Staples.com IPO Gets Deep-Sixed
As the economy goes, so goes even the No. 1 company on eWeek?s 2000 FastTrack list of the top 500 e-business leaders, Staples Inc. The Framingham, Mass., office supply retailer, which suffered flat retail sales growth in its recently announced fourth-quarter results and disappointing fiscal-year 2000 results, last month ditched plans for an initial public offering of its e-tailing unit, Staples.com.
The move doesn?t mean that Staples? e-business channel has four legs in the air just yet, however. Staples plans to merge its small-business and consumer catalog operation, called Direct, with Staples.com, according to a press release. This will help it serve the needs of customers, the release said, many of whom tend to be channel-hoppers who shop online and via catalog.
FedEx Moves Ahead With Wireless Plans
eWeek 2000 FastTracker No. 5 begs to differ with naysayers who claim that wireless technology?well, its return on investment, anyway?has hit a wall. Indeed, FedEx Corp., based in Memphis, Tenn., is forging ahead with its wireless strategy.
Last month, the transportation, freight, e-commerce and supply chain management giant announced that, through an alliance with wireless product vendor w-Technologies Inc., it has expanded the reach of fedex.com to most types of handhelds. The upgrades will make it easier for some 50,000 couriers and contractors to access real-time package status tracking information even when they?re away from their delivery vans.