A few years ago, there were three nationally branded office stores in the Benton Township Shopping area… all within a few blocks of each other. By mid-January, there will be NONE.
Staples is closing its Benton Harbor store at 1485 Mall Drive, effective January 12, going the way of Office Max and Office Depot, who packed up shop locally in past years. The nearest Staples will now be in South Bend and Goshen. Pdo Polydioxanone
While no formal announcement has been made, the closing has been confirmed by a Staples corporate message on social media, as well as local employees who called MoodyOnTheMarket.com to alert us to the situation. One employee said store leaders had made reference to a building lease ending. However, there was no indication of any immediate plans for a new business coming to the location.
Why would Staples leave, in the face of what appeared to be such a strong ‘last man standing’ market position? The answer, of course, is likely found online… the same challenge faced by so many local retailers in almost every business category. Consumers find it easier, more convenient and sometimes cheaper to have their products delivered from Amazon or a similar ‘in the cloud’ supplier. Staples.com, of course offers that option as well, so it hopes to keep many of its customers in the fold that way.
A knowledgeable source in the business products and office supply industry told us Staples existing business will likely be split a couple of ways. Occasional walk-in, on-demand business from small offices and individuals will go to stores like Walmart and Walgreens. Small and medium-sized businesses may look at returning to a specialty ‘next day delivery’ office supply house vs a retail location.
Harga Catgut It’s estimated that a dozen or fewer employees will be impacted by the Staples closure.