Staples Inc.
Office-supply retailer and business-services provider serving consumers, workplaces, and organizational buyers.
Last updated October 29, 2026
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Overview
Staples Inc. is an American office-supply retailer and business-services company whose operations include stores, e-commerce, commercial delivery, printing, workplace technology, furniture, facility supplies, and procurement services. The business was founded in 1986 by Leo Kahn, Thomas G. Stemberg, and Myra Hart, with its first store opening in the Brighton neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. Stemberg’s original insight came from being unable to obtain a printer ribbon when a local supplier was closed for a holiday. Drawing on his supermarket-industry experience, he envisioned a large-format store that would make routine office necessities broadly available and convenient. Staples expanded rapidly through a combination of new stores, acquisitions, catalog sales, and later online commerce. It entered Canada in 1991 under the Business Depot name and expanded into the United Kingdom and continental Europe during the following decade. In the United States, its growth was supported by acquisitions including Quill Corporation, a major catalog and online office-supply seller, and Medical Arts Press. The company also pursued adjacent businesses, including telecommunications, although its Staples Communications operation was later divested. In 2008, Staples acquired Corporate Express, strengthening its position in wholesale office supplies and business-to-business distribution. The company became a prominent participant in the consolidation of office-supply retail. A proposed merger with Office Depot in 1996 was rejected after antitrust scrutiny, and a second proposed Office Depot acquisition announced in 2015 was blocked by a federal court following a challenge by the Federal Trade Commission. The failed transaction coincided with a structural shift in the industry: customers increasingly used e-commerce, mass merchants, specialist technology retailers, and direct commercial suppliers. Staples responded by closing stores, emphasizing digital ordering and delivery, and repositioning itself as a provider of workplace solutions rather than solely as a chain of physical office-supply stores. Sycamore Partners acquired Staples in 2017 in a transaction valued at approximately $6.9 billion and took the company private. The post-acquisition structure separated United States retail, Canadian retail, and the North American delivery and business-to-business operations into independently managed entities that continued to use the Staples name. Staples subsequently introduced a portfolio of private-label brands, refreshed its visual identity, expanded services for businesses, and tested the Staples Connect store concept with co-working, event, technology, and content-creation features. Staples continues to serve small businesses, large organizations, schools, government entities, and household consumers. Its offer extends beyond paper and stationery to include office furniture, computers and accessories, printers and consumables, break-room and janitorial products, packing and shipping supplies, print and marketing services, technology support, and delivery-based procurement. The brand’s current positioning combines retail access with B2B fulfillment and workplace services, although the precise relationship among the separately managed Staples entities is shaped by ownership and operating arrangements under Sycamore Partners.
History
Staples originated in 1985 when Thomas G. Stemberg, then working on a business proposal, needed a printer ribbon during a holiday closure and could not obtain one locally. The experience led him to imagine an office-supply superstore modeled partly on the scale and convenience of supermarket retail. Stemberg joined with Leo Kahn, a former rival from the New England supermarket industry, and Myra Hart. Backing included Bain Capital, whose co-founder Mitt Romney served on the company’s board for many years. The first Staples store opened in Brighton, Massachusetts, on May 1, 1986. The format offered a broad selection of stationery, paper, office machines, furniture, and related supplies in a warehouse-style environment. Staples expanded through new-store openings and acquisitions, reaching the Fortune 500 by 1996. It entered Canada in 1991 through a subsidiary initially branded Business Depot, opened its first Canadian store in Vaughan, Ontario, and subsequently adopted the Staples name. International expansion followed in the United Kingdom and continental Europe. Staples became one of the leading participants in the office-supply retail sector. It acquired Quill Corporation, a catalog and online office-supply business, and later acquired Medical Arts Press, which became part of Quill. The company also experimented with adjacent sectors. Its purchase of Claricom led to the creation of Staples Communications, but the telecommunications business was eventually sold. Staples broadened its retail reach through a 2005 arrangement with Ahold to place Staples-branded store-within-store sections in Stop & Shop and Giant Food supermarkets, later extending the arrangement to Tops locations. In 2008, the acquisition of Corporate Express expanded Staples’ international and wholesale distribution capabilities. Competition and regulation shaped the company’s next phase. Staples and Office Depot announced a merger plan in 1996, but the Federal Trade Commission argued that the combination could raise office-supply prices in local markets. A federal court denied the transaction after the FTC’s challenge, and the two companies continued competing independently. Staples later acquired the naming rights to the Staples Center in Los Angeles, shortly before the arena opened in 1999; the venue was renamed Crypto.com Arena in 2021, after the naming-rights arrangement had changed. By the 2010s, online retail, mass merchants, technology specialists, and direct commercial suppliers were pressuring the traditional store model. In 2014 Staples announced plans to close as many as 225 North American stores and to concentrate on e-commerce and cost reduction. In 2015 it proposed buying Office Depot, which had recently acquired OfficeMax. The FTC filed suit, asserting that the deal threatened competition in the market for large commercial office-supply contracts. In May 2016 the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted a preliminary injunction, and the transaction was abandoned. Staples paid a reported $250 million breakup fee. Staples subsequently sold or exited several overseas operations. Its British stores were sold to Hilco Capital in 2016 and rebranded Office Outlet. Staples Europe was sold to Cerberus Capital Management, with the transaction closing in February 2017. In the same year, Sycamore Partners acquired Staples for approximately $6.9 billion. The private transaction separated the North American delivery business, U.S. retail, and Canadian retail into independently managed and capitalized entities using the Staples name. Under private ownership, Staples emphasized business-to-business delivery, procurement, workplace services, and digital commerce. The company used the “It’s Pro Time” campaign to underscore its professional orientation and in 2019 presented itself as a “worklife fulfillment” company. It introduced the Staples Connect concept, private-label ranges, and services intended to make stores useful for meetings, events, co-working, printing, and content creation. Staples later added package-return services, including Amazon returns and partnerships with Happy Returns, Optoro, and UPS. In 2025, it announced a planned partnership with Now Optics to place eye-care offices in selected Staples stores. The brand therefore remains rooted in office-supply retail while operating across a wider workplace-services and commercial-fulfillment ecosystem.
- 2025
Planned in-store eye-care partnership
[1]Staples announces a partnership with Now Optics to open eye-care offices in selected stores.
- 2023
Amazon return service expands
[1]Participating Staples stores begin accepting Amazon returns.
- 2019
Brand refresh and Staples Connect
[1]Staples unveils a new identity, private-label brands, and a store concept focused on workplace services and community use.
- 2017
Acquisition by Sycamore Partners
[1]Sycamore Partners takes Staples private and separates its principal North American operating businesses.
- 2016
Second Office Depot deal abandoned
[1]A federal injunction prevents the proposed acquisition, which Staples subsequently abandons.
- 2014
Store-closure and e-commerce shift
[1]Staples announces plans to close up to 225 North American stores and focus more heavily on online sales.
- 2008
Corporate Express acquisition
[1]Staples acquires Corporate Express, expanding its wholesale and business-supply capabilities.
- 1998
Quill Corporation acquisition
[1]Staples acquires Quill, strengthening catalog and online office-supply distribution.
- 1996
Staples reaches the Fortune 500
[1]The company enters the Fortune 500 during its rapid expansion period.
- 1996
First proposed Office Depot merger is blocked
[1]Antitrust authorities oppose a proposed Staples–Office Depot merger over competition concerns.
Products and positioning
A one-stop workplace and office-supply platform combining consumer retail, commercial delivery, private-label products, and business services.
Office supplies · 1986
Staples retail assortment
The core assortment includes paper, notebooks, writing instruments, filing products, organizers, labels, desk accessories, and other everyday workplace consumables. It serves home users, students, small businesses, schools, and corporate offices through stores and digital channels.
B2B office supplies
Quill
Quill is a catalog and e-commerce office-supply business acquired by Staples. It provides supplies, furniture, technology products, cleaning products, and workplace essentials, with an emphasis on organizational and business purchasers.
Business services
Staples Print and Marketing Services
Staples offers document printing, copying, binding, signs, promotional materials, business cards, and related production services. The service connects physical stores with online ordering and is intended for businesses, organizations, students, and consumers.
Private label · 2019
Staples private-label brands
The private-label portfolio introduced during the 2019 rebrand includes Tru Red office products, Coastwide Professional facility supplies, NXT Technologies accessories, Perk break-room products, and Union & Scale furniture.
Retail format and workplace services · 2019
Staples Connect
Staples Connect is a store concept incorporating services such as co-working space, meeting and event facilities, technology support, and selected podcast-production amenities. It was tested in the Boston area and adapted from related experimentation in Canada.
Controversies
2026
Court rejects Staples' standing argument in TCPA text-message case
In Rubin v. Staples, Inc., a New Jersey federal court rejected Staples' argument that the plaintiff lacked standing in a case alleging that Staples sent unwanted text messages after the plaintiff asked it to stop. The court said whether the messages violated the TCPA was a merits question for discovery; the ruling did not determine liability.
2020
Staples.com customer information accessed in data breach
Staples Inc. disclosed that hackers accessed limited customer information relating to fewer than 2,500 Staples.com orders. The company said the breach did not affect Staples Promotional Products.
Marketing campaigns
- 2017It’s Pro Time
United States
The campaign repositioned Staples around professional customers and business services rather than only physical-store shopping.
Outcome. It supported the company’s post-merger strategic pivot toward B2B and workplace solutions.
- 2008Gift it for Free
United States
Staples used Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and a character called Coach Tom to promote a holiday sweepstakes offering merchandise prizes.
Outcome. The campaign represented an early expansion of Staples advertising into social-media channels.
- 2005Easy Button
United States · Canada · Germany
A red push-button first shown as a fictional advertising device became a physical promotional product after customers asked to buy it.
Outcome. The product became a widely recognized brand symbol and sold more than one million units by the end of 2006, according to the referenced material.
- 2004Alice Cooper back-to-school campaign
United States
Staples used Alice Cooper and a lyric-based joke involving “School’s out forever” to promote school-supply shopping.
Outcome. The campaign extended the brand’s humorous back-to-school advertising style.
- 2003That was easy
United States · Canada · United Kingdom
Staples replaced its earlier “Yeah, we’ve got that” positioning with the “That was easy” platform, making convenience the central promise of its advertising.
Outcome. The platform became one of Staples’ most recognizable long-running advertising identities.
- 1995Staples back-to-school campaign
United States
A recurring back-to-school campaign used the Christmas song “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” while portraying a parent enthusiastically shopping for school supplies.
Outcome. The campaign ran in various forms for several years and became a notable seasonal advertising property.
Brand decisions
2021
Renew attempt to acquire Office DepotM&ABackground
Staples again pursued consolidation in the office-supply sector.
Action taken
Staples submitted another offer for Office Depot.
Aftermath
The offer was rejected in 2022 and did not result in a transaction.
2019
Launch Staples Connect and workplace-services positioningStrategyBackground
Staples sought to make selected stores useful beyond conventional office-supply purchasing.
Action taken
The company tested co-working, event, meeting, technology, and podcasting features while presenting itself as a workplace-solutions provider.
Aftermath
The concept supplemented, rather than replaced, Staples’ retail and commercial-delivery channels.
2017
Sell Staples to Sycamore PartnersM&ABackground
The company was repositioning after the failed Office Depot transaction and continued pressure on public office-supply retail.
Action taken
Sycamore Partners acquired Staples in a take-private transaction and reorganized its major operating businesses into separate entities.
Aftermath
Staples increased its focus on B2B delivery, e-commerce, private-label products, and workplace services.
Transaction value. Approximately $6.9 billion (2017)
2015
Propose acquisition of Office DepotM&ABackground
Staples sought greater scale against online competitors after Office Depot had acquired OfficeMax.
Action taken
Staples announced an agreement to acquire Office Depot, claiming the transaction could generate substantial operating synergies.
Aftermath
The FTC challenged the deal, a federal court issued a preliminary injunction, and the transaction was abandoned in 2016.
Breakup fee. $250 million (2016)
2014
Reduce store footprint and prioritize e-commerceStrategyBackground
Traditional office-supply stores faced increasing pressure from online retailers and other large-format competitors.
Action taken
Staples announced plans to close up to 225 North American locations by the end of 2015 and targeted substantial annual cost reductions.
Aftermath
The decision accelerated the company’s shift toward digital ordering, delivery, and business services.
Recent events
Court rejects Staples' standing argument in TCPA text-message case[4]
In Rubin v. Staples, Inc., a New Jersey federal court rejected Staples' argument that the plaintiff lacked standing in a case alleging that Staples sent unwanted text messages after the plaintiff asked it to stop. The court said whether the messages violated the TCPA was a merits question for discovery; the ruling did not determine liability.
Staples announces Classroom Rewards program[5]
Reported:
Staples announced a program through which people using its Staples Connect app can accumulate Classroom Rewards dollars and give them to an enrolled teacher or school administrator; teachers can access the funds through the Classroom Rewards app.
Staples announces CEO departure[6]
Reported:
Staples announced that CEO Alexander “Sandy” Douglas would step down; the company described the decision as mutual and did not disclose a reason.
Staples board begins search for permanent CEO[6]
Reported:
Staples’ board of directors commenced a search process to name a permanent CEO.
Staples names interim CEO[6]
Reported:
Staples announced that John Lederer, the company’s executive chairman, would replace Sandy Douglas as interim CEO effective Friday.
Weekdays and relative dates follow the original report; their exact calendar dates have not been verified.
- Unconfirmed
Staples.com customer information accessed in data breach[3]
Reported:
Staples Inc. disclosed that hackers accessed limited customer information relating to fewer than 2,500 Staples.com orders. The company said the breach did not affect Staples Promotional Products.
Staples opens Staples Connect concept store in Needham[7]
Reported:
Staples celebrated the grand opening of a new Staples Connect concept store in Needham, Massachusetts. The format includes co-working space, a podcasting studio and community event spaces.
Staples Canada announces Boxing Week deals[8]
Reported:
Staples Canada announced Boxing Week deals available in-store and online, including discounts on products and clearance merchandise.
IGI announces Staples distribution agreement for Nodeware[9]
Reported:
Infinite Group, Inc. announced a distribution agreement with Staples to sell its Nodeware vulnerability-management solution through Staples' B2B solutions division.
Sources9 sources
- 1Staples Inc.en.wikipedia.org
- 2Staples official websitestaples.com
- 3Staples.com customer information accessed in data breachmembers.asicentral.com
- 4Court rejects Staples' standing argument in TCPA text-message casenatlawreview.com
- 5Staples宣布推出Classroom Rewards教师奖励计划wbjournal.com
- 6Staples宣布首席执行官离任wbjournal.com
- 7Staples 在尼达姆开设 Staples Connect 概念店wcvb.com
- 8Staples Canada宣布节礼日周优惠newswire.ca
- 9IGI宣布与Staples达成Nodeware分销协议finanznachrichten.de
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