When Federal Express (FedEx) bought the Kinko’s chain of 1,200 copying centers back in 2004 for $2.4 billion, everybody thought they were crazy. Kinko’s was already developing a reputation for deteriorating customer service and financial experts warned that the chain was grossly overpriced.
But FedEx wanted to catch up quickly with UPS’ growing chain of direct customer outlets that both accepted over-the-counter package acceptance and mail-drop services with their unique postal addresses. When the chain was purchased the store signs were changed to read FedEx Kinko’s and they began a campaign to get people thinking of them as a place for full document service – copying, printing, creating and of course, shipping.
Since then, the profits at the Kinko’s branch have dropped by more than half and FedEx had to absorb their accounting into the corporation’s main balance sheet. Recognizing that they were going nowhere with the Kinko’s brand, FedEx wrote off an $8.9 million charge left from the purchase and last week announced that they are dropping the Kinko’s name entirely. The customer outlet centers will now be known as FedEx Office stores and you’ll be seeing the signs changing once again after the first of the year.
Kinko’s has an interesting history, starting life as a chain of copy centers located on the edges of college campuses serving the overnight needs of rushed students. But all things eventually come to an end, just like Wooworth’s.
Speaking of things coming to an end, those poor football fans in the Detroit area had to endure watching their hapless team lose again yesterday. They were routed by New Orleans 42 – 7 and are now winless for the first 15 games of their 16-game season.
As I mentioned last week, their final game Sunday against the Green Bay Packers should be a great game to watch. You have a combination of the Lions playing their hearts out to keep from becoming the first team to ever lose every game of the season, and the Packers will be desperate to keep from becoming the only team to lose to the Lions this year. Let’s hope they put that one on the national tv.
And let’s not become the last team to get our equipment checked out this morning. While you get started on that, I’ll go make the coffee. See you back in the day room.
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