Office Supply Stores, Including Staples, Are Closing, Starting March 25

Retail sales have just fallen again.

It's becoming harder for retailers to predict exactly what consumers are going to do when it comes to shopping. Last year, we saw shoppers pull back significantly under the weight of record-high inflation. As a result, retail sales were down during the end-of-year holiday season in 2022. But then in January, it appeared that the new year might be bringing things back around: Retailers saw sales jump back up that month by a surprising 3.2 percent.

That's no longer the case according to new data, however. The U.S. Department of Commerce recently revealed that retail sales had slipped back down in February—falling 0.4 percent from the month before, the Associated Press reported.

Claire Tassin, retail and e-commerce analyst at survey research technology company Morning Consult, told the news outlet that shoppers are still pulling back on unnecessary spending as they have been since inflation skyrocketed last summer. "Essentials take priority in consumers’ budgets," Tassin said.

Staples is shuttering a store in the coming weeks.

As retail sales seem to still be mostly on a downward trend this year, store closures are currently impacting most sectors. This includes office supply chains, as one of the most well-known retailers in this space is planning to shutter at least one location in the coming weeks. Staples will soon be shutting down a store in Staten Island, New York, SILive.com reported. The location located in the New Springville neighborhood will close for good on April 14, according to the news outlet.

Signs on the Staten Island Staples have informed shoppers of the upcoming closure. "Store Closing—30 percent off your in-store purchase," they state, per SILive.com. "Get these deals before they're gone."

Best Life has reached out to Staples to find out exactly why the company is closing this location, and will update this story with their response.

Another popular chain is closing a location first.

Staples is not the only well-known office supply chain planning a closure. Office Depot is closing a location in Orlando, Florida, later this month, the Orlando Business Journal reported. Office Depot spokeswoman Shera Bishop told the news outlet that its store near downtown Orlando will close its doors permanently on March 25.

The closing sale for this location began on Jan. 26, according to Bishop. "Office Depot continues to optimize its retail footprint. As a result, the company is closing its Office Depot store at 2112 E. Colonial Drive," she told Orlando Business Journal. "We will continue to serve local customers at nearby Office Depot stores, including the Office Depot store located at 2847 S. Orange Ave. in Orlando."

Best Life has also reached out to Office Depot about the closure, and will update this story with their response.

One office supply company is shutting down completely.

Staples and Office Depot are two of the most popular companies selling office supplies. But in one area, consumers will soon lose a long-standing retailer in this sector entirely. Cooke Stationery is closing its only store in Salem, Oregon, next month, the Statesman Journal reported. The office supply store will discontinue deliveries at the end of March before shutting down completely after its last day of in-store business on April 28, according to the newspaper.

As the Statesman Journal explained, Cooke Stationery is one of the oldest businesses in downtown Salem. The store has been serving shoppers in the area for 88 years since it was opened by James L. Cooke in 1935. Cooke Stationery has stayed in the family ever since, but the third generation of owners have decided it's "the right time" to close for good as business has failed to bounce back to previous levels following the pandemic. "It's been a gradual decline," Colleen Henery, who has co-owned the store with her brother since 1999, told the newspaper. "We probably stayed open longer than we should have."