Staples ready for business

AMHERST - When officials from Staples Business Depot were looking for a home for their new fulfillment centre it didn't take them long to select Amherst.

In fact, it was an easy decision.

"One of the key reasons was Amherst's location as the centre of the region. We looked at Halifax and we looked at Moncton, but the co-operation from the town was second to none," Staples' vice-president Craig Taylor said following the company's official opening on Wednesday. "The support and co-operation from Roger MacIsaac and the town was key to our decision to locate here."

Staples is creating 22 jobs at its new 65,000 square foot operation in the Amherst industrial park and Taylor is confident more jobs will be created as sales increase.

"We feel this investment in Nova Scotia will provide a significant opportunity to grow and improve the business within this very important region of the country," Taylor said.

For fulfillment centre manager Mike Todoschuk, coming to Amherst allowed him to return to the Maritimes after working out west for several years. He pleased months of planning and preparation have finally come to a successful conclusion with the centre's opening.

"We're excited about it. We've been anticipating this day for about a year and a half now. To see it go live and everything we've done come together all at once is great," Todoschuk said, adding the fulfillment centre will enable Staples to better serve its web and catalog customers.

While the company doesn't make its sales figures public, Taylor said business has been climbing since the first orders were shipped out a week ago.

"We haven't started our marketing campaign as of yet so all of last week's business was just our regular business. We were up because we can fulfill orders better from here," Taylor said. "We carry 2,200 additional items."

Amherst Deputy Mayor George Baker said Staples is a solid addition to the industrial park and feels it will only help grow the local economy.

'Along with Amherst, Staples currently has fulfillment centres in Vancouver, Calgary, Richmond and Laval. The sound of Amherst with this mix rings well," Baker said.

Cumberland North MLA Ernest Fage also welcomed the company to Amherst.

"It's a great business for us. The community has grown significantly since 1999 and that says a lot about the co-operation among the three levels of government and people working together towards a common cause," Fage said.

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