This is a homework assignment from my creative planning teacher, Justin Cox. We were asked what four of our most hated brands were and to choose one from that list. Then create a deck answering the included questions. Here is my most hated brand, Office Max.

1. MY MOST
HATED BRAND
Paris Daniell
http://www.flickr.com/photos/albertocalva/3245060805/sizes/l/

2. What is the brand? O ce Max,
founded in 1988, is not the 3rd largest o ce supplies retailer in the United States.
What business is Office Max in?
Supplies for the o ce, from paper and pens to toner and folding tables. eir business is helping
business men and women. Currently O ce Max holds less of the market share in direct
competition with Staples and O ce Depot. ere is also saturation in online o ce supply
distributors i.e, o cesupplyetc.com, which rank much higher than brick and mortar businesses.
What Office Max's current positioning?
"O ceMax® has the supplies, technology solutions and o ce furniture you need to help your
business reach its full potential—all while staying within your budget."
Currently O ce Max is staying true and loyal to their main customer base;
What does Office Max do well? Businesses and the people who operate within them.
O er low prices for common supplies that are required by most,
although the 'low prices' are more comparable o ine.
ey are green, doing it with ink cartridge programs,
getting new bags, o ering Terracycle branded items and
taking the vending machines out of the employee break room (what!?).
Present in many locations around the USA with 867 store locations,
providing direct access to product.
1
MY MOST HATED BRAND | parisdaniell.com

3. What do I hate about Office Max?
ey have everything except what you need
as a student consumer, they o er little choice in bulk sizes.
Brick and mortar stores have no human feel to them.
Stuck with a business to business environment of HP domination, inks, products and rewards are
awkwardness. based around Hewlett Packard
partnership/contract.
Sub-par rewards card. Yes this card is available to anyone,
but primarily focuses on buisness purchasing behaviors.
e rst reward is given every 500 dollars.
No online interaction, cold and isolated
sales driven digital presence.
2
MY MOST HATED BRAND | parisdaniell.com

4. What can Office Max
do to convince me to buy their
products and support their brand?
Appeal to my lifestyle
Personalize my o ce supplies.
Focus on needs and aspirations of a younger more
individual based audience. ese people are open to brand
adoption and will carry O ce Max with them later on.
O ce Max has an opportunity to focus on smaller
quanity and convenience rather than bulk. is appeals to
a growing demographic of students and mothers that are
open to adopting a brand such as O ce Max.
“In addition to discounters and drug stores, more than half of
back-to-school shoppers will head to department stores (54.4%), ...and
41.2 percent will visit o ce supply stores. Additionally, 22.2 percent
will shop online, 20.8 percent will shop at electronics stores and 18.2
percent will shop at a thrift store. " http://www. ickr.com/photos/vanityblue/4261656943/
- NRF's 2009 Back-To-School And Back-To-College Survey
"Back-to-college shoppers will purchase from discounters (53.4%), college bookstores (44.5%), department stores (43.1%),
and o ce supply stores (32.5%) most frequently. " - NRF's 2009 Back-To-School And Back-To-College Survey
Create a presence online for me to engage with,
let me adopt this brand o ine as well as online through social networking and other digital interests.
Better prices combined with in-store instant grati cation outweighs any digital distributor. In order for this to
happen, O ce Max needs to rethink packaging, and prices in order to reach a wider audience that is seeking less
for less, not more for less. ese prospective consumers value the instant grati cation of going to store,
rather than pay shipping and wait for their desired product.
3
MY MOST HATED BRAND | parisdaniell.com

5. I would hate Office Max a lot less
if they took these things into consideration.
http://www. ickr.com/photos/dystopos/110738292/sizes/o/
Thanks for your time.
4
MY MOST HATED BRAND | parisdaniell.com