No more supplies at Capital Office

Juneau’s Capital Office no longer sells office supplies.

“We’re just moving our business in a different direction,” says owner Ted Quinn.

He says the 65-year-old company will concentrate on interior design and furniture for professional offices statewide.

The office supply on Commercial Boulevard near Costco has been quietly phased out. Capital Office opened in 1946, but in recent years the supply side had grown smaller and smaller.

Quinn says it’s tough to see it go.

“It was originally Capital Office Art and Engineering. Then we opened a store, Bits and Pieces, in the Nugget Mall, for doing frames and a lot of art supplies, paints, you name it,” Quinn says. “So we’ve seen things evolve over time; markets have changed. It’s kind of sad to see it go, but it just wasn’t cutting the mustard.”

He says supplies are cumbersome and a lot of work for not a lot of revenue. There are lots of outlets now for pens, paper, toner, mailroom, and other supplies, including big box stores and the Internet.

The company owns an interior design business in Anchorage and an office furniture store in Fairbanks. Last year Quinn opened a new retail showroom in downtown Juneau that includes lighting, high-density filing, and asset management for larger companies that don’t want to warehouse product. He says it’s just a better niche these days.

The company is also the statewide dealer for Steelcase and American Seating office furniture.