Staples closes

**eastland** · July-16-16, 10:46 AM

Noticed yesterday that the Staples on E. Jefferson and Jos. Campau closed. Seemed like a good location.

**Lowell** · July-16-16, 11:08 AM

It is so, so difficult to compete with online sales of the items they sell. I think it is a miracle any of the 'bricks and mortar' stores survive. There is even a term for their problem called 'showcasing'. That's where someone comes into your stores checks out, touches and feels an item, then whips out their smart phone and orders it online for a lower price.

**313WX** · July-16-16, 11:13 AM

That Staples location has been shuttered for roughly 2 years now.

http://www.mlive.com/business/west-m...lose_stor.html

**downtownguy** · July-16-16, 12:12 PM

Not so. The article you link to was prior to them specifying which locations would close. The E. Jefferson location closed maybe 4-5 months ago.

I often found the management at that store to be lacking.

**xrockerboy** · July-16-16, 12:54 PM

Staples is at Mack now.

**313WX** · July-16-16, 01:23 PM

Originally Posted by downtownguy

Not so. The article you link to was prior to them specifying which locations would close. The E. Jefferson location closed maybe 4-5 months ago.

I often found the management at that store to be lacking.

I stand corrected.

I did know for sure the closure wasn't some time recent.

**Zacha341** · July-16-16, 02:44 PM

Yep, a few months ago I noticed it closed.

Originally Posted by downtownguy

Not so. The article you link to was prior to them specifying which locations would close. The E. Jefferson location closed maybe 4-5 months ago.

I often found the management at that store to be lacking.

**douglasm** · July-16-16, 06:39 PM

Staples stumbled when the proposed merger with Office Depot fell through in May. The company has been closing stores off and on for a year or so. I'm not sure where the company is going, but I do know they're currently looking for a new CEO.

Staples does have strong e-commerce numbers, doing almost half their sales on the web. Strong web sales means less need for brick and morter stores.

**Baselinepunk** · July-17-16, 07:23 PM

I love it when the Capitalist Pig Dogs engage in cannibalism.

**Mackinaw** · July-18-16, 10:23 AM

The mall owner should take the opportunity to re-do that corner with something more fitting. Jos. Camp. is a nice little street but the mall makes for a bad gateway.

**royce** · July-18-16, 12:52 PM

Originally Posted by Mackinaw

The mall owner should take the opportunity to re-do that corner with something more fitting. Jos. Camp. is a nice little street but the mall makes for a bad gateway.

Don't know what you could really do to improve the situation. What store can replace the Staples given its configuration? A dollar store would fit perfectly. Oh, wait, there already is a dollar store in that strip mall. Could two exist basically side-by-side?

I am partial to developments like the Studio One apartments and the Ellington that front a major street and have retail on the ground floor. Maybe an apartment like those could go on the corner on Jefferson and Jos Campau, encompassing both the the current parking lot and the Staples store. It would be nice to have a development along Jos Campau, giving the street a nice street wall. Hey, I guess I just answered my earlier question.

**Mackinaw** · July-18-16, 01:01 PM

Exactly what I was getting at, Royce.

**Danny** · July-18-16, 05:18 PM

Staples closing! That means Office Depot is winning.

**Hermod** · July-18-16, 05:44 PM

Originally Posted by royce

Don't know what you could really do to improve the situation. What store can replace the Staples given its configuration? A dollar store would fit perfectly. Oh, wait, there already is a dollar store in that strip mall. Could two exist basically side-by-side?

I am partial to developments like the Studio One apartments and the Ellington that front a major street and have retail on the ground floor. Maybe an apartment like those could go on the corner on Jefferson and Jos Campau, encompassing both the the current parking lot and the Staples store. It would be nice to have a development along Jos Campau, giving the street a nice street wall. Hey, I guess I just answered my earlier question.

We had an Office Depot close and it is now a Petsmart. We had a Staples close and it is now a Ross Dress-for-Less. Those big boxes are pretty adaptable. Maybe a Big Lots could move in.

**EastsideAl** · July-19-16, 11:12 AM

Too bad about that Staples store. I knew it was doomed when I saw its stock going down and not being replaced. The management there was certainly not the best at keeping the store orderly and stocked, but there were a couple of people who worked there who were very helpful.

This was particularly important for my very elderly father who, since finally retiring, has been buying his own office supplies and needing things for newer technologies he barely understands. Now he has to go all the way out to the Mack store, which is a real drive for him.

Of course, most of these brick and mortar office supply stores, like so many other types of stores, are pretty much doomed in the long run.