A Good Day at the Office

OfficeMax Inc. (Shaker Heights, Ohio) has announced that its third quarter same-store sales increases are tracking at about 7.5 percent, well ahead of the expectations the company announced last month.

Chairman and ceo Michael Feuer said the company made the announcement — which also includes expectations for a profitable quarter ending Oct. 26, 2002, and a full fiscal year ending in January 2003 — because its stock price has declined over the past several days.

“These results are gratifying in light of current economic conditions,” Feuer said. He also said the retailer anticipates improved gross margins for the quarter as a result of relatively rational retail pricing and the company's ability to leverage its fixed costs.

OfficeMax operates nearly 1000 office supply superstores in 49 states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, plus a joint venture partnership in Mexico. It is the third-largest retailer in its category, trailing Office Depot (Delray Beach, Fla.) and Staples (Framingham, Mass.). Through 2001, Office Depot was the 24th-largest retailer in the U.S. with sales of $11.1 billion. Staples was 27th with sales of $10.7 billion. And OfficeMax was 46th with sales $4.6 billion.