Office Depot has rejected another takeover attempt by office supply rival Staples, according to a letter sent by a company executive on Tuesday.
However, Office Depot’s parent company, ODP, said it is open to another type of transaction, such as selling its retail and e-commerce business to Staples or accepting a joint venture, according to the report.
In the letter, ODP President Joseph Vassalluzzo wrote that a transaction that is not a complete takeover “could be executed more efficiently and with much greater certainty and a lower regulatory risk than your proposal”.
“It would also help maintain competitiveness with non-traditional retailers and optimize continuous consumer choice,” he wrote. He wrote the letter to Stefan Kaluzny, CEO of Sycamore Partners and board member of USR Parent, a subsidiary of Staples.
The rejected offer was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
ODP shares fell nearly 2% in premarket trading on Tuesday to $ 45.
Staples has sought to buy Office Depot’s parent company, ODP, twice more. Five years ago, antitrust officials blocked a merger between the two companies and sent shares of the two companies.
In the latest attempt, Staples proposed to buy the company on January 11 for more than $ 2 billion or $ 40 per share, according to the Journal.
Along with Office Depot, ODC also owns OfficeMax, another chain of office stores, and CompuCom, an information technology company.
Read the letter here.