Office Depot board claims progress in OfficeMax merger

BOCA RATON, Fla. —In a letter to shareholders, the board of directors of Office Depot Inc. said it has made significant progress toward a successful closing of the planned merger with OfficeMax by the end of this year. The letter also urges shareholders to support the board’s 10 nominees for the company’s board of directors.

“Our merger agreement with OfficeMax, a deal that has been years in the making, is well underway and on track for a successful closing by the end of the year,” says the letter, signed by lead director W. Scott Hedrick and chairman/CEO Neil R. Austrian. “The merger was thoughtfully structured as a merger of equals that will result in an eleven member board made up of five directors from each company plus a CEO. At the recent special meeting, we received overwhelming support from our shareholders, including Starboard, with 98% voting for the transaction and the governance structure it envisions at the recent special meeting.”

Austrian went on to say the final step in the merger process will be FTC approval, which it expects to close the transaction by the end of this year.

The letter also states that significant progress has been made in integration planning and analysis of combined company cost structure.