Boise-cascade/Officemax: A Case Study in Term Paper

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The assumption was that Boise Cascade's heavy emphasis on paper and wood products operations were keeping down its potentially considerable stock value and potential. Hedging its bets, even after acquiring OfficeMax, Boise Cascade also invested in upgrading wood products and paper production facilities. But it admitted that "reinvesting in a market that is not growing, it is difficult to make a return on capital," in other words that such a move was not likely to happen again in the near or far future (Boise Cascade-OfficeMax deal seen as strategic repositioning, Idaho Business Review, 2003). Branding and gaining a lock on a distribution 'arm' and creating a face for the company was deemed the way to go.

Initially, despite its substantial name recognition, OfficeMax had many problems attracting shoppers, perhaps one reason it lagged behind rival Staples. "OfficeMax, an Illinois-based office supply chain, employed a warehouse style design for years: White, beige and blue color schemes; rows upon rows heaped with computer and office equipment. It was no-nonsense and professional, and according to some shoppers, uninviting and hard to navigate" (Middleton.2006). The problem was that many people would come to the store in a very functional fashion, to simply replace a printer cartridge and leave, without lingering and impulse-shopping. This consumer spending is really the bread and butter of any market retailer. In short, the functionality and lack of name recognition that plagued Boise Cascade also was true, to a lesser extent of OfficeMax as a retailer. But to be faceless to consumers for a retail company, specifically acquired for its name, was potentially deadly.

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However, with the magic marketing gurus, the OfficeMax image problem proved to be quite fixable, just as Boise Cascade's acquisition rehabilitated its name for investors. In one Florida location, the new and improve OfficeMax storefront that proudly purveyed Boise Cascade products now boasts an "Internet cafe, glossy banners and a new floor plan" that is more user-friendly (Middleton, 2006). This is encouraging shoppers to spend more time in the store, and to purchase more goods.

For OfficeMax, being acquired by a company of the size and purchasing power of Boise-Cascade gave it the revenue, platform, and impetus to improve its image. Now it stands tall, with the potential to rival Staples and other fierce competitors. Boise-Cascade enabled the company to hire manufacturing analysts that could pinpoint exactly what changes OfficeMax needed to draw in more foot traffic and specifically keep the consumers in the store. A store consultant researched what kept customers away, and improved things like unclear signs, shelves that placed goods out of reach, and a color scheme that was uninviting did not encourage consumers to stay in the store.

The marriage of the two companies improved both company images and stock prices. Unlike the old game of rock, paper, scissors, there were no winners or losers. Boise Cascade now has reconfigured itself to size down its paper manufacturing slowly and expanded its distribution and retailing under OfficeMax's name, and OfficeMax has access to Boise Cascade's product line and more revenue and trading power to make it a force to be reckoned with as a storefront.

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