Office Supply Stores

Let me introduce myself. I am a former employee of a major office supply store (such as Office Depot, OfficeMax, Staples etc) working as a sales associate. During my tenure there, I have generated quite a lot of knowledge on how office stores are like and all sorts of different kinds of customers. Now that I have officially resigned from my position and have some free time, I will share with you, the reader, the various things that I have learned while working at an office supply store.

The primary products that office supply stores sell IN THE STORE are:
1) Printers and accessories
2) Paper products (printer/copy paper, posterboards, construction paper)
3) Writing instruments
4) Office furniture
5) School supplies (more so during the summer than the rest of the year)
6) Binders, folders and other filing accessories
7) Storage devices
8) Phones and basic networking supplies
9) Data memory storage (CD-Rs, DVDRs, Flash cards, jump drives, external hard drives etc)
10) A FEW computers and accessories

First off, do not go into an office supply store and expect to find plasma screen TVs and stereo surround sound systems--that's what Best Buy and Fry's are for. Furthermore, do not go into an office supply store and expect to find a TV tuner that would hook up to your computer monitor--that's what Best Buy and Fry's are for. Also, do not go into an office supply store expecting all of the sales associates to be able to fix your printer and computer problems--that's what Best Buy and Fry's are for. And when office supply store associates do help fix your problems, be grateful that they just saved you at least $75 for a checkup at Best Buy or Fry's by doing something that they aren't required to do.

If you are interested in purchasing a shredder, the rule of thumb is to spend the extra cash and go with a Fellowes brand shredder. They are more powerful and built better and have a much much lower return rate than any other brand that I've seen. If in fact you do choose to shy away from quality and go with a cheaper brand, go with a cross-cut shredder. Avoid diamond-cut shredders by all means. Cross-cut and confetti-cut are synonymous and just simply have a better designed cutter than diamond-cut shredders. You will never find a heavy duty diamond cut shredder. If a store is all out of low-end cross-cut shredders, go to another store that has one.

Most office supply stores will have a plethora of printers. Most of them will be all-in-one machines either for home-office use or for personal photo type printing. There will also be single-function printers as well as portable printers. Possibly the best way to get the right printer for you is to be honest with the sales associate helping you. List off what kind of print jobs you will be mainly doing, how it will be set up whether in a bed room, office, or home office etc, and how much you are willing to spend on a printer. This will help narrow down a lot of options and help the sales associate help you find the right printer. Most associates will try to up-sell you to a printer that has slightly more features. If you don't mind getting something better, than go for it. If you don't need it, then just kindly refuse. However, if the sales associate tells you that the price you are willing to pay will not get you the kind of printer you want, then it is very likely that you won't be able to find a printer suitable to your needs in a brick and mortar store.

If you plan on buying office furniture from the store such as a chair, table, cabinet, drawer, etc, then please, please, please, please, please drive an appropriately sized car to fit the furniture.

Now regarding extended warranties: It really all depends on what kind of person you are. If you tend to not break things and take care of your electronics, then you won't need extended warranties. However, if you tend to drop things or just have terrible luck, then do seriously consider extended warranties. Not everything is recommended to get an extended warranty. However, digital cameras, printers, and laptop computers are statistically highly prone to accidental damage--which most extended warranties cover. Most extended warranties are priced based off of a range of the product price. When certain products go on sale and fall just below one price range into a lower price range, then it usually tends to be a very good investment.