies established in 1986
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