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Mail Boxes Etc. centers to open next month in Tokyo and Vienna
For Immediate Release
Contact: MAIL BOXES ETC.
Mail Boxes Etc. Global Headquarters
(858) 455-8982
PR@mbe.com
SAN DIEGO (April 1, 1999) -
You’re the founder of a fledgling, start-up company trying to compete in international markets against an established Fortune 500 company and it’s an hour before the biggest presentation of your life. You need to have 30 copies of your sales pitch copied and bound and, moreover, you need it done right. Or perhaps you’re the top salesperson for a large company’s international development division and you, too, need materials that will impress. Soon, regardless of whether you’re doing business in Tokyo or Vienna, you will have a familiar business service center at your beck and call.
Mail Boxes Etc. (MBE), the world’s largest franchisor of retail business, communication and postal service centers, continues its rapid international expansion to help serve global business needs in all regions of the world. Having already established itself in the U.S. as a leading provider of business support services for small businesses, MBE is now poised to capitalize on the worldwide growth of the SOHO market.
Among the new international center openings planned for May 1999 are Tokyo and Vienna, with expansion continuing in Europe, Asia and the Americas.
In recent months, MBE has signed agreements with master licensees for the development of the MBE concept in Austria, Japan and Central America. The diversity of these geographic regions, economic environments and cultures illustrates the adaptability of MBE to meet the needs of businesses and consumers in a variety of markets. MBE, a wholly owned subsidiary of U.S. Office Products Company, (NASDAQ: OFIS) currently has more than 3,700 franchises operating worldwide, of which more than 670 operate outside the United States. Master licensing agreements are in place for 60 countries around the world, and MBE centers are operating in 27 countries outside the U.S.
"Our expansion into these diverse regions demonstrates the confidence that the MBE concept has gained throughout the world, regardless of whether a country’s economy is advanced, developing or in transition," said James Amos, MBE president and CEO. "Moreover, with the continued international development of the small-business market, we’re positioning ourselves as the global leader in business support services."
The emphasis on international development is a key strategic initiative of the franchisor. In the last few months, the company has capitalized on increasing interest in MBE and built upon the prior year’s international growth. Since January 1997, MBE has signed seven master license agreements covering 16 countries. Peter Holt, MBE senior vice president, international, cites Italy, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Venezuela, Australia, and Saudi Arabia as examples of how diverse cultures are adapting the MBE concept.
"We are witnessing a rapid growth in the small-business market segment in key regions of the world," said Holt. "This phenomenon, combined with a global increase in demand for convenience services, creates an unprecedented need for world-class business support services. MBE intends to be the world leader in providing these services."
"The challenge facing small offices and home-based businesses is finding the capital to invest in office space, equipment, support personnel or other overhead," Holt added. "MBE allows today’s small-business worker to eliminate or minimize many of these overhead expenditures. We provide much more than a place to send a courier package or make photocopies."
With MBE, small businesses now have the ability to operate like big business, regardless of where they are located in the world. In addition to pack and ship services, mailbox rentals, faxing, photocopying and document services, many MBE centers may also offer computer time rental with Internet access.
A grand opening will occur in a few weeks for a pilot center for the Austrian master licensee, which will be offering MBE’s services in Vienna. Danube Business Services, GmbH, signed a master license agreement for Austria in December and preliminary business plans envision opening approximately 60 MBE centers during the next six years. Currently, there are more than 300 MBE centers operating in Europe and the Middle East.
"We anticipate a strong and increasing demand from consumers and businesses in Austria for the services provided by MBE centers," says Hendrik Homan, managing director of the Austrian MBE master license. "Based on MBE’s rapid growth throughout the rest of the world, we’re confident in its adaptability to the Austrian market."
According to statistics from Eurostat, a statistical office of the European Union, new forms of employment, including small office, home based and contractual work, have increased throughout Europe, and approximately nine out of 10 firms employ fewer than 10 people. Furthermore, small and medium size firms are reported to provide two-thirds of EU jobs.
"The Western European economy is experiencing a shift from an industrial / manufacturing economy to a service economy. This is leading to corporate downsizing, re-engineering, outsourcing and, subsequently, an increase in small-business development ," said Holt. "These economic changes across Europe help merit our belief that the region is ideally suited for MBE’s range of business services. Many of these consumers are literally starved for world-class customer service, and that is exactly what MBE can deliver."
Concurrent with the Vienna opening, the master licensee for MBE in Japan is planning to open in Tokyo next month. MBE Japan, a wholly owned subsidiary of FamilyMart Co. Ltd., a leading franchisor of retail convenience stores in Asia, was awarded the master license for MBE’s development in Japan last August. Preliminary business plans by the master licensee envision the development of more than 1,000 MBE centers in Japan during the next 10 years.
"We feel the MBE concept is ideally suited for Japanese consumers who require business, communication and postal services of high quality at convenient retail centers," said Shigeru Goto, president and chief executive officer, FamilyMart.
Changes in Japan’s economy are resulting in widespread corporate downsizing and an increase of small businesses and in franchise businesses, as individuals are starting to place a higher value on entrepreneurial endeavors. The Japan master licensee also has seen convenience-based retail sales sustain growth in Japan, despite an overall decrease in retail sales.
"The situation in Japan is a perfect example of how quickly the small-business market is impacting economies throughout the world," said Holt. "A few years ago, we never would have believed that Japan would experience such a dramatic socio-economic change."
There are approximately 60 franchised MBE centers open in Australia, Asia and the Pacific.
Currently, MBE is actively seeking master licensees in Central and Northern Europe, Latin America and Asia, for future development of the MBE concept worldwide.
Mail Boxes Etc., a wholly owned subsidiary of U.S. Office Products Company (NASDAQ: OFIS), is the
world's largest franchisor of retail business communication and postal service centers. There are more
than 3,700 MBE centers operating worldwide, with master licensing agreements in place for the development
of the MBE business in 60 countries around the world. In the United States, MBE centers are owned and
operated by licensed franchisees of Mail Boxes Etc., USA, Inc. Outside the United States, MBE centers
are owned and operated by MBE master licensees or their franchisees. MBE maintains a Web site
at http://www.mbe.com.
U.S. Office Products Company (USOP) is one of North America's leading providers of office supplies, office
furniture, and office breakroom products featuring Starbucks Coffee. USOP also owns and operates Mail Boxes
Etc. and Blue Star Group Limited, a leading supplier of office products and business services in New
Zealand and Australia. USOP’s web site can be found
at www.usop.com.
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