Quill.com Introduces Purchasing Manager; New Feature Centralizes Control of Supply Buying for Multi-Site Businesses

Business Wire, July 25, 2001

Business Editors

LINCOLNSHIRE, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 25, 2001

Quill Corporation, America's premier business-to-business source for school and office supplies, today announced Purchasing Manager, the latest feature on its e-commerce site, quill.com. The new, free tool enables multi-site organizations to easily centralize control of supply buying, increasing purchasing efficiencies and reducing costs from unauthorized and unnecessary purchases.

"With Purchasing Manager, the customer controls the entire process," explains Quill Corporation's Sarah Alter, quill.com vice president. "We've built three specific purchasing roles into this tool - Requestor, Approvers, and Administrator. The entire account is handled electronically by the customer, who can always be assured the right people are ordering the right supplies at all locations. Early customer feedback on the new feature has pointed to how easy it is to centralize costs and purchasing needs for multiple offices."

Purchasing Manager turns multi-site or multi-level office supply buying into a simple, logical process by:

-- Setting pre-approved limits on supply costs and amounts.

-- Establishing proper approval hierarchy and eliminating unauthorized orders.

-- Providing an instant snapshot of ordering activity and spending for each
specific cost center.

-- Creating a company- or department-wide list of pre-authorized supply items.

-- Automatically e-mailing order approvals and/or denials.

-- Editing and maintaining shipping and billing information for all sites.

Other benefits to the Purchasing Manager feature include fewer product returns and less confusion about which supplies belong at which office location.

"We've done our best to address all the supply ordering needs a multi-site customer would face," says Alter. "This program allows the customer to set the rules. After that, Purchasing Manager takes over and makes the entire process instant, hassle-free, and cost-effective."

The Purchasing Manager joins quill.com's other time-saving, service-oriented features, including a Rebate Center, Re-Order Reminder, Product Compatibility Center, UPS Order Tracker, Quill Outlet, and Favorites List. Quill.com was one of the first successful online launches in the office products industry, offering 24-hour-a-day access to the essentials every business needs. A gold-star Bizrate site, quill.com has consistently ranked 9 and above for over six months on the Bizrate scale of 1 to 10.

E-mail info@quill.com, or call 1-800-982-3400 and select prompt 3, to get complete information on quill.com's Purchasing Manager.

About Quill Corporation

Headquartered in Lincolnshire, IL, Quill Corporation was founded in June, 1956, by Jack Miller, a pioneer in the office products industry. A business-to-business direct marketer of school and office products, furniture, and computer supplies, Quill maintains nine regional distribution centers located strategically throughout the U.S. to facilitate next-day order delivery. The company also maintains a call center and distribution facility in the United Kingdom. Quill was purchased by Staples, Inc., in May, 1998, and remains a wholly owned subsidiary.