pioneer mountain lyreco

Pioneers since 1926

Partnering to create a great working day

Since the foundation of Lyreco in 1926, we have been collaborating with our customers, our suppliers, our people, and the communities we operate in to pave the way for a more balanced, safer, and healthier way of working.

Four generations after the opening of a bookstore in Valenciennes, France, we continue to innovate to drive progress in sustainability for workplaces on four continents.

bookstore

The Lyreco story

In 1926 Georges-Gaston Gaspard opened a bookstore named "Gaspard" in Valenciennes, France. The company fast developed a printing service, producing its own paper products range. Gaspard started delivering directly to its customers from its first warehouse in 1936. Toward the end of the 1940s. War II, the company became one of the first B-to-B providers of office products and services.

Under the leadership of Etienne Gaspard, son of Georges-Gaston, and then his son Georges Gaspard, operational excellence remained at the core of every new solution.

Fueled by the family’s pioneering spirit, Georges Gaspard led the acquisition of Vermeire in Belgium in 1989, taking the first step toward international expansion.

In 2001, the Gaspard company became Lyreco.

Lyreco HK webshop

From the first catalogue to a 360° customer experience

Throughout the history of Lyreco, we have always strived to lead the way, building on our legacy of pioneering innovation:

  • from the first catalogue launched in 1959 to the development of a 360° customer experience combining human proximity, e-commerce and e-procurement
  • from office supplies to a complete range of workplace solutions
LYRECO EXPANSION

Local knowledge, global reach

More than 30 years after the first step of our international expansion, Lyreco is the European leader and the third largest distributor of workplace products and solutions in the world, with 15 subsidiaries operating in 25 countries and regions and a European safety expertise unit.

Since then, Lyreco keeps on growing through acquisitions. Among the latest ones, in 2019 the acquisition of Intersafe, #1 PPE player in the Netherlands, brought PPE expertise to Lyreco, in 2021, the acquisition of Staples Solution in the Nordics made Lyreco the 3rd largest distributor of workplace products in the world and in 2023, the acquisition of Premium Coffee in Denmark, Finland and Sweden, expanded its exclusive distribution of Nespresso to 11 countries.

SAFETY

Continuously evolving solutions and expertise

In 2009, IMPEGA, the brand name for our range of private label products created in 1955, was changed to Lyreco.

In the 2010s, we started extending our offer to include integrated solutions, such as product personalisation, print services, collection of used items, and more responsible alternatives.

Our Personal Protective Equipment range was launched in 2013, which led to the acquisition of Intersafe in 2019 to develop our position in the market.

In 2016, the Innovation Direction was created to accelerate the development of pioneer projects such as frictionless replenishment and circular economy.

sustainability

Our sustainability journey

Respect for people and the planet is one of Lyreco's fundamental goals. We joined the United Nations Global Compactas early as 2004 and officially made corporate responsibility a pillar of our strategy in 2012, with the Eco-Future strategy.

Major actions such as Lyreco product manufacturer audits, the Sustainable Strategy, and the CO2 emission reduction programme across all activities have been launched in this framework.

Since 2019, our strategy has reinforced our ambition to protect the people and the planet. Ethics and Sustainability in the Supply Chain, Governance and risk management and Contribution to the Community are now dedicated strategy pillars in addition to Environment, Economics and People. 

In 2020, we issued our 5 commitments to help our customers make faster progress towards a drastic reduction of non-recyclable waste in the workplace, and ultimately reduce their impact on the environment.

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Supporting development and learning

In 2008, we launched Lyreco For Education to reinforce our long-term commitment to supporting children’s right to education in the poorest countries.

Thanks to the engagement of all Lyreco employees, more than 115,000 children have been supported in six countries: Vietnam, Bangladesh, Brasil, Togo, Madgascar, Cambodia & Ethiopia.  

Our future works people together in a workplace

Future Work drives innovation

At Lyreco, we believe that envisaging the future of work is essential to provide the most appropriate and meaningful response to our customers' needs. 

Our innovation team strives to find and implement new solutions and initiatives that stimulate the creation of great working days while taking care of people and the planet.

Our latest customer solutions