Staples Jumps Into Same-Day Delivery

Staples and Office Depot saw months of hard work go up in smoke when their long-expected merger was denied by regulators and both brands had to take long, hard looks in the mirror before deciding how to proceed. For Staples, the answer wasn’t to sulk around for months. Instead, the office supplier is ready to move faster than ever before.

Staples announced on Tuesday (June 14) that it had officially launched its “Staples Rush” program that provides same-day delivery service to a handful of metropolitan areas, including parts of Boston, Dallas and Manhattan, with Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle to come. Staples hinted that, while only product delivery will be offered at the moment, copying and printing will also be available for same-day service in the coming months.

“Businesses want their online orders fulfilled faster than ever,” Faisal Masud, executive vice president of global eCommerce at Staples, said in a statement. “Thanks to Staples’ unmatched omnichannel capabilities, which already include the ability to buy online and pickup in store, we will deliver the products customers need when they need them, so they can make more happen without having to wait on shipped orders.”

While there may not be an immediate demand for pens and stationary delivered mere hours after orders are placed, Staples is banking on the fact that its platform is owned and operated entirely internally and the cost-saving measures will be able to help the company soldier on until its customers catch on.

“By offering a wholly-owned, same-day delivery experience, Staples is providing businesses the type of customer service they’ve come to expect from us throughout their entire transaction,” Mike Bhaskaran, executive vice president of supply chain and logistics, said. “The development process for Staples Rush is a truly a collaborative and cross-functional effort that brought together different areas of expertise, including supply chain, eCommerce and merchandising, to create a valuable service for our customers.”