Staples Could Be Spinning Off Stores to Office Depot

It was just about a month ago that office supply store Staples announced that it would be acquired by private-equity firm Sycamore Partners for $6.9 billion.

It was in a recent SEC filing that “Party A” had offered just $625 to $700 million in an all stock offer for Staples’ stores in North America. An unidentified source revealed that “Party A” was Office Depot. By the end of the month, Staples revealed it took Sycamore Partner’s offer which was roughly ten times higher.

According to The Post, the retailer may also be in talks to spin off its 1,500
retail stores to Office Depot.

A deal like this would have to be done by Staples’ new owner and if it happens, it would create the only big-box office supplies chain retailer in the U.S. There would be thousands of Office Depot locations across the nation.

There has been no official word however if Office Depot and Staples have actually restarted discussions.

Disclaimer: We have no position in Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) nor Office Depot Inc. (NASDAQ: ODP) and have not been compensated for this article.