Staples will open its ecommerce website to third-party sellers and will work with wholesalers and drop-shippers to broaden and deepen its selection, and it is also looking to broaden its distribution footprint. Executive Faisal Masud told Internet Retailer the company would grow the number of SKUs from about 200,000 to one million.
In opening to 3P sellers, Staples would be joining other brick-and-mortar retail chains including Sears, Walmart and NewEgg.
Staples spokesperson Mark Cautela confirmed the company is expanding the breadth of its product line, telling EcommerceBytes the company vision is to provide customers every product their business needs to succeed.
“We are rapidly expanding our assortment to meet that goal. While we are still early in the process, we will make it easy for customers to find the right business products for them, regardless of where it is coming from, integrating the recently announced new features and functionality of Staples.com.” Cautela would not comment on the report that it would open its site to third-party sellers, saying he would share additional details when appropriate.
Staples is undergoing a “reinvention strategy” as it finds itself increasingly competing with ecommerce giant Amazon.com, and at its core is a new vision, “Every product your business needs to succeed.” The company is also pursuing strategic alliances in order to broaden its distribution footprint, increase brand awareness/value, and generate new opportunities for monetization.
Last month, Staples acquired Runa, telling the Wall Street Journal its technology would help them offer customers personalized items, offers and delivery estimates in real-time.
