Staples Plans to Buy Office Depot

The consolidation in the office supplies business is continuing as Staples has announced it intends to acquire rival Office Depot for more than $6 billion.

The deal follows the 2013 Office Depot acquisition of Office Max.

Staples has a store in Vestal near the Binghamton University campus. Office Max once operated a store in the Town Square Mall in Vestal but that location was closed several years ago.

Staples officials say the company is prepared to pay $6.3 billion in cash and stock to acquire Office Depot.

Both companies already were in the process of closing hundreds of stores across the United States.

It's not known how many additional stores may be shut down if the Staples acquisition is approved by regulatory agencies.