Company Timelines

2007	Opened first store in Puerto Rico Joined U.S. Green Building Council and announced plans to build and open the Company's first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)-certified retail store Office Depot UK earned Environment Award from the British Office Supplies and Services (BOSS) Industry Awards Selected as one of America's Top Corporations for Women's Business Enterprises by the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) for the sixth consecutive year Opened new Global Sourcing Office in Shenzhen, China Named to the EPA's list of the Top 10 Retail Partners in the Green Power Partnership Viking Direct named Top Supplier of Office Paper in Europe by Opticom International Research Recognized as a Top Company for Female Professionals by National Association for Female Executives (NAFE) 300,000 backpacks donated by Office Depot Foundation to non-profit organizations and schools; 1.5 million donated since inception of program 52,000 associates
2006	Announced $4.5 million in contributions to higher education Selected as one of America's Top Corporations for Women's Business Enterprises by the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) for the fifth consecutive year Acquired Best Office Co., Ltd. Acquired Allied Office Products Acquired Papirius s.r.o. Acquired AsiaEC Named "Humanitarian of the Year" by Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) Launched The Green Book™ in six countries Celebrated 20th anniversary Sales of $15 billion 50,000 employees
2005	Steve Odland appointed Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Named Official Office Products Partner of NASCAR Sponsored the No. 99 Office Depot Roush Racing Car Relaunched the Taking Care of Business tagline First global office supply Company to be included in the FTSE4Good U.S. and Global Indexes Received "Outstanding Retailer" award from International Council of Shopping Centers and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Opened 1,000th store Listed on Companies That Care Honor Roll
2004	First M2 format store opened in Venice, FL, June 30 Neil Austrian appointed interim Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Partnered with Conservation International, NatureServe and The Nature Conservancy in establishing the Forest & Biodiversity Conservation Alliance Launched first free, nationwide in-store electronics recycling program and free, in-store cell phone and rechargable battery recycling program in all stores in the U.S. and Canada Released the industry's first independently audited Environmental Stewardship Report; first in industry to establish annual quantified environmental performance goals State of Florida, Office of Supplier Diversity- Corporation of the Year. Hispanic Network Magazine: Supplier Diversity, Best of the Best list (Nov/Dec 2004 issue) U.S. Chamber of Commerce Center for Corporate Citizenship honors Office Depot for Corporate Stewardship Powered 20 retail stores with renewable "Green Power" to reduce greenhouse gas emissions Listed on Companies That Care Honor Roll Sales of $13.6 billion 969 stores in North America 47,000 employees
2003	Acquired Guilbert S. A., a leading European contract stationer. Acquisition doubled the size of the Company's European business First office supply superstore to offer fully-functional and comprehensive Spanish website Number two global online retailer with sales of $2.6 billion Launched Magellan, the most ambitious supply chain initiative in the Company's history Unveiled exclusive Christopher Lowell line of furniture and accessories, first in the industry to develop exclusive line Office for the Environment and Environmental Paper Procurement Policy established; Environmental Auditing and Verification policy for paper products released Envirocopy recycled paper receives environmental certification from Green Seal Implemented Ink and Toner Recycling program in stores nationwide Introduced "Green Book" Catalog Expanded Vendor Diversity Program to include internal procurement and re-launched the process as Supply Chain Diversity Women's Business Enterprise National Council . Applause Award BusinessWeek magazine listed Office Depot among the top corporate philanthropists in the U.S. on the basis of its in-kind donations Sales of $12.4 billion 900 stores in North America 46,000 employees
2002	$2.1 billion in worldwide e-commerce sales Launched Web Café, an online, small-business seminar series Began Viking Direct catalog/direct mail operations in Switzerland, Spain and Portugal Expanded into Central America with new retail stores in Guatemala and Costa Rico through a joint licensing agreement Sold Australian operations Sponsorship of 2002 and 2004 U.S. Olympic Team announced Won naming rights for the sports and entertainment center in Sunrise, FL. Office Depot Center became the official home of the NHL Florida Panthers Superintendent Award - SHOPA Foundation for Educational Excellence Partnership Award - American Red Cross Corporation of the Year Award . Florida Minority Supplier Development Council Advocate of the Year - Florida Regional Minority Business Council E.V.I.E. award for corporate best practices - Professional & Business Forum (2002) In the 2002 Mercury Awards competition, Office Depot received Gold Awards for its 2002 Great Place to Work Campaign and for its fundraising campaign for City of Hope. Sales of $11.4 billion 861 Stores in North America 43,000 employees
2001	Acquired 4Sure.com $1.6 billion in worldwide e-commerce sales Smart Business Magazine. OD was ranked in "Smart Business 50" for the second consecutive year. CIO Magazine - Winner of Annual Enterprise Value Award First annual Success Strategies Conference for women business owners Women's Business Enterprise National Council . named Office Depot as one of America's Top Corporations for Women's Business Enterprises, still listed as of 2005 Florida Regional Minority Business Council - President's Award Office Depot partnered with Gifts In Kind to launch nationwide product donation program Inaugurated National Backpack Program providing free backpacks filled with school supplies to underprivileged children Sales of $11.2 billion 859 stores in North America 45,000 employees
2000	Bruce Nelson appointed Chief Executive Officer Office Depot entered European contract stationer market with launch of the European Business Services Division Adopted strong commitment to corporate values of Respect for the Individual, Fanatical Customer Service and Excellence in Execution. CIO Magazine designated OD as the top-rated retail Company in the magazine's annual Enterprise Value Award, which honors the Company's powerful use of technology, technology innovation and industry leadership. Information Week selected OD as the top-rated retail Company in the magazine's 2000 list of the most innovative users of information technology in the US. PC Computing recognized OD as the online retailing leader and ranked the Company first on the magazine's Business E-shopping list for office supplies. Initiated "5% Back to Schools" Program Launched National Vendor Diversity Program DIV2000.com, a leading internet business portal, named OD as one of the top 50 US corporations dedicated to serving woman and minority-owned businesses, still listed as of 2004. Sales of $11.6 billion 888 stores in North America 48,000 employees
1999	Sales exceed $10 billion, first in office supply industry to reach this milestone Launched first international website in March Business Services Group Sales surpassed $3 billion Domestic internet sales of close to $350 million Office Depot is included S&P 500 listing in June Internet Retailer . Office Depot ranked "Top 25 of the Web" Fortune Magazine . Office Depot named as one of "10 Companies that Get It" PC Computing ranks OD 10th in "Best 100, Top 10 Business to Business Companies" Entrepreneur Magazine . OD named in the "100 Top Web Sites for Entrepreneurs" CIO Magazine . Office Depot named in "Web Business 50/50" Sales of $10.3 billion 825 stores in North America 48,000 employees
1998	Merged with Viking Office Products, the leading direct marketer of office products in Europe and Australia The Company's International Division operates under both the Office Depot and Viking brand names. By end of year, the Company owned and operated 15 stores in France and had 72 Office Depot locations in Colombia, Hungary, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Poland and Thailand through joint venture or international licensing agreements Under the Viking Office Products brand, the Company has direct mail and delivery operations in Australia, Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Over $1 billion in international sales Over 100 new store openings in North America, highest in the Company's history North American Retail stores sales exceed $5 billion Launched public website officedepot.com in January Office Depot's public website receives several prestigious Internet awards in its first year including : CIO Web Business 50/50, the Retail Network Innovation and Biz Rate Buyers Best Gold awards E-commerce sales totaled $66.5 million Sales of nearly $9 billion (8.99) 702 stores in North America 44,000 employees
1997	Office Depot remains the largest supplier of office products in the world Continued international expansion by opening 21 new locations. Ended year with 45 international locations in eight countries, excluding the United States and Canada Designed the first public website to offer customers the convenience of "point and click" for all their office supplies needs Dilbert TM introduced as new print and broadcasting icon to be used in the Company's newspaper ads and inserts, catalogs, direct mail pieces, television commercials and online website Sales of $6.7 billion 602 stores in North America 35,000 employees
1996	10th Anniversary Announced plans to open the first Office Depot stores in Japan under a joint venture agreement Pioneered our first B2B e-commerce site Sales of $6 billion 570 stores in North America 31,000 employees
1995	Leader in the office products industry 500th store opened in North America Opened stores in Mexico and Poland Continued international expansion by signing joint venture agreement to open stores in France and sign international licensing agreement to open store in Thailand Established Office Depot's Business Services Division Sponsored the First Office Depot Father & Son Challenge, a nationally televised golf tournament. Official sponsor of the U.S. Volleyball Team Introduced Arnold Palmer as the Company's spokesperson Introduced a Regional Vendor Diversity Initiative Sales of $5.3 billion 501 stores in North America 30,000 employees
1994	Acquired six additional contract stationers in North America Commenced international expansion beyond North America by opening licensed Office Depot stores in Israel and Colombia. Announced retail joint venture agreement in Mexico and licensing agreement in Poland Launched sports and event marketing programs around the country Company raised more than $1 million for Junior Achievement, the Leukemia Society of America and the March of Dimes Sales of $4.3 billion 420 stores in North America 26,000 employees
1993	Entered the contract stationer business via the acquisition of two leading contract stationers: Wilson Stationery & Printing Company and Eastman Office Products Corporation Miami Herald names Office Depot the Company of the Year in April Adopted corporate social responsibility program Established Office Depot Foundation to assist employees and members of the community at large in times of extreme hardship Sales of $2.6 billion 351 stores in North America 20,000 employees
1992	Office Depot expanded operations in North America by acquiring The Great Canadian Office Supplies Warehouse Chain Industry leader in total sales, number of stores, and net earnings Sales of $1.7 billion 284 stores in North America 11,000 employees
1991	Office Club merger completed in April Office Depot is the largest office products retailer in North America Office Depot listed on the NYSE under the symbol "ODP" Sales of $1.3 billion 228 stores in 29 states 9,000 employees
1990	Merger with Office Club, Inc., signed on Dec. 20, 1990 Office Depot private label credit card introduced 100th store opened in Sept. Personal computers and peripherals added to merchandise assortment Extensive line of recycled paper products introduced, initiating Company's environmental focus First delivery center opened Sales of $626 million 122 stores in 19 states 5,600 employees as of February 28, 1990
1989	Sales of $315 million 67 stores in 12 states 3,500 employees
1988	Initial public offering of common stock completed on June 1, 1988. Listed on the NASDAQ under the symbol "ODEP" Employee Stock Option Plan adopted Sales of $132 million 26 stores in seven states 1,600 employees
1987	David I. Fuente appointed Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Sales of $34 million 10 stores in Florida and Georgia 800 employees
1986	Office Depot Inc., founded in Florida by Pat Sher, Jack Kopkin and Stephen Dougherty Opened first store in Fort Lauderdale, FL in October Sales of $2 million Three stores in Florida