Street Talk

Iconic office supplies brand Winc hits the auction block

Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport

Feb 6, 2025 – 6.30pm

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Eight years after Los Angeles-headquartered Platinum Equity acquired Staples’ Australian and New Zealand business and rebranded it to Winc, its dealmakers are sharpening their pencils to sketch out an exit at the well-known office supplies brand.

Street Talk can reveal the buyout firm has asked investment bankers to pitch their ideas and expertise around finding a buyer for Winc, whose product range spans from bright-blue spiral notebooks to office furniture and protective workwear.

Sarah Thompson has co-edited Street Talk since 2009, specialising in private equity, investment banking, M&A and equity capital markets stories. Prior to that, she spent 10 years in London as a markets and M&A reporter at Bloomberg and Dow Jones.

Kanika Sood is a journalist based in Sydney who writes for the Street Talk column.

Emma Rapaport is a co-editor of the Street Talk column. Prior to that, she was a markets reporter at The Australian Financial Review.