Official Small Business of NASCAR, Courtesy of Office Depot

OFFICE DEPOT® AND TWO-TIME NASCAR® CHAMPION TONY STEWART TEAM UP TO FIND THE NEXT ‘OFFICIAL SMALL BUSINESS OF NASCAR, COURTESY OF OFFICE DEPOT’

New Element Includes Daily Prize Where One Small Business Wins

A $1,400 Office Depot Gift Card Every Day

Boca Raton, Fla., May 4, 2009 – In these challenging economic times, it is more important than ever for small business owners to find new and unique ways to stand out among the competition.  

To help small businesses achieve this goal, Office Depot® (NYSE: ODP), the Official Office Products Partner of NASCAR, and Tony Stewart, two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ champion and driver of the No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevy Impala SS, have teamed up to provide small business owners with a one-of-a-kind opportunity to become the “Official Small Business of NASCAR, Courtesy of Office Depot.”

As the “Official Small Business of NASCAR, Courtesy of Office Depot,” the winning business will have its company name or logo featured on the No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevy driven by Stewart and seen by millions of people during the nationally televised Pep Boys Auto 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ race at Atlanta Motor Speedway later this year (Sunday, Sept. 6, 7 p.m. EST, ESPN).  This valuable opportunity gives a small business the kind of mass-market exposure usually afforded to only much larger companies. The winner will also receive a $14,000 small business makeover from Office Depot and a host of other prizes.  To enter for a chance to win, simply register online atOfficeDepotRacing.com from May 2 through May 31.

“I know how challenging it is to build a successful business and how much hard work it takes,” said Stewart, who has taken on the role of driver/team owner with Stewart-Haas Racing in 2009.  “The ‘Official Small Business of NASCAR Sweepstakes, Courtesy of Office Depot’ is a dream come true for a small business to get its name out there in front of millions of people. I’m excited to carry the winning company’s logo on my race car in front of a national audience.”

Small Business Wins At Office Depot

The “Official Small Business of NASCAR Sweepstakes Courtesy of Office Depot” also features an exciting new component this year that will allow more small businesses to win big with Office Depot: Every day during the promotional window, one lucky small business owner will win a $1,400 Office Depot gift card. 

“Office Depot helps small business owners take care of business every day, and our goal is to offer the smart solutions that will help our customers in today’s economy,” said Jeff Herbert, Senior Vice President of Marketing for Office Depot. “We are thrilled to be able to provide one small business owner with a unique opportunity to leverage the tremendous popularity of NASCAR by putting their business on the Office Depot race car.  We’ve also made the decision to broaden this successful promotion this year to reach even more small business owners by awarding a $1,400 Office Depot gift card every single day during the sweepstakes promotional period.”

From Start To Finish: Sweepstakes Details

The “Official Small Business of NASCAR Sweepstakes Courtesy of Office Depot” launches on May 2 during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ race weekend at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway and runs through May 31. The winning small business’s name or logo will appear on the TV panel of the No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevy Impala SS piloted by Tony Stewart during the September 4-6 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ race weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

The Grand Prize package includes:

•    A $14,000 Small Business Makeover from Office Depot

•    VIP race experience at the September 4-6 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ race weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway

•    A private coaching session with NASCAR executives, including an insider’s look at the business of NASCAR

•    $1,400 copy & print card from Office Depot

•    $1,000 worth of business cards and stationery from Office Depot

•    One year of Tech Depot™ Services Tech Support

•    The use of the “Official Small Business of NASCAR® Courtesy of Office Depot®” logo until June 1, 2010

Enter For a Chance To Win

Entries can be submitted in store or online at OfficeDepotRacing.com from May 2 through May 31.  No purchase is required.  

The “Official Small Business of NASCAR, Courtesy of Office Depot” sweepstakes is open to legal residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (except Quebec) who are over the age of majority and own an eligible small business with no more than 99 employees. 

Entries/nominations may be submitted by any person on behalf of an eligible small business owner but only the small business owner is eligible to win.  Official Rules and complete prize description available at OfficeDepotRacing.com.

For Office Depot store locations, please click on Office Depot: Your Local Office Supply Store to find locations near you.

For more information about Office Depot’s NASCAR sponsorship, please visithttp://mediarelations.officedepot.cc/racing/.

About Office Depot

Every day, Office Depot is Taking Care of Business for millions of customers around the globe.  For the local corner store as well as Fortune 500 companies, Office Depot provides products and services to its customers through 1,604 worldwide retail stores, a dedicated sales force, top-rated catalogs and a $4.6 billion e-commerce operation.  Office Depot has annual sales of approximately $14.5 billion, and employs about 42,000 associates around the world. The Company provides more office products and services to more customers in more countries than any other company, and currently sells to customers directly or through affiliates in 48 countries.

Office Depot’s common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol ODP and is included in the S&P 500 Index.  Additional press information can be found at:http://mediarelations.officedepot.com.