- The Container Store
-
The Container Store 
Type Private Industry Retail Founded Dallas, Texas (1978) Headquarters Coppell, Texas Number of locations 51 (October 2011)[1] Key people Kip Tindell (CEO & Chairman)
Garrett Boone(Chairman Emeritus)
Melissa Reiff(President)
Sharon Tindell (Chief Merchandising Officer)Revenue 
USD $650 millionOwner(s) Leonard Green & Partners Employees 4,000 Website www.containerstore.com 
The Container Store in Schaumburg, Illinois
The Container Store in Pasadena, CaliforniaThe Container Store is a specialty retail chain that sells storage solutions for home and office.
On July 1, 1978, The Container Store opened its doors in a small, 1,600-square-foot (150 m2) retail space in Dallas. Kip Tindell (Chairman and CEO), Garrett Boone (Chairman Emeritus), and Architect John Mullen opened a retail store offering an exceptional and eclectic mix of products devoted to helping people simplify their lives. In doing so, they originated a completely new category of retailing, that of storage and organization. Initial cash capital was provided by Garrett, his father, and John Mullen, who were founding directors, officers and shareholders of the company.[2][3][4] The company has reported an average of 20% annual growth every year that it has been in operation.[5][6] In 1999, the company bought one of its main suppliers, elfa International, a Swedish corporation that specializes in shelving and storage units.[7]
Company president Melissa Reiff has credited the company's devotion to recruiting and retaining a highly qualified workforce as one of the keys to its success.[6] The company has made Fortune's list of "100 Best Places to Work in America" in each of the past 12 years, through 2011.[8]
In February 2007, its owners announced that they were "exploring alternatives," including selling the company to private investors, in order to fund future growth. They stated that they would not sell unless they received guarantees that the corporate culture was preserved. On July 2, 2007, the company announced that they had closed a deal with a private equity firm based in Los Angeles, Leonard Green & Partners, which obtained a majority stake.[9][10][11]
History of Growth: Garrett Boone and Kip Tindell met while working in the paint department of Montgomery Ward.[12] The first store location outside Texas opened in Atlanta, Georgia in April 1991.[13] By December 1998, the chain had grown to 18 stores in operation.[14] In October 2000, its first New York metropolitan area store opened.[15] As of November 2004, it had 33 locations,[16] and reached 38 with the opening of the first Los Angeles area location in October 2006.[5] Its first Missouri store opened in early 2007, taking the spot of a former location of the recently-defunct Organized Living chain.[17]
Following the deal with Leonard Green announced in July 2007, the company announced plans to open 29 more stores in the next five years. The first Arkansas location (Little Rock) opened in March 2008, followed by the first Arizona location (Scottsdale) in the summer, and the first Minnesota location (Edina) and second Ohio location (Cincinnati) that fall.[11]
See also
- Organized Living, chain that closed in 2005
- Hold Everything, chain that closed in 2006
- Storables
Notes
- ^ Store Locator at containerstore.com
- ^ Hoover's Inc. fact sheet on The Container Store
- ^ "Container Store's workers huddle up to help you out". USA Today. Apr. 29, 2002. http://www.usatoday.com/money/covers/2002-04-30-container-store.htm. Retrieved Oct. 26, 2009.
- ^ Containerstore.com, About Us, Retrieved 2009-10-16
- ^ a b "Container Store finds right box in Denver". Rocky Mountain News. Oct. 10, 2006. http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/other_business/article/0,2777,DRMN_23916_5054649,00.html. Retrieved Oct. 26, 2009.
- ^ a b Maria Halkias."Pioneering retailer in storage niche leaves rivals in dust," The Dallas Morning News, January 31, 2007
- ^ Howell, Arnesa A. (June 5, 2007). "Lessons from a colossal cleanup". CNNMoney.com. http://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2007/06/01/100050981/index.htm. Retrieved Oct. 26, 2009.
- ^ Fortune: 100 Best Companies to Work For, CNN.com, 2007
- ^ "Container Store put on market: Retailer wants to use equity but preserve workplace culture," The Dallas Morning News/KRT, February 17, 2007
- ^ "Container Store Agrees to Partner with Leonard Green". The New York Times. July 3, 2007. http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/07/03/container-store-agrees-to-partner-with-leonard-green/?scp=4&sq=%22the%20container%20store%22&st=cse. Retrieved Oct. 26, 2009.
- ^ a b "Container Store says expansion plan on track". The Dallas Morning News. March 7, 2008. http://www.dentonrc.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/030808dnbuscontainerstore.2fd4d8c6.html. Retrieved Oct. 26, 2009.
- ^ "They Fill A Niche And A Need". The Record (Bergen County). May 5, 2002. http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-52845284.html. Retrieved Oct. 27, 2009.
- ^ "Getting it together in vogue in the '90s". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Mar. 23, 1991. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=AT&p_theme=at&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB7D0A277323802&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM. Retrieved Oct. 27, 2009.
- ^ Hays, Constance L. (Dec. 23, 1998). "Service Takes a Holiday; These Days the Customer Isn't Always Treated Right". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1998/12/23/business/service-takes-a-holiday-these-days-the-customer-isn-t-always-treated-right.html?pagewanted=all. Retrieved Oct. 26, 2009.
- ^ Beller, Peter (Sept. 24, 2000). "The Container Store Opens Its First New York Site". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/24/nyregion/in-business-the-container-store-opens-its-first-new-york-site.html?scp=1&sq=%22the%20container%20store%22&st=cse. Retrieved Oct. 26, 2009.
- ^ Powers, Vicki (Nov. 1, 2004). "Finding Workers Who Fit". CNNMoney.com. http://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2004/11/01/8189362/index.htm. Retrieved Oct. 26, 2009.
- ^ "Container Store will open in St. Louis at Brentwood Square". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Oct. 11, 2006. http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-152721323.html. Retrieved Oct. 27, 2009.
External links
Categories:- Private equity portfolio companies
- Retail companies of the United States
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