BOCA RATON, Fla., 2016-Nov-07 — /EPR Retail News/ — Office Depot, Inc. (NASDAQ: ODP), a leading global provider of office products, services, and solutions, through its Office Depot and OfficeMax brands, announced three new dances for Elf Yourself®, a mobile application that allows users to create videos of themselves and others dancing as elves in various settings.
To date, the holiday app has been downloaded more than 92 million times (2012-2015), and with three new dances this year, including “Chrismukkah,” Hip Hop Shop and Secret Santa, more users than ever are expected to kick off the 2016 holiday season with Elf Yourself®.
2016 marks only the fifth time in 111 years that Hanukkah coincides with Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Families have increasingly combined both holidays to celebrate what’s been named “Chrismukkah.” In a recent Office Depot survey, out of those who plan to celebrate “Chrismukkah,” 20 percent said 2016 will be their first year doing so. Families and individuals will be able to truly celebrate “Chrismukkah” on one day with this rare alignment.
“As more and more people blend holiday traditions, particularly for ‘Chrismukkah,’ Office Depot wants to offer them an entertaining way to create new traditions and get into the spirit of the season,” said Diane Nick, senior vice president of marketing for Office Depot, Inc. “Elf Yourself® marks the beginning of the holiday seasons for many, and we are excited to share these fun, interactive dances with them.”
Such a unique date and celebration inspired the creation of a new “Chrismukkah” dance, which features aspects of the traditional Christmas and Hanukkah Elf Yourself® dances that users love, but with a new twist that is sure to spark the holiday spirit. The dance starts by presenting Christmas and Hanukkah dances separately and then blends the two into an exciting performance. The “Chrismukkah” dance will help users celebrate the differences in holiday traditions and mark this historical convergence with festivity.
The app will also feature a recently released Hip Hop Shop song and dance, in which the elves help Santa shop to the beat for trendy gifts from sneakers to hats to tablets.
The third dance released for 2016 invites users to celebrate the holiday season at work with Secret Santa gift giving. In this unique routine, the elves parade around their “office” – better known as Santa’s workshop – merrily distributing gifts to their “co-workers” – or fellow elves. Their generosity and glee is sure to enchant and inspire everyone to get into the holiday spirit.
Originally an online platform, the Elf Yourself® has created nearly 1.3 billion elves with more than 519 million users in over 200 countries, that’s enough elves for nearly four times the United States population! The updated app is available to download today at elfyourself.com or through your mobile app store. To create videos with Elf Yourself®, users can simply upload up to five photos, from either their camera roll, Facebook or taken on the app, select a dance theme, and the app will generate a custom Elf Yourself® video that they can share with friends and family via email and social media platforms, as well as embed into websites and blogs.
Survey Methodology/Sample Qualifications
Interviews are conducted via the Internet among a nationally representative sample of personal shoppers. The Quarter 3 wave of interviewing was conducted from July 15, 2016 to September 30, 2016 among a total of 1,609 personal shoppers. Interviewing will be conducted on a monthly basis in order to track shifts that occur over time.
About Office Depot, Inc.
Office Depot, Inc. is a leading global provider of products, services, and solutions for every workplace – whether your workplace is an office, home, school or car.
Office Depot, Inc. is a resource and a catalyst to help customers work better. We are a single source for everything customers need to be more productive, including the latest technology, core office supplies, print and document services, business services, facilities products, furniture, and school essentials.
The company has annual sales of approximately $14 billion, employs approximately 49,000 associates, and serves consumers and businesses in 59 countries with approximately 1,800 retail stores, award-winning e-commerce sites and a dedicated business-to-business sales organization – all delivered through a global network of wholly owned operations, franchisees, licensees and alliance partners. The company operates under several banner brands including Office Depot, OfficeMax, Grand & Toy, and Viking. The company’s portfolio of exclusive product brands include TUL, Foray, Brenton Studio, Ativa, WorkPro, Realspace and HighMark.
Office Depot, Inc.’s common stock is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol ODP. Additional press information can be found at: http://news.officedepot.com.
Contact:
Julianne Embry
561-438-1451
julianne.embry@officedepot.com
Sarah England
561-438-1448
sarah.england@officedepot.com
Source: Office Depot, Inc.