Office Depot Parts With JWT After Staples' Merger Fails CHICAGO--J. Walter Thompson here has closed an unexpectedly brief relationship with Office Depot, after producing just two campaigns and watching from the sidelines as the client's merger plans colla

The future of Office Depot’s estimated $35 million broadcast account is in limbo. JWT, which won broadcast creative responsibilities in March 1996, is no longer handling the business, the agency confirmed last week. Media duties had been handled in-house by the client, which spent a total of $68.5 million last year, according to Competitive Media Reporting.
The Delray Beach, Fla.-based chain and a competitor, Staples of Framingham, Mass., announced their intentions to merge last September. In June, the Federal Trade Commission opposed the deal on anti-trust grounds, however, and the deal was scrapped.
JWT had anticipated an opportunity to pitch the combined businesses.