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.
Discover Our 100 Years Story on Film.
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, 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.
The Pioneers Podcast
The Pioneers Podcast by Lyreco’s Innovation Team brings you conversations with the thinkers, builders, and leaders redefining how we work. Each episode dives into the trends, ideas, and real-world transformations shaping the workplace of tomorrow, cutting through buzzwords to focus on what truly matters – a great working day delivered.
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
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 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.
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.
Our sustainability journey
Respect for people and the planet is one of Lyreco's fundamental goals. We joined the United Nations Global Compact as 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.
10,000+ employees supporting better access to education
Since its creation in 2008, the vision of Lyreco for Education has been to develop education where it is needed most in the world. Year after year and project after project, this programme has been part of our Lyreco company culture.
Through Lyreco for Education, we focus our Lyreco people commitment and goodwill on participating in fund raising actions across our countries. This is how we have raised more than 4 million € together over the last 15 years. Our aim is to promote a better access to education for children around the world.
We have completed projects to improve the quality and equality of education in Bangladesh, Vietnam, Brazil, Togo, Madagascar and Cambodia. Since 2023 and over the next three years, we are developing a new project to help 10 schools in Ethiopia.