Viking Direct

Viking is an omni-channel office supplies company selling a broad range of office supplies varying from stationery to furniture, breakroom and catering essentials. It has its European headquarters in Venlo, Netherlands, along with offices in Leicester, United Kingdom, and a service center in Cluj, Romania serving all regions where Viking operates. Additionally, Viking has two distribution centers in Großostheim, Germany serving DACH and Benelux regions, and Leicester, United Kingdom, serving United Kingdom and Ireland. Founded in 1960 in Los Angeles, California, US, Viking currently has operations in eight countries, and employs over 1,500 employees.

History
Viking began in 1960, as a small office supply retailer located in Los Angeles, California. The store was opened on January 7, 1960, by Rolf Ostern. Ostern supplemented the retail operation with a catalogue, and this would become the primary marketing technique of the company. In 1969, Ostern changed the name of his store to Viking Office Supplies and moved to a new location.[2]

By the mid-1970s, Viking had established itself as a West Coast mail order retailer of discount office supplies to small and medium sized businesses. At that time, the company began a geographic expansion.

Irwin Helford became chairman in 1984, and his photo appeared on the cover of Viking catalogues for many years.[3]

On September 1, 1988, Viking was sold in a leveraged buyout to VOP Acquisition Corporation, founded by Viking's management and Dillon Read & Company. In December 1989, VOP merged into its subsidiary, Viking Office Products, ahead of the company's IPO.

The company made its first move overseas in September 1990. Under the name Viking Direct in Europe, they first began assisting companies in their adjustment from paper to computer. At that time, Viking established a United Kingdom subsidiary, Viking Direct Limited, and opened a facility in Leicester, United Kingdom. In making this move, Viking hoped to gain a toehold in the European Economic Community before the planned unification of that market. In a short span of time, Viking Direct became the largest reseller of office supplies in the United Kingdom. In 1995, Viking founded its subsidiaries in Netherlands, Germany, and Ireland, and later expanded its presence with the establishment of an Austrian subsidiary in 1997. Subsequent years saw the addition of subsidiaries in Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, Italy, Portugal, and France.

In May 1998, Viking Office Products merged with Office Depot. The following year the company began to move online, launching an e-commerce site www.viking-direct.co.uk[4] and subsequently websites in other countries. For a short period, they also operated as a standalone European business. In May 2016, following a failed merger with Staples,[5] Office Depot Inc. agreed to sell its European business, including Viking, to Aurelius Group for an undisclosed purchase price.[6]

In November 2021, Aurelius sold the business to The RAJA Group.[7]