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Here you will find a number of resources that will help you with your grant application and project process. Whether you're looking for a specific application, guidelines, or various budget examples to help with your project follow these three simple steps:
With the possibility of an impending postal strike, the AFA will be accepting Audio/Video support materials for the September 1 deadline for Individual Project Grants directly through email. Please send your Audio/Video samples to the appropriate grant stream email address listed below. Please include your full name, project name and GATE project number in your email.
Please note that these email addresses are specifically for the submission of Audio/Visual support material. Full applications, including all other support material (i.e. project descriptions, still images, c.v.'s etc.) must still be submitted through the GATE online granting system.
Emails to these addresses will not receive a direct response or reply. For questions or concerns about your overall grant application, please contact the appropriate Arts Development Consultant listed under your discipline's guidelines.
Applications for this grant are made online through the Grants Application Tracking and Evaluation (GATE) system. To make an application, you will require a GATE User ID and Password. Please e-mail firstname.lastname@example.com at least five business days prior to the application deadline with the following information:
Once assigned, this User ID and Password will allow access to GATE for this and future applications to the AFA. Applications must be received prior to the commencement of the project.
Late or incomplete applications will be deemed ineligible. For help with this application call 780-427-9968 or toll free 310-0000 during regular business hours before the application deadline.
The Alberta Foundation for the Arts (AFA) Film and Video Arts: Individual Project Grant Stream is integral to the AFA's support of The Spirit of Alberta, Alberta's cultural policy.
This grant stream supports the development of individual Alberta artists, arts administrators, or an ensemble of artists by providing a grant for a specific film and video arts project.
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2.1 In order to be eligible for a project grant, applicants must be residents of Alberta. For the purposes of this program, a resident is a person:
2.2 Previous project grant recipients are eligible if they have met all reporting requirements and do not have any outstanding projects.
2.3 In order to be eligible for a project grant, an ensemble must be made up of members who meet the individual criteria.
2.4 Applicants, including ensembles, must not be incorporated under either provincial or federal legislation.
2.5 Projects must not start beofre the application is received by the AFA. The AFA does not fund projects retroactively. Funding is not assured for any project,
The film and video arts are defined as independent works in film and video produced by individual artists. The applicant must have complete editorial and creative control over the proposed project and must retain at least 75% of copyright. Projects undertaken as a part or course of study are not eligible.
3.1 Eligible projects must meet the criteria in one of the following categories:
3.2 The maximum grant under this grant stream will not exceed $15,000, and may include up to $3,000 per month subsistence allowance. Subsistence is defined as basic living expenses for:
3.3 Applicants may apply for up to 100% of eligible expenses that are directly related to carrying out the proposed project. These expenses may include, but are not limited to:
3.4 Supplies may be eligible if they are fundamental to the practice of an arts discipline, and are appropriate for the development of the project.
3.5 Expenses already incurred and expended prior to the application submission are not eligible, including grant writer fees.
3.6 Capital purchases, such as buildings or property, or capital development, and studio construction or renovations, are not eligible.
4.1 Applications must be submitted prior to the commencement of the project.
NOTE: Applications for this grant stream are managed through the GATE online grant application system. Each component identified below must be submitted to the AFA in the noted manner – GATE online forms, attachments or hard copy. Attachments must be uploaded to GATE to complete the application. See the Application User Guide for more information.
In the Applicant Profile:
4.2 Current, complete contact information for the primary applicant (GATE online form).
In the Project Grant Application:
4.3 Confirmation of the application category (art production, marketing, research, or training/career development) and applicant status (individual/ensemble/minor) (GATE online form). For the applicant status:
4.4 A brief project description, indicating the nature of the work to be done and project start and end dates (GATE online form).
4.5 A listing of the principal artists involved in the project, their position or role, and their province of residence per Section 2.1 above (GATE online form).
4.6 A completed Applicant Agreement including the e-signature of the primary applicant or designate (GATE online form).
4.7 A project budget detailing expenditures and non-AFA revenues in Canadian dollars (GATE online form). The difference between expenditures and revenues will comprise the grant request to the AFA and cannot exceed $15,000.
4.8 An artistic resume of no more than four pages that includes a current list of film and video arts work completed and presented, identifying the role of the primary applicant in each work (upload attachment). Emerging artists may submit a description of their media arts background, including level of training, film and video arts activities, and other relevant arts activity history.
4.9 A detailed description of the project, including an outline of the objectives, planned activities, timelines, and expected results and benefits (upload attachment).
4.10 Applicants must also include:
4.11For all categories, film and video work, scripts, or storyboards of previous productions or of the work in progress to aid the assessment process. Scripts and storyboards must be submitted through the GATE system (upload attachment). Video submissions must be made in hard copy on CD, DVD or USB flash drive compatible with Microsoft Windows operating system and NTSC video standards.Links to online content are not an acceptable submission format. All video support material provided in hard copy must be clearly labelled with the applicant's name. Chaptered menus and named files are strongly encouraged. The applicant is responsible for providing support materials that comply with the playback capabilities of the AFA.
4.12 Applicants are encouraged to submit additional support materials that may assist in the assessment process. These may include press clippings, invitations, reference letters, reviews, or catalogues (upload attachment).
4.13 If applicants request return of support materials submitted in hard copy, they must provide a self-addressed stamped envelope with the submission.
4.14 Applicants may be asked for additional information to determine eligibility, or any other program requirements.
4.15 Applicants are encouraged to export a PDF of the complete application package after submission and keep it in their records.
5.1 Applications must:
Alberta Foundation for the Arts 10708 – 105 Avenue NW Edmonton, AB T5H 0A1
5.2 The AFA does not accept late, or incomplete applications.
5.3 Applicants may submit only one application to the AFA each deadline.
5.4 Applicants may apply to both deadlines (February 1 and September 1).
5.5 New applications will not be accepted until an applicant's previous project is completed and the final report is received and approved by the AFA.
6.1 Department staff provide consultative and administrative services to the AFA. Staff will convene an expert panel to consider all eligible grant applications submitted to each grant deadline.
6.2 The expert panel process is as follows:
6.3 The expert panel assesses the merit of each application both on its own terms and in relation to all other applications received for a given deadline.
6.4 Assessment of a project is based on the following general criteria:
6.5 Assessment also takes into account the applicant's:
6.6 All expert panel recommendations are reviewed by the AFA and all decisions are final.
7.1 Applicants will be notified in writing of the result of their application within six months of the application deadline.
7.2 General comments about the applications are gathered by Department staff and made available to applicants. No specific comments about individual applications are recorded or made available to applicants.
8.1 Grants must be used for the purposes described in the application as approved by the AFA. If a grant is used for any other purpose, including changes in the outcome or in the location of the original program or project, the AFA may require the recipient to return all of the grant funds unless the change is:
8.2 The AFA, or its authorized representative, may examine a grant recipient's financial and other records to ensure that the grant is being, or was, used for its intended purpose.
8.3 If applicants do not receive the full grant amount requested, the applicants are still required to complete the project as proposed if they accept the grant. Applicants must return the grant funds if the project cannot be completed as proposed.
8.4 Grant recipients must return unused portions of a grant to the AFA and must return funds if reporting requirements are not met.
8.5 If applicants require an extension to their final report due date, a request must be submitted in writing prior to the final report due date listed in the successful notification letter. The AFA may consider a single extension per grant.
8.6 Whenever possible, grant recipients must acknowledge the AFA for financial support in any publicity prepared in relation to the project, including electronic, print, or visual material. However, unless otherwise specified, individual project grant recipients are not required to meet specific AFA recognition requirements.
8.7 The AFA provides electronic versions of its logo for use in meeting recognition requirements. These may be downloaded from the website www.affta.ab.ca.
Grant recipients must submit a report upon completion of the project that demonstrates that grant funds were spent on the activities described in the application and the proposed activities were completed. Reporting for this grant stream is managed through the GATE online grant application system. Each component identified below must be submitted to the AFA in the noted manner – online forms or attachments. Attachments must be uploaded to the GATE system to complete the application. See the Reporting User Guide for more information. (coming soon)
9.1 The final report is due on the date noted in the successful notification document, as determined by the project completion date set by the applicant, and must include all of the following:
In the Project Grant Final Report:
And, if applicable,
9.2 Any grant recipient who does not provide a report prior to the deadline (as noted in the successful notification document), who does not fulfill any conditions associate with a grant, or whose report is not approved will be made delinquent and ineligible for further funding from the AFA for a period of three years from the time the delinquency is resolved.
9.3 Previous grant recipients must have met reporting requirements in order to be eligible to receive subsequent funding in any AFA grant program or stream.
For assistance with this grant application, please call the AFA at 780.427.9968 during regular business hours. Toll-free calls can be made by first dialing 310.0000.
To obtain a GATE user ID and password, please email the AFA at email@example.com a minimum of five business days prior to the application deadline,
Barb Mah Arts Development Consultant T: (780) 415-0306 E: email@example.com
February 1
Aboriginal Arts Project Grant
Artist Manager (AM) Professional Development at Canada's Music Incubator
Individual Project Grant (click link to browse information on different arts discipline programs)
Provincial Arts Service Organizations Operational Grant
March 1
Community Support Organizations Operational Grant
April 1
Art Acquisition by Application
Artists and Education Project Grant
Public Art Galleries Operational Grant
Major Arts Presenters Operational Grant
June 1
Organizations: Art Project Grant
July 15
Summer Schools Grant
September 1
International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP) Residency in New York
November 1
Professional Performing Arts Organizations Operational Grant
Community Performing Arts Organizations Operational Grant
November 15
Arts Presenting Grant
December 1
AFA 25th Anniversary Commemorative Art Projects
Ongoing Application
Cultural Relations Project Grant


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Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPLS)
Q3 2006 Earnings Call
November 14, 2006 8:00 am ET
Ron Sargent - Chairman, CEO
John Mahoney - Vice Chairman, CFO
Laurel Lefebvre - VP Investor Relations
Mike Miles - President, COO
Joe Doody - President, North American Delivery
Demos Parneros - President, U.S. Stores
Bill Simms - Citigroup
Joe Feldman - Telsey Advisory Group
Armado Lopez - Morgan Stanley
Matthew Fassler - Goldman Sachs
Michael Baker - Deutsche Bank
Collin McGranahan - Sanford Bernstein
Dan Binder - Buckingham Research
Mark Rowen - Prudential Equity
Chris Horvers - Bear Stearns
Danielle Fox - Merrill Lynch
Good day, ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the third quarter 2006 Staples earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) I would now like to turn the presentation over to your host for today's call, Ms. Laurel Lefebvre, Vice President of Investor Relations. Please go ahead, ma'am.
Laurel Lefebvre
Good morning, everyone and thanks for joining us for our third quarter 2006 earnings announcement. During today's call we will discuss some non-GAAP metrics such as return on net assets, to provide investors with useful information about our financial performance. Please see the financial measures section of the Investor Information portion of Staples.com for an explanation and reconciliation of such measures and other calculations of financial measures that we use to analyze our business.
I would also like to remind that you certain information contained in this call constitutes forward-looking statements for purposes of the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including those discussed or referenced under the heading risk factors and elsewhere in Staples latest 10-Q filed this morning.
I would also like to remind you that we have restated our 2005 results to reflect the impact of expensing stock-based compensation and we will refer to those restated numbers when comparing our 2006 results to the prior year.
Here to discuss Staples' Q3 performance and business outlook are Ron Sargent, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; Mike Miles, President and Chief Operating Officer and John Mahoney, Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer. Also joining us are Demos Parneros, President of U.S. Stores and Joe Doody, President of North American Delivery.
Ron Sargent
Thanks, Laurel. Good morning, everybody. I am very pleased to announce excellent third quarter results with strong performances in each of our three businesses. To quickly run through the headlines, earnings per share were up 30% to $0.39. That includes adjustments related to tax and stock-based compensation which John will discuss later in the call. Excluding these items, net income grew 18% to $265 million, and earnings per share were $0.36, a 20% increase versus third quarter 2005. We're very pleased to see continued acceleration on the top line with sales growth of 12%.
Looking at the three business units, North American retail same-store sales were up a strong 4% and total sales were up 9%. North American delivery continues to gain market share with top line growth of 16%. International sales were up 10% in local currency, or 15% in U.S. dollars with strong 5% comps for Europe and continued progress in the UK and France.
Just a few weeks ago, we hosted our annual investor conference here in Framingham so we won't spend much time today revisiting our plans for the future. For those of you who did not attend, the theme for our investor day was driving profitable growth. We outlined our strategy to grow sales 10% to 15% and our bottom line 15% to 20% for the next few years. We also detailed some of the key growth platforms that will get us there, including our plans to expand into new geographies, to acquire new customers and to sell our customers a broader range of products and services.
There were seven key ideas that we discussed and I will briefly recap each:
- Our store model works; in existing markets, as well as new markets. By focusing on what customers want, our in-store experience is becoming increasingly differentiated. I think Chicago has been a proof point and we plan to repeat that success with entries into Miami, Denver and ten other major markets we're not in today.
- We have a terrific opportunity to improve store productivity by growing our offering in services. Our copy and print business has been a homerun in stores and we're expanding this business into standalone shops, and into our delivery business. Tech Services is another big idea, and we're growing this business aggressively as well with plans to have in-store technicians chain-wide by the end of the year.
- Staples brand products has plenty of room to grow. We announced our new target for Staples brand going from 20% of sales to 30%. We continue to launch innovative Staples brand products and we believe that direct sourcing will give us an incremental margin lift.
- We're building the brand by partnering with other retailers. Staples brand products will be in 2,500 grocery stores by year end, with many more to come.
- We're winning with delivery. We expect to grow this business by 15% for the next several years, following 16% to 18% growth in each of the last eight quarters. We also expect to improve our delivery inventory turns from 12 times today to 15 times.
- The turnaround in Europe is underway with good progress in the UK and France, and it is now showing up in the numbers. The momentum is building, and year-to-date sales for our international segment are up 7%; profits are up 120 basis points.
- Last, we've got great teams in Asia and South America and we fully expect that these emerging markets will play a big part in our success in the not too distant future. We expect to continue to drive rapid growth while maintaining profitability.
Just to summarize, our vision is for Staples to be the world's best office products company. This means we are going to stay focused on what Staples is known for: great execution that is focused on solving our customer's problems. We also have to continue to differentiate our brand in the minds of our customers, and we have to continue to drive market share gains by winning with more customers in more places, wherever we do business around the world.
I will now turn it over to Mike Miles to talk about third quarter results in North America.
Mike Miles
Thanks, Ron. Good morning, everybody. Let's start with the results for North American retail. Sales for the quarter were $2.7 billion, up 9% versus Q3 of 2005. Same-store sales were up 4%, driven primarily by strong traffic but also higher average order. We had a great back-to-school season; well-planned and well-executed. We also enjoyed strength in core office supplies, laptops, copy and print services and ink throughout the quarter.
New store productivity remains strong and we're very pleased with the portfolio of stores we're opening this year. North American retails SBU income improved 15% versus last year's third quarter, reaching $289 million. Operating margin rose 50 basis points year over year to 10.8%, driven primarily by gross profit leverage. Gross margins expanded due to strength in high margin categories like copy and print, and core office supplies, and good progress on attaching higher margin product to laptop sales.
We also did a good job controlling operating expenses. During the quarter, we completed the roll-out of our self-service payment systems in copy centers throughout Canada. These systems allow customers to complete their transactions right at the copier and also reduce the amount of unaccounted copies made. We expect to complete the installation of these systems in the U.S. during the first half of 2007.
In Q3, we opened 31 new stores in the U.S. and six new stores in Canada, so at the end of the quarter, we operated 1,576 stores in North America. For the full year, we're on track to open a total of around 100 stores here, with about 80 in the U.S., and 20 in Canada. This includes the new standalone copy and print shops that we're testing in the Boston market. In 2007, we expect to open more than 100 new stores in North America, including stores in Miami and Denver; new retail markets for the company. We now operate 625 Dover format stores.
We continue to focus on improving customer service and providing an easy experience for our customers. In Q3, our customer satisfaction scores were the best ever for our back-to-school season and we experienced a significant increase in customer compliments compared to last year. We delivered on Easy during back-to-school through an effective marketing campaign, innovative and colorful product to get teens organized, good in-stock and solid service, including some new technology for line busting called Fast Forward that shows customers we're committed to quick checkout.
We continue to make investments to gain market share and our consistent execution has positioned North American retail for sustainable, profitable growth and a differentiated customer experience.
Moving on to North American delivery, the NAD team achieved terrific results again this quarter, with strong sales growth in each of its three businesses. Sales grew 16% to $1.5 billion versus the third quarter of 2005, with organic growth accelerating almost a full percentage point from the second quarter. North American delivery achieved double-digit growth in each of our major product categories. Ink cartridges, paper, and janitorial and breakroom supplies showed particular strength.
Our contract business grew the fastest again this quarter, through new account acquisition and increasing share of wallet with existing customers. Our online and catalog business, Staples Business Delivery, benefited from its targeted marketing efforts, strong online promotions, and high customer conversion rates on Staples.com.
Quill grew sales as it benefited from strong own-brand product sales as well as increased share of wallet within its existing customer base. Worldwide ecommerce sales in the third quarter were $1.2 billion, a 27% increase year over year. Electronic sales represent 90% of total sales in our contract segment and 74% of sales for North American delivery overall.
SBU income increased 21% to $161 million, or 10.8% of sales, a 40 basis point improvement over last year's third quarter; a solid performance despite continued pressure from distribution expense.
Margin gains in North American delivery were offset by transition costs for our three new fulfillment centers. In addition to the Orlando and Atlanta FC's, we opened a new facility in Beloit, Wisconsin in Q3 to serve our Midwest region, including our Chicago customers. We plan to add to our distribution network in 2007 as well, with a new trichannel fulfillment center opening in Denver next spring. While bringing on new capacity hurts our expense rates in the short run, it provides the capacity to sustain our mid-teens growth rate and ensure great customer service.
Despite the short-term challenges of opening these FCs, we are very pleased with our customer service metrics during the quarter. Staples Business Delivery customer service has been certified for the second year in a row by JD Power and Associates for providing an outstanding customer service experience.
With that, I will turn it back over to Ron to talk about international.
Ron Sargent
Thanks, Mike. Sales for the third quarter were $586 million, that's up 10% in local currencies and 15% in U.S. dollars versus Q3 of last year. SBU income increased nine-fold to $9 million or 1.5% of sales; that's 130 basis points improvement over last year's Q3 results. We're seeing top line momentum in both our UK and French businesses. These represent the critical components of driving European results.
In retail, we're pleased with our overall profit improvement with strong comps of 5%. That's our best same-store sales performance since 2001. We're particularly pleased with our progress in the U.K. where comps improved to flat after three years of negative same-store sales. Store standards and merchandise presentation in the U.K. continue to improve and we're launching a new advertising and direct mail campaign to build our small business customer base. We're also encouraged by the growing mix of small business customer traffic in the U.K. I think it demonstrates that our marketing focus is working.
All of the other countries in the retail portfolio in Europe are performing well, with strong comps in every geography. No new stores were added during the quarter and we ended Q3 with a total of 262 stores in Europe.
On the delivery side, the operating margin rate in Europe improved nicely year-over-year with strong top line growth. Our French catalog business is beginning to reap the benefits of our investments and segmented marketing programs, customer service and systems, and we're building strong sales momentum.
Turning to new markets, China and South America are performing on plan with rapid growth in both businesses, particularly in China, where we expect to approach $100 million in sales this year. During the third quarter, we completed our joint venture agreement with UB Express in Taiwan.
In summary, top line trends are encouraging in Europe and we're confident that we can dramatically improve this business and achieve our operating margin goals of 7% to 7.5% in the next three to five years.
Now I would like to turn it over to John Mahoney to review our financials and our outlook.
John Mahoney
Thanks, Ron. I will go through the financials and give you some additional color on what is driving our results and then provide some guidance on our expectations for the fourth quarter and next year.
First, let's cover the tax rate and stock compensation adjustments, starting with the tax. Our Q3 results include a $33 million reduction in income taxes related to changes in estimates regarding certain tax uncertainties and the favorable resolution of several tax matters. This increased reported EPS by $0.04 per share. Our effective tax rate applicable for results from continuing operations remains at 36%.
In terms of stock compensation, during the third quarter of 2006 we completed a comprehensive review of our historical stock option practices for grants made during the last ten years. Based on the results of the review, we recorded a $10.8 million expense or $8.6 million net of taxes in Q3, to reflect the cumulative impact of accounting errors due to the use of incorrect measurement dates, without restating any historical financial statements. This represents about a $0.01 of earnings per share in the third quarter of 2006, and the impact of this correction in any single year would have been no more than 0.6% of the previously reported operating income for that year. We have concluded that the use of incorrect measurement dates was not the result of intentional wrong-doing and we have taken steps to improve our controls over our option granting process.
Turning back to our Q3 results, total company sales of $4.76 billion were up 12% versus last year's third quarter. Excluding the currency benefit in our Canadian and international businesses, sales grew 10.6%. Gross profit margin decreased by 11 basis points to 28.64% during the quarter, due to a strong margin expansion in our retail business, offset by deleveraging and delivery, primarily due to higher distribution expense and modest pressure from paper costs and fuel expense.
Operating and selling expenses for Q3 were 45 basis points favorable versus last year's third quarter, at 15.93% of sales. This reflects strong marketing expense leverage in our North American delivery business, solid expense management at retail, and good improvement across the board in our international businesses.
Turning to general and administrative expense, G&A deleveraged by 22 basis points for the quarter to 4.19% of sales, reflecting good expense control offset by higher variable compensation expense in line with our strong earnings performance, but primarily the correction of the measurement dates used to calculate prior years stock-based compensation.
Moving on to the balance sheet, total inventory turns were up 13 basis points versus last year, to 15.79 turns. We're sustaining our inventory turn improvement through continued focus on our summit supply chain programs at both retail and delivery. Return on net assets for the year improved to 13.8%, up 160 basis points compared to the end of the third quarter a year ago. This is an important milestone for us, as exceeding our long-term cost of capital of 11.7% by 200 basis points is a goal we've been working towards for several years.
Our liquidity and financial resources remain very strong. At the end of the third quarter, Staples had $2.1 billion in liquidity, including cash and short-term investments of $1.3 billion, and available lines of credit of about $800 million.
During the third quarter, we repurchased 7.3 million shares under our $1.5 billion stock buyback program, bringing our total repurchases to about $670 million under the current authorization. We have about $830 million remaining on our authorization. Our weighted average shares outstanding declined by just over 11 million shares year over year for the quarter, as a result of our repurchase program, offset by stock option exercises.
Year to date, CapEx came in at $352 million up from the $289 million we spent for the same period in 2005, primarily reflecting investment in stores, our new fulfillment centers and systems. With operating cash flow of $629 million, we generated $277 million in free cash flow year to date. Based on a little over $500 million in planned capital expenditures for the full year, we expect free cash flow generation of about $700 million this year.
In terms of our outlook for the fourth quarter, remember that we will benefit from an extra week in Q4. As a result, on the top line we expect high teens growth for the total company, with a positive low single-digit comp in our North American retail business. Note that we will exclude the 53rd week from our same-store sales calculation for Q4. Including the extra week, we expect mid-teens top line growth in North American retail; growth in the low 20s in North American delivery; and high single to low double-digit sales growth in the international business, in local currency.
We expect earnings per share growth will be slightly higher than 20% and keep in mind that the extra week, and the way fixed expenses and vendor promo flowed during the quarter, will impact a number of lines on the P&L in Q4. For the full year, we expect EPS growth to exceed our previous guidance of 15% to 20% growth, excluding the third quarter tax benefit and the correction for prior year stock-based compensation. We expect low double-digit growth on the top line, and positive low single-digit comps for North American retail.
In terms of our expectations for 2007, adjusting for the 53rd week in 2006, we expect our revenue growth in the 10% to 15% range, or about 8% to 13% including the extra week in 2006. We expect positive, low single-digit comps in North American retail; after adjusting for the extra week, we anticipate mid-teens revenue growth in NAD and in international, we expect low double-digit growth in local currency.
We expect next year's earnings per share to grow in the range of 15% to 20%, again after adjusting for the extra week, the Q3 settlement and the correction to prior years stock-based compensation. This equates to a range of $1.43 to $1.49 for 2007. We expect to invest approximately $525 million in capital next year.
Thanks for your time this morning. Now I will turn it back over to our conference call moderator for questions and answers.
Question-and-Answer Session
(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from Bill Simms - Citigroup.
Bill Simms - Citigroup
Thank you and good morning. I have two questions; one for John, one for Ron. Surrounding the fulfillment center cost, you can give us an update on what the three fulfillment centers cost? The timing of how much of those costs have already been accounted for; what is left for the remainder of the year? And then looking to 2007, you said you would open one additional fulfillment center. So should we assume roughly one-third of the cost of what you spent in this year? Could you give us any transparency there?
John Mahoney
As I think we talked about last quarter, there are really several different factors in increasing the expenses associated with our fulfillment centers. The first is the write-off of the assets relating to the old fulfillment center which we had some spill-off when we opened our Beloit facility this quarter.
The second is transition costs, extra working hours, overtime, and duplication between two facilities as we run the two facilities at the same time.
The third is the relatively higher fixed cost base that comes with opening up incremental capacity as we expand our distribution network. So all of those things are moderating. We obviously had two of the facilities opened up earlier and the third one this quarter. We expect continued improvement in the fourth quarter in our ability to ramp up the productivity in those facilities. So we think that all in, we have seen the kind of expected improvement that we were planning when we opened these facilities and it will get better in the fourth quarter and it will be better for all of next yea.
As you say, we have one facility opening up next year. Because it is a brand new facility, we don't have the write-off costs associated with the facilities we opened up this year. We also won't have as much in the way of transition costs because we're not going to operate two facilities at the same time. So largely it will be productivity and start-up costs resulting from training the workers in that facility.
Overall, we're optimistic about seeing continued improvement in our distribution starting in the fourth quarter and throughout all of next year.
Bill Simms - Citigroup
Thank you. Ron, just one question on international third quarter operating margin. There is improvement from the second quarter, but I think there still is a long way to go. Is the UK still dragging down profitability? That is the biggest area of drag. What is your outlook for driving improvement in the UK?
Ron Sargent
I do think it's a mixed bag. I think the UK is still dragging profits down a little bit, but I will tell you, we are getting closer and closer all the time and we're expecting to see continued improvement in the fourth quarter. I think it is also reflects some investments that we're making, primarily in Eastern Europe and primarily in some of the small markets that we're trying to grow very rapidly.
So do I think we have a long way to go? I do. We're making progress every quarter this year. I think we're going to make progress every quarter next year, but I fully expect that you will see a continued improvement in the fourth quarter, which typically is our strongest quarter of the year. I think all of the trends that I'm seeing, and when you look at the kind of work that Dick Neff and the UK team are doing over in the UK, I feel increasingly more confident that we're going to get to that 7.5% operating profit.
So I think in terms of operations, French delivery business seems to be growing the top line which I've been waiting for; the UK seems to be improving operationally. Then we will have to make our own decisions about what do you do in places like Eastern Europe or South America or Asia or Scandinavia in terms of how much we want to invest. But we're feeling a lot better about our European business today than we have in several quarters.
Bill Simms - Citigroup
Thank you very much. Good luck.
Ron Sargent
Thanks, Bill.
Your next question comes from Joe Feldman - Telsey Advisory Group.
Joe Feldman - Telsey Advisory Group
Good morning, guys. On the North American delivery business, how much growth would you say is coming from new customers versus the share of wallet? If you can break it down percentage-wise in some way and maybe by business as well?
Ron Sargent
Let me ask Joe Doody who is here who runs our North American Delivery business to answer that question.
Joe Doody
Joe, I won't break it down exactly for you, but it is a major part of each of the three businesses within NAD. We believe -- and certainly have shown evidence -- that we've got a great customer acquisition model in each of those three businesses. But in addition to that, we've got penetration taking place in terms of key core products into existing customers as well as share of wallet expansion into new categories, noted the JAN/SAN growth, but other categories as well that we're growing significantly. So it is a major part of each of the three businesses. But by no means is all of the growth that we're seeing in the business.
Ron Sargent
Would you say the mix would be tilted more towards new customers versus more sales to existing customers?
Joe Doody
Slightly more; yes, Ron.
Joe Feldman - Telsey Advisory Group
Can you give us any initial color on the initial Miami stores, and even the standalone copy and print centers?
Ron Sargent
Demos Parneros, who runs our North American retail business, can answer that one.
Demos Parneros
Sure. Good morning. First in Miami, actually we've been expanding into the Southern Florida market for the past year and with six additional stores up and running now, we're encouraged with those results. South Florida has been good for us prior to this entry; Florida actually in general has been strong for us, so we're not surprised by the good performance.
The one thing I'm personally proud of is the outstanding job that our team has done with customer service. The South Florida customers have absolutely accepted Staples and are really enjoying the store. So I would say so far, so good on the South Florida market entry. The same for the standalone copy centers. In that case, we're much newer in that arena. We've just opened our second store actually about a week ago, and the first store opened roughly a month ago. As you know, these are small, 4,000 square foot stores located in prime real estate locations in urban markets. We've had tremendous success with our Copy Center business and this is just an extension of that. So far, so good. It is a full service Copy Center. The key is also the very strong office supplies assortment that we have in these stores, which includes things like ink, paper and some of the other key small business needs. So we're very encouraged by both.
Joe Feldman - Telsey Advisory Group
That's great. Thanks very much, guys and good luck in the next quarter.
Your next question comes from Armado Lopez - Morgan Stanley.
Armado Lopez - Morgan Stanley
Thanks. Good morning, everyone. Just to follow up on the copy center question that was asked previously. As you look at the growth in copy centers within the stores, could you make talk a little bit about what you're seeing? Are you still seeing the growth accelerate there? Is that growth coming principally from new customers versus just gaining a larger share of wallet for your existing customers?
Demos Parneros
Good morning, Armado. We are very encouraged with progress in Copy Center. The growth is actually coming from both. We are seeing a lot of new customers trying the Copy Centers in our stores. One of the reasons for that is the great promotions that we've had. We have had great promotions for things like $0.39 color copies, as well as big poster or wide format color copies, or black and white copies. A lot of customers have really been turned on to those services and have begun to explore other services that we offer.
Alongside that, our existing customers also love the promotions and have continued to reward us with more business and our average order continues to grow. So we're seeing strength in existing as well as new customers trying the centers.
Armado Lopez - Morgan Stanley
In terms of the fulfillment centers and the rollout, could you provide a little more color in terms of where are you from a capacity utilization perspective? How long does it typically take to get one of the fulfillment centers up to full capacity?
Joe Doody
We typically build our new centers to last us, before expansion of that facility, in the three to five-year time period. Then we would typically go in and expand that existing facility to take on more capacity. So typically, we're building a new facility for three to five years of volume within that geography, with an expansion after that time.
Mike Miles
I can just add to that a little bit and say that when you think about the rate of growth we've seen in NAD sales, we have to really think about expanding to keep up with that growth. You think about mid-teens growth, it shows that your capacity is going to need expansion in a hurry. Coupled with that, we've found that our Summit supply chain initiatives have allowed us to get more capacity out of our existing facilities by process improvement and systems improvement.
So I think we have added fixed capacity this year at a fairly high rate, after not having added any for several years before that. So we think we're in good shape to have a little bit less lumpy performance in distribution expense going forward.
Armado Lopez - Morgan Stanley
Okay. Great. Thanks a lot, guys.
Your next question comes from Matthew Fassler - Goldman Sachs.
Matthew Fassler - Goldman Sachs
Thanks a lot. Good morning. John, if you could give us just a little bit of color on how you see both the fuel cost issue for distribution and the paper price issue evolving over the next couple of quarters? It would seem like certainly on the fuel side you're likely to see some benefit. If you can give us a sense whether that is a measurable amount that can impact the P&L or whether it is something that we wouldn't really see?
John Mahoney
I think on fuel first, we've seen diesel prices have been a little bit stickier than gasoline prices and you hear a lot of retailers talk about the benefit of lower gas prices. That hasn't been passed through to diesel fuel as quickly, so we have seen diesel prices higher than last year throughout the first three quarters of this year. We expect that will decline and create some measurable benefit, but it is not going to be certainly all that material to us.
The paper issue seems to have settled down in that as you probably know, we pass along in the delivery business our paper costs based on a rolling 12-month average in contract; therefore, it takes a while for the price increases to catch up, and the good news is that we haven't seen a paper price increase in the back half of the year and don't expect to, so we should start to see a little bit of benefit from that both through the remainder of this year and then on through the first half of next year.
Matthew Fassler - Goldman Sachs
Ron, just a quick question on international. It sounds like you're emboldened at this point to start marketing the improvements that you have made and to commit some dollars particularly in England where I think you've been hesitant to do that in the past. Did that start this quarter? It seems like at this point you probably have the option of maybe booking some nicely higher profits based on the work that you've done or engaging in reinvestment mode. Just how are you thinking about that those options as you look forward to next year?
Ron Sargent
In specifically the UK, I think we wanted to get the operations right and I think Dick and the UK team have done a wonderful job doing that. We did start some marketing this quarter, but it is primarily a different approach to marketing, it is more direct marketing and building our small business customer base through rewards and direct approaches, and direct mailing, versus putting computers on the front page of the circular around the country.
So I think we've cycled maybe the bad marketing, and we've started on the good marketing and we are going to step on the gas a little bit in the fourth quarter and beyond, because we've had negative comps there for a couple of years, and now that we're seeing our customer count trends heading in the right direction and our comp sales heading in the right direction, you can be sure that we're going to step on the gas just a bit.
Matthew Fassler - Goldman Sachs
Just to clarify Ron, have you really marketed this way before? As you think back to your ten-plus years in the country, are these tactics different from what you pursued previously?
Ron Sargent
I think if you look at the last few years, it is certainly different. I think when you we started in the UK it was back in 1991 and I think we were really focusing on that small business customer for several years and we had good results to show for it. I think over the last three or four years, I think we got a little bit astray of how we market in the U.S., and I think we were spending too much time doing Sunday newspapers and circulars and giving away technology at low margin and little attachment.
So I think only in the last 18 months really, since Dick's arrival and we sent over some resources from our direct marketing team in the U.S., I think only in the last 18 months have we cycled the computer promotions and have started on the direct approach. So like I said, I'm pretty encouraged about the progress we're making in the UK.
Matthew Fassler - Goldman Sachs
Thank you so much.
Your next question comes from Michael Baker - Deutsche Bank.
Michael Baker - Deutsche Bank
Thanks, a couple of questions. One, I think at your meeting you talked about the retail business potentially growing at 10% on a longer-term basis. This is a great quarter, but what gets better to get to that 10% where retail only grew at -- a very good number, but I think 9% this quarter?
Mike Miles
I think the formula that we have for getting to that 10% is high single-digit square footage growth, 6% to 7% square footage growth and then low, but at the upper end of the low single-digits from a comp sales basis every quarter. I think what you saw this quarter is indicative of our aspirations to get there. Getting to the double-digit is an aspirational thing for us and that is the challenge that we've set out for the marketing, merchandising and real estate teams. Those are the two things that will get us there.
We're optimistic that some of the services businesses that we're growing, as well as some of the new formats from a real estate standpoint, will help add to what you saw in this quarter.
Michael Baker - Deutsche Bank
That high single-digit square footage, 6% to 7%, I think it is a little bit of an acceleration. Is that because you're including some of those newer formats or are you going to step up this year's core superstore growth relative to where it's been? Related to that, would that be a reaction to what some of your competitors are doing?
Separately, if you could comment on what you think about some of your competitors' increased square footage growth?
Mike Miles
Well, we've been increasing the number of stores that we've been putting into North America every year for the last several years. Our increase in that is a reaction to the success that we're seeing doing that. It is not a reaction to what anybody else might be doing. But our take on the North America market right now is that it remains a highly fragmented market and there is a lot of opportunity to add new stores.
I think the new format stores at the margin, will play a role in the increase in square footage, but the bulk of the increase in square footage is going to come from the Dover superstore that is really the backbone of the chain. The results that we've had this year and last year both with new market entries and adding stores to the markets that we've been in for a long time have been real positive. Some of the best new store openings we've had this year have been in markets like Boston and New York, where we've been for 20 years now, and we can see opportunities in new markets and the existing markets as well.
Michael Baker - Deutsche Bank
Thanks for the color.
Your next question comes from Collin McGranahan - Sanford Bernstein.
Collin McGranahan - Sanford Bernstein
Good morning. John, I think you said that you saw strong gross margin expansion in retail. I was hoping you would provide a little bit more color on that, given the strength in back-to-school and obviously technology was one of the better categories; and maybe what the impact of private label was? Just if you could expand on the gross margin expansion in the retail division a little bit.
John Mahoney
Sure. Back-to-school is a great time of the year for us because it does have a pretty rich mix of office supplies, and our comps in office supplies were better than technology, even though technology is very good. Our mobility initiative, which focuses on not just selling laptops but also all of the attachments that goes along with it, also has helped our margin in technology. We do a little bit better there than we did before we were getting the level of attachment that we've seen.
The Staples brand continues to increase its penetration. As we said, we're going to get to the 20% goal that we had set for ourselves previously this year, which is a nice improvement. That also helps our margin. Finally I would say that the mix of particularly Copy Center business which is higher margin than the rest of the chain and is growing at a multiple of the chain, helped.
So really there are an awful lot of things working together to improve our gross margin in the North American retail business and we think that is something we expect to see going forward as well.
Collin McGranahan - Sanford Bernstein
John, you mentioned also that the extra week in Q4 will have impact on multiple lines. Do you care to expand on that at all? Just what we should be thinking about as we model out Q4 a little bit more carefully?
John Mahoney
I think as you think about gross margin, for example, we do our promo money, the arrangements are 52-week arrangements with vendors so we will have effectively one less week of promo money; so we will have 14 weeks of sales, and 13 weeks of promo money. That will impact our gross margin a little bit. Similarly in other lines, some of the operating expense lines, where you see fixed costs like rent, where we have 13 weeks of rent in some cases that results in lower expense rates there. So nearly every line in the P&L will have some impact associated with that. We just wanted to make sure that as you model those things, that you take that into consideration.
Collin McGranahan - Sanford Bernstein
So directionally, a little bit less gross margin benefit, a little more expense benefit and we can model around that?
John Mahoney
That's right.
Collin McGranahan - Sanford Bernstein
Finally, just on the fulfillment centers, not to beat a dead horse here, but is the opening and the schedule pretty much as you expected, or has something lagged or not come up as quickly? How are you thinking about the expansion of fulfillment centers this year versus what you had originally anticipated at the beginning of the year?
John Mahoney
Well Colin, as you might imagine, with three projects the size of that nothing ever goes exactly the way you expected it to. That said, each one has a different story and some level of associates moving over, it varies by facility, and that has a lot to do with how quickly you get the facilities ramped up and operating properly. There is always new technology in facilities or technology that works together with something that has been there before that creates some challenges.
So I would say overall, we're about on plan. But we've had at least one facility do better than we expected and one probably do about what we expected and one probably do a little bit less than we expected coming out of the chute. You have to give a lot of credit to the team that has opened these facilities, and they have really worked day and night to get these things up and running; and are primarily focused on making sure that we get our packages to customers next day, on time.
As you heard, our perfect order rate remains very strong in spite of the fact that we've had this tremendous amount of transition during the year. Anything you want to add to that, Joe?
Joe Doody
Just the last point, John, is that we're extremely pleased with the level of service we're providing out of these facilities. Our customer service metrics are really at all-time highs and that bodes well for us in terms of retention of our customers and continued growth of our business with our existing customers.
Collin McGranahan - Sanford Bernstein
Great. Thank you very much.
Ron Sargent
Your next question comes from Dan Binder - Buckingham Research.
Dan Binder - Buckingham Research
On a year-over-year basis, if we look at paper it's up quite a bit on the pricing side. Even I think ink has seen some increases out of HP through the year. How much do you think that is helping the comps at retail and sales overall? It is meaningful?
Ron Sargent
I don't think it is meaningful. John could answer that question better than I.
John Mahoney
The paper price increases have been pretty gradual over the course of the year and it is certainly less than 50 basis points for the combination of both on the comps.
Dan Binder - Buckingham Research
Okay. I'm not sure if you commented, I jumped on the call a little late, but did you have any color on the furniture business, both at retail and delivery?
Mike Miles
We are pleased with the furniture business, which on the retail side, showed some growth in the third quarter, particularly thanks to the chairs business, which has been transformed, I think, with a focus on quality and has been performing much, much more strongly. We have had a little bit of margin pressure there as we go through some clearance to get some of the older collections out of the store, but I think that is going to set us up for a stronger year in 2007.
On the delivery side, furniture has been a real growth category for us and really hasn't suffered any of the issues that we've seen in the retail side, which again is some of the reason that we believe that the retail furniture business is very fixable and the progress that we're making is just the beginning of better things to come there.
Dan Binder - Buckingham Research
Just on the pricing side, I would maybe like to take a look at retail and delivery. Listening to some of the wholesaler calls, it sounds like that the independent dealer is still fairly strong. You guys are fairly strong. I'm just wondering how much of your growth in delivery do you think is really market share gains, given the strength of the independent dealers, out there, and how much of it is just a benefit of a really good economy?
The other thing I wanted to explore was just on the pricing side. Are you seeing any changes in the pricing environment in delivery?
Also on the retail side, the competition has been a little bit more liberal on the every day pricing, but more aggressive on the week to week promotional activity. Just a little color on that.
Joe Doody
From a delivery standpoint first, in terms of growth, clearly we're taking market share. Our growth in the mid teens is far above the rest of the industry, which is more in the low to mid single-digits, so there are clearly share gains going on.
From a pricing standpoint, it is always competitive out there, but yet fairly rational. One of our major competitors has gone on record to say that they need to drive more profitability and as such, are re-looking at how they're pricing in the marketplace, so we're seeing, for the most part, pretty rational pricing.
I will say that as you know, the paper increases in costs and what it relates to in our business is a little bit more noticeable than it is in retail, so it is maybe about a point of our growth in the most recent quarter is due to paper impact.
Demos Parneros
The thing I would add to Joe's comments is that our pricing philosophy continues to be focused on not just the office superstores that you mentioned but obviously everyone who is out there. As you know, there are a lot more players who we compete with every day than just the two. In addition to that, we will fully expect the heavy promotional activity as we end the year due to Black Friday and then the holiday season. So it will probably be the same as it was last year.
Dan Binder - Buckingham Research
Okay. Last question, just in terms of the business consistently through the quarter, did things hold up pretty well post back-to-school?
Ron Sargent
It was fairly consistent throughout the quarter.
Dan Binder - Buckingham Research
(Operator Instructions) Your next question will come from the line of Mark Rowen – Prudential Equity.
Mark Rowen - Prudential Equity
Thanks. On the pricing, when you go into new markets where two of your superstore competitors are already established, are the pricing trends in those markets different and more competitive than in markets where there are only a couple of players?
Demos Parneros
They're really not, actually. Surprisingly it has been quite rational. As you know, we've entered as the third player into several markets over the last few years and it has been rational pricing. Again, we will go in and do our grand opening program just the same way that competition comes in to some of our markets and does their grand opening activity. But essentially, the pricing is fairly consistent across the board.
Ron Sargent
We think pricing is just one element for how customers pick an office superstore. I think it is store format, store service once you get in there. I think it is knowledgeable people. It is not just pricing. People want a fair price but they won't run all over town to save a nickel.
Mark Rowen - Prudential Equity
But basically, there is no difference in markets where there are three players versus two or one?
Ron Sargent
Pretty much, it is pretty much rational pricing these days. I think those days are long gone.
Mark Rowen - Prudential Equity
Just as a follow-up to the pricing, John, when you look at your long-term operating margin goals that you set out at your analyst day, do you assume that pricing remains where it is, which I think everyone would agree has been benign in the industry, where nobody is really trying to use price as a way to gain share. Do you assume that continues going forward?
John Mahoney
Yes. I would say that our prices have continued to go down every year as we improve our supply chain and buy better. So I think we expect that we will continue to pass on benefits from some of our productivity to customers, but that pricing will stay in the similar environment to what it is now. Largely based on the fact, as Ron said, that customers tell us that they want to trust us for price, they want our prices to be good, but unless it is materially different, they aren't going to shop around for price as much.
Mark Rowen - Prudential Equity
Lastly Ron, on Europe, to get to your operating profit target of 7.5% what basically do you need to do from here? Is it primarily cost cutting or is it primarily you still need to improve the sales and get leverage on your fixed costs?
Ron Sargent
When you look at our European P&L and you almost have to look at it by country, I think you have to look at opportunities in every part of our business. In the UK it is certainly top line, I think there are certainly expenses. I think there is an opportunity on some G&A lines throughout Europe. I think you have to make decisions in other countries about how quickly do you grow them, and what are you sacrificing in terms of the bottom line in an effort to grow them quickly?
There are opportunities when you look at where our current operating profit rate is in Europe, I think it is very obvious that there are opportunities in every single line of the P&L and we're working every single line of the P&L.
Mark Rowen - Prudential Equity
Given that you have stated that you're relatively breakeven in some of the emerging markets and you seem happy to do that to grow the businesses as quickly as you can there, how much of a drag is that on your international margins now?
Ron Sargent
In terms of percentage, I would defer to John.
John Mahoney
As Ron indicated, we want to grow those businesses and have then breakeven but we have seen small losses in both China and in South America over the last couple of years. But it is a matter of hundreds of thousands of dollars, not millions; as a result, the impact is fairly small on the total bottom line. If we get our European business to start to achieve in the areas of better buying, and sharing best practices, and marketing productivity, it will dwarf the losses we're experiencing in those emerging markets.
Mark Rowen - Prudential Equity
Great. Thanks.
Ron Sargent
Thanks, Mark.
Your next question comes from the line of Chris Horvers - Bear Stearns.
Chris Horvers - Bear Stearns
Good morning, everybody. A follow-up on the real estate question. Ron, I think in the past, you've talked about a number of stores that you thought that the North American market could bear. I'm not sure if it was 4,500 or 5,000. If you could talk a little bit about that, and especially in light of the ramp-up at Depot and Max.
Ron Sargent
I think the number I've used in the past is 4,500 of the existing format office superstores. I don't think we're in any danger of saturation in the near future. I think the good news is it is a big market and a growing market, and when you look at all three office superstores put together, our share is pretty small. When you look at the fact that we've shown some success in entering new markets like Chicago and Southern Florida as well as new store openings, our new stores are opening strong there year than last; that represents, to me, the opportunity.
If you look at 4,500 and if you assume that we're probably 1,500 today, the optimist would say there is room for 3,000 Staples stores and the pessimist would add the three office superstores numbers together and say there is not much room left. So I think what we're seeing is a continued success in entering new markets.
We've got some other things coming whether it is a prototype for a new urban type store; whether it is a small store like Barrington, where I think we've been working to perfect that market. So do I think there is a lot room? I think there is. Frankly, our focus is more on customers than it is on competitors. Our plan is to make steady progress year after year, internally, we call that going 20 miles a day.
But briefly put, we're going to continue to focus on customers and execute our plan, and we have been stepping up the store growth each year for the last few years, and based on this year's results, my guess is we will step it up another notch next year.
Chris Horvers - Bear Stearns
How long typically is the real estate process from site selection to actual opening? How long is your pipeline and how do you protect against the winter's curse of going after, because you have three competitors going after the same good real estate location, and ending up overpaying for something?
Ron Sargent
Well, typically, it is about a year process from the time you identify something and in many cases it can be multiple years, if it is a full development that is going in and has to be permitted and approved. But typically we think of our pipeline about a year after we identify the stores, when we would open it.
In terms of competing for real estate, that's what we do. We try to get the best real estate and everybody else does as well.
John Mahoney
I would just add that I think we've shown great discipline in our use of capital and we have a store model and we know what we can afford to pay for rent and we are willing to pass on a location if the rent goes beyond what we can afford to get a good return on the store.
Ron Sargent
I think one of the things that John mentioned in his comments and something we're very proud of and we probably didn't play it up enough is 13.8% ROA we've been working for the last five or six years to get to 13.7% and we delivered 13.8% which I think it is a good indication we're spending our shareholders' money wisely.
Chris Horvers - Bear Stearns
Thank you.
Your final question comes from Danielle Fox - Merrill Lynch.
Danielle Fox - Merrill Lynch
Thanks, good morning. I just have a quick follow-up actually on the gross margin outlook. John, I'm wondering; does the 2007 outlook assume that gross margins are up on a consolidated basis? If so, what are the key drivers of that incremental improvement from recent trend? Is it the improvement in fuel and paper prices as well as the ramp-up of the fulfillment center you mentioned earlier?
I'm just wondering what specifically you put in for gross margin for next year?
John Mahoney
Danielle, the same drivers that have been working in retail are going to continue to work. We are going to continue to see an improvement in mix, whether it is from Copy Center or for other categories; we're going to continue to see the Staples brand improve and our supply chain initiatives will allow us to drive down the cost of bringing product from vendors on through to customers. So I think that will continue to be the same.
In NAD where we've seen a lot of pressure from adding capacity in our distribution centers, we're not going to see that same kind of pressure next year, so that will allow us to return to improving gross margins in NAD. So I think the combination of the two of those where this year you had the NAD margin pressure offsetting the gains we've seen in retail, will work together next year to allow our gross margins to improve.
Danielle Fox - Merrill Lynch
So sequential improvement. Do you anticipate that they will be up or we will see how things play out over the course of the year?
John Mahoney
I think we will see improvement year over year for all of next year.
Danielle Fox - Merrill Lynch
Terrific. Thanks.
You have no further questions at this time. I would like to turn the call over to Mr. Sargent for closing comments.
Ron Sargent
Just to wrap up, I would like to close by thanking the Staples team for delivering another really outstanding quarter. While we continue to improve margins, we're squarely focused on driving profitable growth and we're pleased to see the top line momentum in every part of our business.
Thanks everybody for your time this morning, and we look forward to speaking with you again soon.
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your participation in today's conference. This concludes the presentation.
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Presented in Partnership with the Washington Performing Arts SocietyEvening Performance
Additional What Makes it Great? performances are available on:
Why does a piece of music sometimes flow past your brain, suffuse your soul, and remain in your memory? Answer: It's great. If you require more explanation than that, Rob Kapilow, well-known commentator, conductor, and composer, has a knack for unraveling and exploring the elements that combine to render a musical composition a masterpiece.
In this year's season of his popular What Makes It Great? series, Kapilow brings his insights to enduring works by an intriguing range of composers. Each session follows a three-part format. Kapilow first offers an in-depth discussion of the featured work. Next, the piece is performed in its entirety. A question-and-answer session with the audience and performers rounds out the program.
Deepen your connection to some of your favorite musical works, and discover why the Kansas City Star says "Not since Leonard Bernstein has classical music had a combination salesman-teacher as irresistible as Kapilow."
Beethoven: "Kreutzer" Sonata
Zoe Martin-Doike, violinChelsea Wang, piano


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text:
Villa Vilina Oasis in Neve Tzedek, Tel Aviv
- Free WiFi
Main amenities
- 5 apartments
- Rooftop terrace
- Massage/treatment rooms
- Airport shuttle
- Childcare
- Air conditioning
- Hair salon
- Luggage storage
- Limited hour front desk
- Tour/ticket assistance
Feel at home
- Cribs/infant beds (surcharge)
- Supervised childcare/activities (surcharge)
- Kitchenette
- Stovetop
- Microwave
- Refrigerator
What's around
- In Neve Tzedek
- Carmel Market (0.4 mi / 0.6 km)
- Hatachana Compound (0.5 mi / 0.9 km)
- Habima Theatre (1 mi / 1.6 km)
- Dizengoff Centre (1.1 mi / 1.7 km)
- Jaffa Port (1.4 mi / 2.3 km)
Villa Vilina Oasis in Neve Tzedek, Tel Avivfrom $135
- Superior rooftop 1 Bedroom with Terrace
- 1 Bedroom with garden view
- Roof top Studio with Terrace
- Deluxe suite with garden and Jacuzzi
- Economy Room, 1 Bedroom
- Rooftop 1 bedroom with private terrace
- Superior rooftop 2 Bedrooms with Terrace
More great choices
At a glance
Key facts
Hotel size
- This hotel has 5 rooms
- This hotel is arranged over 2 floors
- 24-hour check-in
- Check-out time is 11:00 AM
- Express check-in/out
If you are planning to arrive after 6 PM please contact the property in advance using the information on the booking confirmation.
Airport shuttle service is available on request. Contact the property in advance to make arrangements.
Required at check in
- Credit card or cash deposit required
- Government-issued photo ID required
- Minimum check-in age is 18
- Free WiFi in public areas
- Free WiFi in rooms
- Airport shuttle (available on request) *
- Train station pickup *
- No parking
Nearby One Star Tel Aviv hotels
In the hotel
- Supervised childcare/activities (surcharge)
- Spa treatment room(s)
- Front desk (limited hours)
- Tours/ticket assistance
- Limo or Town Car service available
- Hair salon
- Luggage storage
- Number of buildings/towers - 1
- Rooftop terrace
In the room
- Air conditioning
- Iron/ironing board
- Premium bedding
- In-room massage available
- Individually decorated
- Individually furnished
- Private bathroom
- Shower only
- Hair dryer
- Desk
- Free WiFi
- Refrigerator
- Microwave
- Kitchenette
- Stovetop
Top Tel Aviv hotels
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Villa Vilina Oasis in Neve Tzedek, Tel Aviv's small print
Also known as
- Villa Vilina
- Villa Vilina Neve Tzedek
- Villa Vilina Oasis
- Villa Vilina Oasis Neve Tzedek
- Villa Vilina Oasis Neve Tzedek Apartment
- Villa Vilina Oasis Neve Tzedek Apartment Tel Aviv
- Villa Vilina Oasis Neve Tzedek Tel Aviv
- Villa Vilina Oasis In Neve Tzedek Hotel Tel Aviv
Only registered guests are allowed in the guestrooms.
This property does not have elevators.
For transfers, guests must contact the property 48 hours prior to arrival at the number on the booking confirmation.
Reservations are required for massage services and can be made by contacting the property before arrival at the number on the booking confirmation.
Mandatory fees
You'll be asked to pay the following charges at check in or check out:
- All citizens of Israel will be charged the national value-added tax
Optional extras
Cribs/Infant beds are available for ILS 10.00 per day
Airport shuttle service is offered for an extra charge
We have included all charges provided to us by this hotel. However, charges can vary, for example, based on length of stay or the room you book.
Recent reviews
Good 3.5 /5 from 19 reviews
We encountered three problems: 1. We were asked if we wanted to upgrade our room at a higher price, upon arrival. The room I reserved was not shown on the website, and was much less attractive than the one on which I based my reservation. I feel this was a bait and switch situation. 2. We were told that the room was self-service; only fresh towels were provided. This was not stated on the website. 3. There was no wi-fi Internet service upon arrival or the next morning; there is no reception at the hotel, and I did not know how to contact the manager to complain. Later the Internet service was working, but the delay caused a substantial inconvenience to my work. The manager of the hotel is not receptive to questions, let alone comments. Anything that goes wrong is the fault of the customer.
We had a comfortable stay. Room for family was a good size. Great position. Importantly for me it was quiet. The kitchen was a good size. But the family loved the upper deck the best. Great atmosphere.
Terrible experience!! Our taxi could not enter the street because of construction barriers at entrance. We had to carry our luggage and then realize there is no office and no one on site, just an old,neglected and run down place. We had to wait 15 minutes until a neighbor did us a favor and called the manager,then had to climb 32 narrow steps with suitcases at 97 degree heat to find shabby dilapidated rooms with A/C that was not working properly. Because we had prepaid we decided to "rough it out" (big mistake), any 2 star hotel would have been better, and i am sorry to say I can't even call it "rustic". However the general area of Neve Tzedek is nice to stroll.
A lovely homely place with personal service!
Warm welcome by the owner who led us to a beautiful spacious apartment and gave us some discount coupons to the best restaurants around the neighborhood.Kind service, and amazing roof terrace in the best location of Tel-Aviv. A place i would like to come back to.
Is the description of this hotel not correct? Tell us


text:
iHerb Customer Reviews
Savings of: $1.27 (24% off)
Love it
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Gingered Spaghetti Salad Recipe
We love to make this chilled chicken salad brimming with veggies. Make it meatless by omitting the chicken and tossing in more edamame. —Cindy Heinbaugh, Aurora, Colorado
- 1 package (16 ounces) whole wheat spaghetti
- 1 cup frozen shelled edamame
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh gingerroot
- 1 cup reduced-fat sesame ginger salad dressing
- 3 cups cubed cooked chicken breast
- 1 English cucumber, chopped
- 1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped
- 1 small sweet yellow pepper, chopped
- 1 small red onion, finely chopped
- 3 green onions, sliced
- 1. Cook spaghetti according to package directions, adding edamame during the last 5 minutes of cooking. Rinse in cold water and drain well. Meanwhile, stir ginger into salad dressing.
- 2. In a large bowl, combine spaghetti, chicken, cucumber, peppers and red onion. Add dressing; toss to coat. Sprinkle with green onions. Yield: 8 servings.
Nutritional Facts
1-3/4 cups: 353 calories, 5g fat (1g saturated fat), 40mg cholesterol, 432mg sodium, 53g carbohydrate (6g sugars, 8g fiber), 26g protein.
Reviews for Gingered Spaghetti Salad
Reviewed Feb. 17, 2015
"This salad gets rave reviews at potlucks and picnics. I omit the chicken so that our vegetarian friends can enjoy it, too."
Reviewed Jun. 21, 2010
Wine Pairings
Light-Bodied White Wine
Enjoy this recipe with a light-bodied white wine such as Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio.
© 2017 RDA Enthusiast Brands, LLC


text:
Skoda — shameless ahmedabad showroom and customer care
1 Review
Anankit tayal
Respected Sir,
I am Ankit Tayal based from Bhavnagar. My car Skoda superb No. CH 0153, stopped in Ahmedabad Highway due to megatronic failour. The showroom of Ahmedabad refused to give us any service. After requesting them for 4 to 5 hours as our car was in the middle of the road and cannot be moved due to megtronic failour they accepted to send a engineer.
My car is in Ahmedabad Showroom since 18th August and today is 9 oct almost two months I am calling the dealer for my car. There is no response for my car and the worst I have be calling customer car numerous times but they fail to give me any feedback infact they didn't response me once also.
Am totally pissed off as the way Skoda India is taking this complaint lightly as they have put my life in jeopardy every time. My driver has been in the showroom twice and came back as they didn't respond them.
I am looking forward a help from your end. Sir you can even call me on my mobile no. 09879666333
Thanking you
Ankit tayal
|0 Comments
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text:
Results 1 to 4 of 4
- 09-02-2014, 04:45 PM Thread Author #1
- Posts
- 2 Posts
Contact Recovery
Hey all. So, my phone screen shattered, to the point where the screen doesn't turn on. Unfortunately, I had debugging mode turned off and when i hook it up to the computer I can't see any files because of this. Unfortunately, this also means that programs like Dr. Phone can't access it, because it doesn't get assigned a drive letter. Since I can't use the screen, the lock screen is permanently stuck as far as I can tell. Is there any way I can get access into the phone and retrieve my contacts?
Before the lectures start, I have been backing up my phone using Lookout Premium through T-Mobile. The problem came in when I got my new phone (thank God/Allah/Buddah/Flying Spaghetti Monster/ Every Other Deity for insurance) and went to download the contact file from the backup that lookout was making. When I did, I found that there was no contact file to download. I could get my calls log and photos and everything else it backed up, but my contacts were missing.
I've contacted them, and they've said there is no way to recover the contacts if the file isn't there, which of course made me a little irate.
So, does anyone have any way I can hook the phone up to the computer, bypass the lock screen, and somehow access my files?
Both the old and new phone are the LG G Flex (LG-D959) and running Android 4.4.2
- Posts
- 17,231 Posts
- Global Posts
- 17,752 Global Posts
Re: Contact Recovery
Without debugging enabled, the lock screen and all.. I think your chances are limited at getting those back
- 09-02-2014, 05:37 PM Thread Author #3
- Posts
- 17,231 Posts
- Global Posts
- 17,752 Global Posts
Re: Contact Recovery
Not to stir the pot but can I ask why you didn't have your Contacts list sync'd to your Gmail account?
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