WHAT IS ….STAPLES DEUTCHLAND ?

[Anonymous]

http://www.opi.net/articles/news/nid_staples_197
Staples Deutchland
Staples Deutschland was officially established on 1 February
2010, signalling the end of the Corporate Express name in GermanyMost OP
industry observers would agree that Staples’ integration of Corporate
Express in North America has been a success.Now the US giant’s efforts
are gathering pace on the “old continent”, something which could be
regarded as a bigger challenge than in North America given the number of
individual markets, different cultures and the various businesses that
Staples has acquired down the years.A key region, of course, is central
Europe, which – in terms of Staples’ organisation at least –  includes
Germany, Austria, Hungary and Poland, although the German market is by
far the largest.

Staples’ strategy in Germany – as it is globally
– is based on a multi-channel approach which leverages the Staples
brand name across its three main business segments – retail, catalogue
and contract. So, as well as integrating the former Corporate Express
business, the catalogue and mail order business – with the exception of
Pressel – is also being phased into a single identity under the Staples
Direct name.

It is probably no coincidence that leading
independent dealer and one of Staples Advantage’s main competitors in
southern Germany, Kaut-Bullinger, has recently rebranded its operations
under a single name, as well.

The beginning of 2010 was a
significant milestone in the Corporate Express integration in Germany as
the Corporate Express name made way for a new business name, Staples
Advantage, and the renaming of the local entity to Staples Deutschland
GmbH & Co KG on 1 February to coincide with the new financial year.

The
fit is a good one for Staples in Germany; Corporate Express was the
leading B2B player in the large and mid markets in the country while
Staples didn’t have a contract business to speak of, its presence mainly
based on its 60 or so retail stores and its catalogue business.

However,
Staples found itself with three business units based in three
locations: the German catalogue business was run out of the Belgian
capital, Brussels, while retail was headquartered in Hamburg and
Corporate Express’s German operations were based in Stuttgart.

What
has occurred over the last 18 months is what could be described as a
“soft” integration. The Staples Direct German catalogue unit has moved
to Stuttgart alongside the newly named Staples Advantage, while support
staff for retail have remained in Hamburg which is closer to where the
main store base is concentrated.

In terms of logistics, Corporate
Express was already in the process of integrating its own German
logistics operations at Waldlaubersheim in central Germany at the time
of the acquisition.This has now been completed, consolidating three
previous locations into one state-of-the-art facility which employs over
150 staff and a capacity of approximately 25,000 packages per day.

Staples
Advantage has a growing customer base in the mid-market and a solid
position within the blue-chips in Germany – including around half of the
companies that are listed on the DAX stock exchange.Former Corporate
Express initiatives, such as an end-user roadshow, have been maintained.
Rebranded as Staples Bürotreff, the roadshow visits four leading German
markets in the autumn, with each one attended by around 250 key
purchasers from large organisations.

Similarly, existing Staples
marketing messages have been incorporated into the former Corporate
Express business. For example, Staples’ “Easy” theme has been adopted by
Staples Advantage in Germany, after already being accepted in the
retail sector and is being used as a link across all the channels.
“Einfach Easy” – literally “Simply Easy” – is the local “That was easy”
equivalent and the company has also adopted the EcoEasy name for its
environmentally friendly product offering and initiatives.It surely has
not been an easy task over the last 18 months to get Staples Germany to
where it is today.Once again, it is a credit to Staples’ handling of the
Corporate Express acquisition that it appears that way from the outside

[Author]

March 22, 2010 at 10:51 AM