client: Office Depot
Local Staffing Agency, Plumbing Company, and Talk Radio Show Win Hurricane Preparation Consultation and $5,000 in Supplies Courtesy of Office Depot
Delray Beach, Fla., August 21, 2007 – Three South Florida companies were named as the grand prize winners of the Office Depot Hurricane Preparedness Contest for Small Businesses. Office Depot (NYSE: ODP), a leading global provider of office products and services, launched the contest in May as part of the Company’s education campaign focused on helping small businesses prepare for a potential disaster.
Each of the three winning businesses, Miami’s Creative Staffing, 4 Star Services of Ft. Lauderdale, and Senior Lifestyles Intelligent Talk Radio, Inc. of Jupiter, received a $5,000 Office Depot gift card and a special on-site consultation with a business continuity expert.
“Disaster preparedness is key to business survival,” said Jon Togio, Office Depot Disaster Preparedness Advisor, an IT veteran and author of numerous books on disaster planning and recovery. “These businesses have all experienced crises that put their companies in jeopardy and reinforced their interest in preparing for any disaster.”
The Office Depot Hurricane Preparedness Contest for Small Businesses was developed to underscore the importance of readiness planning and demonstrate the availability of simple, affordable solutions to safeguard a company’s most important assets: its people and its data. Surprisingly, nearly three-quarters (71 percent) of small businesses do not have a disaster plan in place and another 57 percent said they are not worried about the impact a disaster can have on their business, according to a recent survey conducted by TNS NFO for Office Depot.
About the Winners
• Creative Staffing
Miami, FL
Ann Machado, owner of temporary staffing company Creative Staffing, is in the
unique position of providing jobs for many individuals and families in South
Florida. In 1992, when Hurricane Andrew hit, Machado’s home was destroyed
and her office became inaccessible. Facing the challenges head-on, Machado and
her staff resorted to handwriting payroll checks and personally calling clients
and workers to ensure everyone was paid and protected. Today, Creative Staffing
is working hard to prepare for hurricane season. The company, however, is unsure
if it is truly ready after Hurricane Wilma forced Creative
Staffing to close for nearly five days. After losing over $200,000 in revenue
from the closure, Machado is not only looking forward to reviewing her company’s
back-up plans, but working with vendors to make sure they are also prepared
for a potential disaster.
• 4 Star Services
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
A growing plumbing and HVAC company, 4 Star Services has achieved a great deal
in nine short years. The company opened its doors in January of 1998 with three
service trucks and high hopes for the future. By January 2007, it had grown
by 500 percent and deployed fifteen service trucks onto the roads. When Hurricane
Wilma struck South Florida in 2005, 4 Star Services was nearly forced to shut
down as it cut the building’s electricity for two weeks. While the company
was able to stay in business by toting a generator back and forth from an owner’s
home, communication was strained. During its two weeks without power, 4 Star
Services operated in the dark, opting to use its generated power to access a
few computers and maintain open phone lines with its customers. In February,
4 Star Services’ owners saw the culmination of one of their dreams –
the purchase of their very own building. As the business continues to grow,
the pressures have mounted and the company is now responsible for the outside
of the building as well as the inside and all of the contents.
• Senior LifeStyles Intelligent Talk Radio, Inc.
Jupiter, FL
Senior LifeStyles provides South Florida’s boomers and seniors with information
critical to maintaining quality in all aspects of their lives. In 2005, following
Hurricane Wilma, the talk radio show was one of a very few regularly scheduled
radio programs to broadcast live following the storm. As one of the leading
senior news outlets in South Florida, Senior Lifestyles provides critical, life-saving
information to its audience after a storm about where to go, which roads are
safe, how to care for loved ones, and State and County agency resources that
can assist.
About the Office Depot Hurricane Preparedness Contest
The three grand prize winners from Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties
each received a hurricane preparedness makeover courtesy of Office Depot valued
at $8,700. The prize package includes a $5,000 Office Depot gift card and a
special on-site consultation with a business continuity expert. Each entry was
reviewed by a panel of judges that included Barry Johnson, President and CEO
of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce; Sam Tidwell, President of the American
Red Cross Greater Miami Chapter; and Tom Serio, Director of Global Business
Continuity Management for Office Depot.
To learn more about the grand prize winners and to view their makeovers, visit http://www.officedepot.com/hurricanecontest.
Expecting the Unexpected
In support of small business readiness planning, Office Depot is also offering
a free brochure entitled Expecting the Unexpected: Disaster Preparedness Strategies
for Small Business.
The brochure highlights simple and affordable solutions on how businesses can
protect their people and data, and includes preparation checklists and guidelines
to get started. Available at http://www.officedepot.com/getprepared and at select Office
Depot retail locations, the brochure underscores the critical need for businesses
to take disaster preparedness, from natural disasters to daily occurrences such
as a computer virus or power outage.
About Office Depot
Office Depot provides more office products and services to more customers in
more countries than any other company.
Incorporated in 1986 and headquartered in Delray Beach, Fla., Office Depot has
annual sales of over $15.4 billion, and employs approximately 52,000 associates
around the world. Currently, the Company sells to customers directly or through
affiliates in 43 countries.
Office Depot is a leader in every distribution channel -- from retail stores
and contract delivery to catalogs and e-commerce. As of June 30, 2007, Office
Depot had 1,186 retail stores in North America and another 369 stores, either
company-owned, licensed or franchised, in other parts of the world. Office Depot
serves a wide range of customers through a dedicated sales force, telephone
account managers, direct mail offerings, and multiple web sites. With $4.7 billion
in online sales during the last twelve months, the Company is also one of the
world’s largest e-commerce retailers.
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.
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