- 82.0 percent of the ordinary shares tendered under the Offer,
which together with the ordinary shares already held by
Staples Acquisition B.V. represent 95.2 percent of the
outstanding Corporate Express ordinary shares
- 99.7 percent of the depositary receipts of the preference
shares A tendered under the Offer
- 94.8 percent of the Convertible Bonds tendered under the
Offer, which together with the Convertible Bonds already held
by Staples Acquisition B.V. represent 99.1 percent of the
Convertible Bonds
FRAMINGHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 27, 2008--Staples, Inc.
(Nasdaq: SPLS) and its wholly owned subsidiary, Staples Acquisition
B.V., are pleased to announce that, during the acceptance period of
the offer made by Staples Acquisition B.V. on May 19, 2008 for certain
securities issued by Corporate Express N.V. (the Offer), the
following securities have been tendered for acceptance under the
Offer: (i) 152,495,551 ordinary shares with a nominal value of EUR
1.20 each, including the ordinary shares represented by ADS's
(Ordinary Shares), (ii) 53,144,811 preference shares A with a
nominal value of EUR 1.20 each (Preference Shares) and (iii) EUR
146,513,968 principal amount of two percent subordinated convertible
bonds due 2010 (Bonds). The Offer is further described in the Offer
Memorandum of May 19, 2008 (the Offer Memorandum), subject to the
amendments in the press announcements on June 3, 11 and 25, 2008. The
period for acceptance of the Offer ended on June 27, 2008 at 17.30
hours CET.
Together with the 24,541,668 Ordinary Shares already held by
Staples Acquisition B.V., the 152,495,551 Ordinary Shares tendered in
the Offer represent 95.2 percent of the total issued and outstanding
ordinary shares in the capital in Corporate Express N.V.
The Preference Shares tendered in the Offer represent 99.7 percent
of the total issued and outstanding preference shares A in the capital
in Corporate Express N.V.
Together with the EUR 6,733,550 of Bonds already held by Staples
Acquisition B.V., the Bonds tendered in the Offer represent 99.1
percent of the total issued and outstanding principal amount of two
percent subordinated convertible bonds due 2010 convertible into
Ordinary Shares in the capital in Corporate Express N.V.
In accordance with article 16 paragraph 1 of the Dutch Takeover
Decree (Besluit openbare biedingen Wft), on or before Wednesday, July
2, 2008, Staples Acquisition B.V. will announce whether the remaining
conditions to the Offer have been satisfied and whether the Offer will
be declared unconditional (gestand wordt gedaan).
About Staples
Staples, Inc. invented the office superstore concept in 1986 and
today is the world's largest office products company. With 76,000
talented associates, the company is committed to making it easy to buy
a wide range of office products, including supplies, technology,
furniture, and business services. With 2007 sales of USD 19.4 billion,
Staples serves consumers and businesses ranging from home-based
businesses to Fortune 500 companies in 22 countries throughout North
and South America, Europe and Asia. Headquartered outside of Boston,
Staples operates more than 2,000 office superstores and also serves
its customers through mail order catalog, e-commerce and contract
businesses. More information is available at www.staples.com.
This is a public announcement pursuant to the provisions of
section 4, paragraph 3 of the Dutch Decree on Public Takeover Bids
(Besluit openbare biedingen Wft). Staples Acquisition B.V. expressly
reserves any and all rights it has in respect of the Offer, as
described in the Offer Memorandum, including the right to invoke or
waive any of the conditions to the Offer set out in section 6.5
thereof. This announcement shall not constitute a public offer to sell
or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there
be any sale in securities. Except as expressly stated in this press
release, the Offer is made through and is subject to the terms and
conditions as set out in the Offer Memorandum, subject to the
amendments in the press announcements on June 3, 11 and 25, 2008. Not
for release, publication or distribution, in whole or in part, in or
into Canada or Japan.
Certain information contained in this news release may constitute
forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including but
not limited to the statements as to Staples' intentions with respect
to the Offer to acquire Corporate Express. Actual future events may
differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking
statements as a result of risks and uncertainties, including but not
limited to the fact that the Offer made by Staples or any other
acquisition of Corporate Express will be consummated and those other
factors discussed or referenced in our most recent annual report on
Form 10-K filed with the SEC, under the heading Risk Factors and
elsewhere, and any subsequent periodic reports filed by us with the
SEC. In addition, any forward-looking statements represent our
estimates only as of today and should not be relied upon as
representing our estimates as of any subsequent date. While we may
elect to update forward-looking statements at some point in the
future, we specifically disclaim any obligation to do so, even if our
estimates change.
CONTACT: Staples, Inc.
Media Contacts: Paul Capelli/Owen Davis
508-253-8530/8468
or
Investor Contacts: Laurel Lefebvre/Chris Powers
508-253-4080/4632
SOURCE: Staples
