Office Depot Urges Businesses to Go Green and Save Green This Earth Day

Office Depot (NYSE:ODP), a leading global provider of office products and services, is urging businesses of all sizes to go green in the office just in time for Earth Day 2009. Understanding today’s difficult economic environment, Office Depot is reminding its customers that purchasing environmentally preferable products, participating in green solutions, practicing greener habits and overall thinking "green” can not only reduce a business’ environmental footprint – but it can help save the organization money and resources.

"At Office Depot we find that over a basket of goods, purchasing the environmentally preferable and greener option will often save you money – while reducing your environmental impact,” said Yalmaz Siddiqui, Director of Environmental Strategy for Office Depot. "Beyond that, practicing greener habits like unplugging your technology at night, recycling your old technology and printing on both sides of the page, will further save your business money.”

A more comprehensive list of Smart Steps to Green the Office is available at www.officedepot.com/greenyouroffice.

In recognition of Earth Day, Office Depot is offering the following green solutions:

• Office Depot Green™ Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs): These EnergyStar qualified lightbulbs are available in a three-pack of 14W CFLs in Office Depot retail stores for just $3.99 during Earth Week (4/19 through 4/26).
• Environmentally Sustainable Paper: Office Depot is dramatically enhancing its strategic partnership with industry pioneer New Leaf Paper to bring an assortment of 60 new environmentally leading resume papers, stationery and envelopes into more than 1,000 Office Depot retail stores.
• Smart Steps to a Greener Office: Office Depot will launch a new seminar series Smart Steps to a Greener Office that will be held in various cities across the United States. These seminars will be designed to help small to large businesses develop more efficient, less wasteful and healthier offices. The first such seminar will be held on Earth Day 2009 at Office Depot’s Global Headquarters.
• Tech Recycling Service: Office Depot customers recycling any printer at the Company’s retail stores in the U.S. and purchasing a new HP, Brother®, Epson® or Lexmark™ Printer regularly priced at $149.99 or more will save $50 instantly during the week of Earth Day (4/19 through 4/26). Offer is not available in Alaska or Hawaii.
• Package Reduction: Office Depot customers having products delivered from OfficeDepot.com or the Company’s business solutions division will notice that the small-sized delivery boxes are now 64% smaller which significantly cuts down on waste.

Siddiqui suggests businesses begin greening their offices and operations by starting out small. "Start by making small changes to your everyday purchases and practices," explains Siddiqui. "For example, buy green by seeking products with just a small amount of recycled content, or be green by turning off your light each time you leave your office or cube. By starting small, you can start to go green without feeling overwhelmed. And once your few small steps become habits, you can then think about additional steps."

To learn more about how going green can save money and the planet, visit www.officedepot.com/greenyouroffice and for a list of greener products available at Office Depot, please visit www.officedepot.com/buygreen.

About Office Depot

Every day, Office Depot is Taking Care of Business for millions of customers around the globe. For the local corner store as well as Fortune 500 companies, Office Depot provides products and services to its customers through 1,713 worldwide retail stores, a dedicated sales force, top-rated catalogs and a $4.8 billion e-commerce operation. Office Depot has annual sales of approximately $14.5 billion, and employs about 43,000 associates around the world. The Company provides more office products and services to more customers in more countries than any other company, and currently sells to customers directly or through affiliates in 48 countries.

Office Depot’s common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol ODP and is included in the S&P 500 Index. Additional press information can be found at: http://mediarelations.officedepot.com.

Media materials specific to Office Depot’s environmental initiatives are available at http://mediarelations.officedepot.cc/environment.

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