The figures for the 16th quarter in a row show a drop of three percent, and the retailer is also to close 70 stores in the US.
The Financial Times reported that the retailer saw shares drop by 6.8 percent, and has “blamed continued weakness in demand for home printers and cartridges in part for its 16th consecutive quarter of sales decline”. The three percent drop amounts to $4.56 billion (€4.29 billion), and net loss went up to $952 million (€896 million) in the months leading up to January compared with a “net profit of $86million (€81 million) in the prior-year period”.
The majority of the loss came from the sale of Staple’s European businesses. The company plans to close another 70 stores in North America in 2017, and said that the traditional sales of ink, toner and technology were the biggest section pulling it back, but that its “delivery business benefitted from growth in sales of facilities, breakroom supplies and computers”, while “print and marketing services” were the “brightest spot in its retail segment”.
Staples executives said that “getting the right mix for the evolving office environment will be key to returning to profitability in the coming year”, and that they “plan to do more to enhance their delivery business”, and are trying out new ways to encourage SMBs, which includes alcohol and wine deliveries. CEO Shira Goodman added that “I do think for the overall business as you start to see the movement in mix, you will see the sales stabilise”.