Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPLS), the largest office supply company in the United States entered an agreement to acquire PNI Digital Media Inc (TSE:PN) (CVE:PN) (OTCBB:PNDMF), a Canadian digital media solutions provider for retailers.
Terms of the deal
Under the agreement, Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPLS) agreed to purchase PNI Digital Media Inc (TSE:PN) (CVE:PN) (OTCBB:PNDMF) for CDN$1.70 per share or CND$73.9 million (around $67.3 million). The acquisition price represents a 31.8% premium to the closing price of the shares of PNI Digital Media on May 2 at the Toronto Stock Exchange.
PNI Digital Media Inc (TSE:PN) (CVE:PN) (OTCBB:PNDMF) is expected to operate independently, and will leverage the strength of Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPLS) to improve service for customer and partners.
The largest office supply company will support the digital media solutions provider to continue to expand its customer base while maintaining the required resources to consistently meet its customers’ needs. PNI Digital Media Inc (TSE:PN) (CVE:PN) (OTCBB:PNDMF) helps the world’s largest retailers to sell millions of personalized products every year including business cards, calendars, photo prints, photo books, wedding invitations, stationery and many more using its software platform.
The shareholders of PNI Digital Media Inc (TSE:PN) (CVE:PN) (OTCBB:PNDMF) including its executive officers and directors as well as Invesco Canada Ltd who own approximately 17.8% of its outstanding shares agreed to vote in favor of the transaction, which is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of this year.
The deal still needs that approval of the Supreme Court of British Columbia. The shareholders of PNI Digital are scheduled to vote for the approval of the acquisition during a special meeting on July 8.
Executive comments
In a statement, Damien Leigh, senior vice president of business services at Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPLS) said, “PNI’s technology gives customers easy access to the best personalized products and related services. As a part of Staples, we expect PNI to continue to innovate on an open platform and share their innovations with both their current customers and with Staples’ Business Services division.”
On the other hand, PNI Digital Media CEO Kyle Hall said, the company is expected significantly expand its services with the Staples’ support. He added, “For years, our retailer partners have used our online, in-store kiosk software and mobile apps to successfully drive millions of orders and in-store visits.”
